8 Minute Timer
Set for 8 minutes. Press start — it rings when the time is up.
Free from Ticka — the reminder app that rings like an alarm, even on silent. Close this tab and the timer stops. On your phone, Ticka rings even on silent. App Store → Google Play → App Store → Google Play →
This timer runs while the tab is open. If you need it to go off when your phone is in your pocket — that part needs the app.
Why an odd number like eight helps
Almost every estimate people make lands on a round number: five, ten, fifteen, thirty. Those numbers are not measurements — they are buckets, and work expands or shrinks to fill whichever bucket you picked.
An interval like eight minutes breaks that habit. It is specific enough to feel like a decision rather than a default, and it forces a small question before you start: why eight and not ten? Answering it means thinking about the task for a second, which is usually all the planning a small task needs.
It is also a useful length for chores that have a natural end — unloading the dishwasher, sorting the post, a single tidy pass through one room. Eight minutes is long enough to finish them and short enough that you will not pad them out.