What if I told you that everything changes when you stop trying to work like a machine… and instead start working like a human?

For the last 3 months or so, I’ve been experimenting with my daily structure.

And the results speak for themselves.

I’ve experienced:

• Deeper thinking

• Better ideation for my content

• Producing higher quality work

• Accessing deeper focus than before

• Ending the day with energy left over

And the craziest part was that I wasn’t working harder or longer.

Many creators and solopreneurs grind for 10 to 14 hours a day.

And when you look at how they spend those hours, you’ll see that they are filled with scattered focus and busy work.

Emails. Admin. To-dos. Doomscrolling. Distractions.

Or you’ll see them grind on a task for 3 hours only to take a 5-hour break after, but the task is done poorly.

The truth is, your brain isn’t built for that.

And you’re working against it when you work long hours.

Your brain is wired for sprints, not marathons.

When you understand how your brain works, you can work less.

You’ll also be able to enter flow on demand and get better results.

The Death of An Era: Ditching The Pomodoro

When you start working on your productivity, the first thing you’re told to work on is time management.

This inevitably leads you to the Pomodoro technique.

If you’re unfamiliar, the Pomodoro method was created in the late 1980s by Francesco Cirillo.

As a university student, he struggled to focus on his studies and constantly procrastinated.

Out of frustration, he grabbed a tomato-shaped kitchen timer (pomodoro means “tomato” in Italian — hence the name), set it for 25 minutes, and told himself to study until it rang.

And it worked!

The 25 minutes were manageable, and the timer gave him structure.

He refined his approach into what is now known as the Pomodoro technique:

• 25 minutes of focused work followed by a 5-minute break. You’d repeat this 4 times before taking a longer 30-minute break.

This was the very technique I started with. And it’s the technique I see provided as a solution for people struggling to focus.

It's a simple technique, incredibly effective and useful... but there's a problem.

…It’s too short.

It's a quick and sustainable way to reduce resistance and start working on a task.

But the better you get at focusing and not procrastinating, the less effective it is.

There were moments I was annoyed (and yes, I mean annoyed) when the timer went off for my 5-minute break.

It felt like I was being cut off just as I was getting into it.

I’m working through whatever resistance comes up as I start, the resistance drops, and I’m getting into the groove of things and then boom — time goes off.

It’s like sitting down to watch a newly released episode of your favourite series, but 10 minutes into the episode, the lights go out.

Just as things get good, it’s taken from you.

And that really sucks.

Sometimes I’d ignore it, and that’s when my Pomodoro became less and less Pomodoro.

Remember, Pomodoro is 25 minutes of focus followed by 5 minutes of rest.

This led to my work blocks extending to 45 minutes with a 15-minute break.

Then eventually to 50 minutes and 10-minute breaks.

I loved this structure because it kept things within the hour.

(Yes, little things like that make me happy).

But soon enough, 60 minutes was not enough either.

Just like how the 5-minute breaks seemed to come too quickly, so did the 10-minute breaks after the 50-minute bouts of focus.

The Pomodoro technique is great for small tasks, but it becomes counterproductive for bigger tasks.

So I thought, “If I go over 50 minutes, what’s the longest I can focus for?”

And that led me to discover that the brain and body have their own rhythm.

A rhythm that I was not only ignoring but also underutilising this whole time.

The Body’s Natural Rhythm

You’ve probably heard of circadian rhythms — the 24-hour cycle that governs when you sleep, wake, and feel alert.

But within that daily cycle, your brain and body also run on shorter cycles called ultradian rhythms.

These are natural 90–120 minute oscillations of alertness, energy, and recovery.

How they work:

• For about 90 to 120 minutes, your body ramps up: increased heart rate, heightened alertness, sharper focus.

• Then it dips. Neurochemicals deplete, brain waves shift, and you naturally feel more fatigued or restless.

Most people are completely unaware of these cycles, especially the dips.

They’ll be working on something and then suddenly feel a dip.

And instead of adhering to the dip, they push through with coffee, a snack, sugar or sheer willpower.

All of which lead to other problems:

• Too much coffee → anxious and jittery. Messing up your cortisol. Making caffeine your source of energy.

• Snacks → If high in glucose, these cause a spike in your blood sugar, which is followed by a crash, and to avoid the crash, you eat more snacks or caffeine. Your insulin is high, so fat-burning mode is off. Then you find that you’ve gained an extra 2kgs.

• Reliance on willpower → Leads to increased decision fatigue. Willpower is a finite resource, and you expend a lot of energy using it, which, over the long term, will lead to increased stress and burnout.

Overall, your productivity crashes, mistakes increase, and you’re always fatigued and drained of energy.

Why?

Because you’re fighting your biology.

So what do you do instead?

You align with your biology.

You align your work with your ultradian rhythms.

You ride the natural waves for focus and creativity.

You rest when the dips come.

Understanding your ultradian cycles is how you tap into high-performance.

That’s why 90 minutes is so powerful. It matches your biology.

Brainwaves and The Cycles

There’s also a brainwave shift happening when you use these 90-minute cycles for focus.

• At the start of a session, your brain is in beta — alert, focused, but a little noisy.

• As you sustain attention, you begin dipping into alpha — a calmer, more creative state where connections spark.

• In flow, you hover right between alpha and theta — deep focus mixed with creativity.

This shift doesn’t happen instantly. It takes time to happen.

This explained why 25-minute Pomodoros felt shallow to me.

I was barely warming up before the bell rang.

But with 90 minutes, you have time to drop deeper into these brainwave states and actually reach flow.

Why 90 Minutes Works (and 25 Doesn’t)

The Pomodoro technique is popular because it feels easy.

Anyone can commit to 25 minutes.

• 25 minutes is great for getting started on small tasks.

• 25 minutes is great for overcoming procrastination.

• 25 minutes is great if you are still building your focus capacity.

But, at a certain level, the 25 minutes isn’t so great.

It actually becomes terrible.

• 25 minutes is terrible for cognitively demanding work.

• 25 minutes is terrible for flow states.

• 25 minutes is terrible for deep thinking and creativity.

Complex, creative and high-leverage work requires immersion.

It takes time for your brain to quiet down and fully engage.

Research suggests it takes 23 minutes to enter deep focus.

So if you stop at 25, you’re ending the race before it’s begun.

That’s why 90 minutes is the sweet spot:

• Long enough to reach flow.

• Short enough to avoid burnout.

• Perfectly aligned with your body’s ultradian rhythm.

You are a Mental Athlete

Runners don’t run marathons every day.

Musicians don’t rehearse 8 hours straight.

Olympic lifters don’t max out their lifts for hours.

They train in intervals.

Short bursts of intensity, followed by recovery.

Why?

Because performance is cyclical.

Stress + rest = growth.

The same applies to you. A cognitive worker.

A mental athlete.

An athlete’s weapon is their body. Yours is your brain.

If you don’t train your brain in intervals, you will only get diminishing returns.

Ninety minutes of deep cognitive effort, followed by 15–20 minutes of recovery, creates a sustainable rhythm.

It creates that cycle of high performance.

When you approach your work like a mental athlete — sprint, rest, repeat — everything changes.

You won’t be drained by 2 pm.

Your output will improve.

You won’t burn out.

And you’ll look forward to your work sessions.

Finding A New Rhythm

Once I started working in these 90-minute blocks, not only did my productivity go up, but my flow and performance did too.

I was getting immersed in tasks, experiencing less frustration and ending my work sessions feeling satisfied.

Not every 90-minute block was the same.

Some flew by quickly.

Others had slow starts.

Some ended at 60 minutes.

Others I pushed to 120 minutes.

But overall, I found had a rhythm that worked for me.

I learned so much about my own energy ebbs and flows, which allowed me to time my work blocks so I did my most demanding work when I was most energised.

And the surprising part: once I started working in 90-minute blocks, I discovered I didn’t need more hours.

In fact, I needed fewer.

Because each block was so focused, so productive, I could do in 4–5 hours what used to take 8–10.

And because I was resting in between, I ended the day energised instead of drained.

This is what most solopreneurs miss.

They think productivity means packing more hours into the day and more tasks and effort into those hours.

But real productivity, especially productivity that prioritises performance, is about aligning your work with your biology and energy.

That’s the real advantage.

Why It Matters For You

As someone who is growing a business, you quickly realise that you can’t grow your business if all your time is spent in busywork or in shallow focus.

You’re here because you want to:

• Create meaningful work that impacts others.

• Make money doing what you love and enjoy.

• Build systems that give you freedom.

• Have the energy to enjoy and live your life.

• Consistently work on tasks that move the needle forward.

But you’ll never get there if your days are eaten by distractions, admin, and reactive work.

90-minute cycles are the system that unlocks your highest potential without burning you out.

Imagine ending each day knowing you:

• Moved your most important projects forward

• Produced your best work, not just busywork

• Still have energy for your life outside work

That’s how you win.

• If you work against your biology, you’ll always feel behind, exhausted, and unproductive.

• If you work with your biology, you’ll do your best work in less time, with more energy left over.

The 90-minute cycle isn’t just a technique.

It’s a new way of approaching your work.

A way that respects how the human body actually operates.

How to Play the 90-Minute Game

Here’s how to start implementing this today.

Think of it like designing your day as a series of “sprints” — each one moving your most important projects forward.

Step 1: Pick Your Task

Choose one high-leverage task for the block.

• Write your newsletter

• Outline a client proposal

• Deep dive into a topic

• Build your sales page

• Record a video

Not admin. Not your inbox. Not social media.

Your block is for needle-moving work only.

Step 2: Protect the Block

Schedule the 90 minutes in your calendar. Treat it like a meeting with your future self.

Then, when you get into the ‘meeting’:

• Silence your phone (or leave it in another room).

• Close every unnecessary tab.

• Set “Do Not Disturb” on all notifications.

Boundaries are non-negotiable here.

Flow requires uninterrupted attention.

Step 3: Work Deeply

Commit to the task until the timer ends.

No switching. No checking. No multitasking.

Steven Kotler says, “Flow follows focus.”

So if you want to access flow, your only job is to ensure your attention is directed and focused on the task at hand.

Step 4: Recover (15–20 Minutes)

When the timer ends, step away.

• Walk, stretch, breathe.

• Light movement.

• Menial tasks that require no heavy thinking.

This isn’t wasted time — it’s how you reset for the next block.

Think of it like resting between sets at the gym.

Challenge: Avoid going onto social media. Remember, your brain needs rest, not more stimulation.

Step 5: Repeat (2–3 Blocks per Day)

Most solopreneurs only need 2–3 blocks a day.

That’s 3–4.5 hours of true deep work.

More than enough to move your most important projects forward.

Note: You know your schedule and goals best, so you can decide how many blocks you want in a day.

Step 6: Reflect

At the end of each block, ask: Did I move my most important project forward?

This small reflection reinforces momentum.

Bonus Tips

1. Stack Your Blocks Early

   I’ve found my brain is sharpest in the morning.

   So I schedule my most important blocks before noon.

2. Warm-Up Phase

   Use the first 5–10 minutes of the block as a warm-up. Outline, brainstorm, or set intentions before diving in.

3. Environment Signals

   Your environment makes or breaks your focus.

   Clear any distractions.

   Put your phone in another room if necessary.

   Tell people you’re working or close the door.

   Use headphones.

   Have a well-lit room.

   You can use the Distraction Elimination Checklist to go deeper into environment design.

4. Respect the Dip

   When your brain and focus start drifting at any point during the 90-minute block, listen to it.

   It’s not a weakness.

   It’s biology.

   That’s your reset signal.

The First 90-Minute Sprint

When you do this for the first time, it’d be uncomfortable and unfamiliar.

You’ll get your space ready, put away your phone, clear distractions, get your water and have your one task clearly outlined.

The first 20 minutes might be messy.

Your mind will resist and try to pull you away.

You want to switch tasks or open social media.

But if you can hold on until the 30-minute mark, your brain will start to settle.

You’re getting into it.

By the 45-minute mark, you’re locked in.

Things are flowing.

Ideas are connecting.

You’re working with flow.

Then you’ll look at the time again, and 88 minutes will have flown by.

You would have finished more in that 1 session than you have in a week of scattered effort.

Everything changes when you treat these 90 minutes as your performance baseline instead of “a productivity hack”.

And 90-minute sprints will be your new norm.

So I’ll leave you with this challenge:

For the upcoming week, schedule ONE 90-minute sprint.

Pick your most important project. Schedule it in your calendar. Protect that time.

And see how it feels and how much you get done.

Your work and life deserve to be done at your highest level.

And it starts with one 90-minute sprint.

Thank you for reading.

I hope you enjoyed it.

And I’ll see you in the next one.

— Shana

p.s.

I’m launching a 1:1 programme to help you overcome burnout and achieve 5+ hours of daily flow so you can achieve peak performance and do more in less time.

If you’re interested in working together and levelling up your performance, apply here.