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Here's something that worked for me: put your phone in your pocket and go on a design walk. While walking, design the next step in whatever you're working on. Design walks work great with more than one person, too.

Aristotle was on to something when he adopted a peripatetic approach to thinking.

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I don't think this is a solution. I do this often naturally, I walk around and "plan", and it feels like I'm just avoiding sitting down and doing the actual task.

The author talks about it; when facing a difficult problem, they go get a glass of water, and get distracted. That's what this is. Anything but doing the actual task. If you're going to take a break, take an honest break and rest, but then go back to work. That's the real solution, and boy is it hard to do these days.

I'm not talking about using a walk as a way to avoid doing real work. I mean doing real work, putting your focus in it, while you walk for, say, at least twenty minutes to really get the blood moving.

But don't wait until you're mentally exhausted to do it. It's not a way to recharge, not a substitute for rest. It's a way to remove distractions and get your whole body into an exercise that requires your attention.

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