Body doubling. In real Toronto cafés.
Silent, side-by-side work in a room of people doing the same. Six 50-minute blocks. Brief check-ins between, then back in.
* Actually free. No day pass, no membership, no trial.
Next session
Mon, Jun 159:00 AMThe Annex
Just being in the room is enough.
You don't need accountability. You don't need hype. You need other people in the room.
When someone else is working next to you, your brain stops fighting the start. The task feels possible.
That's body doubling. Presence is the whole mechanism.
You don't have to perform. You just have to show up.
The format
The day
A workday built around silent, focused creative blocks.
Six 50-minute blocks of work, in a real café. A lunch reset. Then we hang.
The block
Each block works like this:
- Say what you'll do (one sentence)
- Work for 50 minutes.
- Share what happened.
No tracking. No pressure.
Join how you want
No pressure to stay all day.
The social part
This isn't a networking event.
You just spent a few hours head-down, next to other people doing the same thing.
So we go and grab a drink at the end.
It feels like coworkers, without the work boundaries.
Next events
Pins mark each session's area. Open an event for the exact venue.
- FocusCreative Blocks #17 - TorontoBring the work you’ve been avoiding. Work in focused blocks, with intention, around people doing the same.
- FocusCreative Blocks #18 - TorontoBring the work you’ve been avoiding. Work in focused blocks, with intention, around people doing the same.
- FocusCreative Blocks #19 - TorontoBring the work you’ve been avoiding. Work in focused blocks, with intention, around people doing the same.
- FocusCreative Blocks #20 - TorontoBring the work you’ve been avoiding. Work in focused blocks, with intention, around people doing the same.
- ImprovThink on Your Feet PlayshopIn partnership with My Creative Break, we’re hosting an evening of improv, connection, and practical communication skills.
Not the right week?
We'll let you know when a new session drops.
Quiet during blocks. Brief between.
Each 50-minute block is silent. Headphones the whole time is encouraged. Nobody talks during the work.
Between blocks, ten minutes. One short sentence to the room about what's next, then back in. That's it.
If you want to chat at the breaks or stick around for drinks after, the door is open. If you'd rather just sit, that's also fine.
Quiet when you need it. People when you want them.
Who this is for
For.
- Designers.
- Engineers.
- Writers.
- Researchers.
- Founders.
- Marketers.
…plus anyone with a task they can't start alone to bring.
FAQ
No. Body doubling helps anyone who finds it easier to start when there's another person in the room. ADHD is the most common reason people search for it, but plenty of attendees just hit the same wall everyone hits when the work is theirs alone. Show up. The mechanism doesn't care about a diagnosis.
Coffeeshops and other public spaces. That means ambient noise: people talking, music, the occasional espresso machine. If you need total silence to work, this probably isn't for you. Bring headphones and you'll be fine.
Yes. No ticket, no upsell, no “pro” tier. We started it because we wanted to meet more people who actually care about their work. Charging would change who shows up.
Yes. Booking online lets us save you a spot and get you set up ahead of the day. If something comes up and you couldn't book, flag it when you arrive and we can usually get you in on the spot.
No. Most people come alone. Nobody talks during the blocks, so you don't have to be “on”. By the time the drinks start, you've already been sitting next to the same people for hours. The hang is easy from there. You can still bail whenever.
Yes. Get them to register online too so we can save their spot. If something changes last minute and they come along unexpectedly, let us know when you arrive and we'll do our best to accommodate.
No. Morning only (blocks 1 to 3), afternoon only (blocks 4 to 6), or the full day. Book whichever fits. Nobody tracks attendance.
If you're here to move something forward, it counts. Your daily work counts. A side project you never make time for counts. Real just means real to you.
Yes. Laptop, notebook, headphones, whatever you actually need to get done. Since the events happen in coffeeshops and other public spaces, there's always some background noise. You can take a call if you need to. Just be okay with the noise going the other way too.
Yes to both. Always wifi, always outlets. Not always one per person, so you may end up sharing with someone nearby. People are generally cool about it. Bring your charger and you're set.
It's fine to be late, but you really get the full experience by joining for the entire session. If you walk in while one's already running, people will be deep in the block, not looking up. People might not stop to say hi until the next break. Leaving during a block is also fine. Just do it quietly.