These tips are based on the answers for the question came from a student on r/productivity. They had two capstone projects to finish and planned to do four hours of deep work a day for three days.
About fifty comments and replies followed.
Some of the suggestions were things you don't usually see in lists about focus. The more familiar and unfamiliar came up too.
A browser that is only for work
The most upvoted answer was about using Safari only for deep work and Chrome for entertainment.
The reason was simple: "so my subconscious mind knows I'm being serious."
Avoid something worse
One person said they focus better when they are avoiding something they hate even more.
Their suggestion was to make the project the thing you do instead of cleaning your messiest corner, paying bills, or helping a friend move.
Build anticipation to work
Spend time with the topic related to the task outside work hours. Like read a related article, follow a subreddit or watch a video.
Get interest in it. But don't work on the task until the time you've set for that.
One commenter described it as a carrot on a stick that you hold yourself.
Keep a brain dump sheet
Keep a piece of paper beside you.
When something random comes into your head, write it down.
Don't look it up. Don't open a new tab. Don't follow the thought.
You can deal with it during your break or later.
This is similar to interstitial journaling.
Reward the checkpoints
Two people mentioned rewarding themselves during or after the work instead of waiting until everything was finished.
A snack. Some fruit. Something small.
It will make the work easier to keep going.
Work beside a stranger
One person called this a magic trick.
Work next to somebody else, even if you don't know them.
That's part of why libraries and coffee shops work for some people.
One commenter used a website that pairs you with a stranger. You both say what you're going to work on, mute yourselves, work, and check in at the end.
A team can use the same idea. If everyone can see that everyone else is working, there is a little more pressure to stay on task.
Pick a soundtrack
This one caused the most disagreement.
Lo-fi.
Classical.
Dub reggae.
House.
Ambient radio.
Dubstep.
Talk radio.
Apps that generate sounds for focus.
Binaural beats got both "this always works" and "this does nothing" responses.
There wasn't much agreement about the type of music.
There was agreement about one thing: music you can sing along to is probably not helping.
If you know all the words, part of your attention is going somewhere else.
Focus Board has background sounds for the same reason.
Put the phone away
Turn off notifications.
Put the phone in another room. Put it face down. Use Do Not Disturb.
One person said that when they were in college, they would put their phone in a locker before studying in the library.
Someone who works remotely keeps social logins off their work laptop.
The basic idea is the same: make the distraction harder to reach.
Decide what you're doing before you start
Don't sit down and then figure out what to work on.
Spend some time deciding what needs to get done.
One person suggested breaking a big task into smaller ones instead of just looking at a long to-do list.
Pick the one thing that would make the day productive and start there.
Use a timer
Some people used 50-minute blocks.
Others used Pomodoro.
One person watched YouTube videos with a Pomodoro timer on the screen.
The exact timing varied, but the pattern was similar:
One task.
One block of time.
Then a break.
That's the basic idea behind Focus Board too: pick one task and work on it for 25 minutes.
Move a little
A 20-minute walk before starting.
A few jumping jacks during a break.
Nothing complicated.
One person took the advice a little too far, went hiking, and came back sunburnt, tired and with a headache.
The reply was basically: find the amount of exercise that wakes you up without exhausting you.
Eat and sleep
Have enough food for the session.
Keep water nearby.
Don't eat so much that you get sleepy.
One commenter mentioned avoiding caffeine five or six hours before bed and avoiding screens during the last hour.