The Morning Breath: Two Minutes Before the Phone
First shared as a Substack Note on October 18, 2026. Read the original Note.
For most of us the first thing the day gets is a screen. Messages, news, a calendar, all before our feet have touched the floor. This Note suggested putting two minutes in front of that.
Why before the phone
Once you have read the first message, the morning belongs to whoever sent it. Your attention is already out of the room. Two minutes beforehand is the one stretch of the day that nobody else has claimed yet, and it is short enough to protect even on a rushed morning. It also helps to leave the phone out of reach: one study found that having your own phone nearby takes up some of your attention, even when you aren’t using it.
The first step
Before you reach for the phone, sit up on the side of the bed with both feet flat. Shut your eyes and do nothing at all for about half a minute. No breathing technique yet. Just sitting.
What comes after that is a few slow breaths with an unhurried pause, and it is in the original Note. It is also the first of the six practices in Bare Breath.
What you might notice
Half a minute of doing nothing can feel long when the phone is right there. That pull is the point. You are noticing how quickly the day wants your attention, and giving yourself the first say anyway.
You do not need to feel any particular way afterwards. The point is the order of things: you, then the day. Pick up the phone when you are done.
Safety. If you feel dizzy or lightheaded, stop and breathe normally. Don’t force the air out and don’t hold your breath. If you have a breathing or heart condition, or you are pregnant, ask your doctor first. This is a practice, not medical advice.
The full sequence is in the book
This is one practice. Bare Breath is the full sequence: six practices, from two to twenty minutes each, for different moments of the day, and a seven-day starter that adds one at a time.
The opening of chapter one of Bare Breath is free. Enter your email on the free-chapter page and it opens there.
Read the free chapter Bare Breath on Amazon
More about the book on its page. More from the blog