2025-12-19
Writing a quick note describing next steps for yourself before taking a break from work can be helpful.
Whenever I want to take a break from a stretch of productivity, I write a quick 'Up Next' note that contains context for my next work session. This note contains brief bullet points that enumerate tasks to tackle next time I work to make progress from the just-completed work session.
Here is an example of what an up next note might look like:
## Up Next
- fix the merge issues in the PR for the `add-toast` branch
- add tests that verify that auth redirects work fine
- update github action to only run on pull request
This note is not a to-do list. Its scope is limited to whatever big task(s) you might be working on. Its purpose is to provide you with a snapshot of what you considered to be the most meaningful next steps at the last time that you were in deep work. Writing this note whenever you are about to take a long break from working saves your future self from the friction and chaos of trying to figure out what to work on.
I use Raycast's Notes for this.