My 'just one more' email check at 10pm was wrecking my sleep for years

I kept failing to shut down my work laptop because I'd always think of one more thing to check. The fix was setting a physical timer for 8 minutes when I started my shutdown routine at 9pm. When it beeps, the laptop closes no matter what. It felt silly using a $5 kitchen timer from Target, but it broke the cycle. Has anyone else found a physical object that finally got them to stop a bad work habit?

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susandixon6mo ago

That kitchen timer trick is basically weaponizing a beep.

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the_kai6mo ago

Pro tip @susandixon, just hide the timer.

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joseph_black5mo ago

My roommate tried that same trick on me last year with a loud kitchen timer for when I forgot to take out the trash. I just started hiding it in the freezer behind the frozen peas, it would beep but by the time she found it the moment was gone. Honestly the best counter is to set your own timer for when you need to do the thing, beat them at their own game before the beep even starts. If you really want to shut it down, buy a silent vibrating timer off Amazon for like 12 bucks and use that instead, they can't weaponize what they can't hear. The whole thing is just a power move, ignore the beep long enough and they realize it doesnt actually get you to do anything faster.

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