Once again about Pomodoro 🍅
If you heard about the Pomodoro technique but, like me, never bothered trying it because it seemed too trivial, try it now!
Francesco Cirillo came up with a variation of timeboxing and concentration techniques. He called it the Pomodoro Technique after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer that he used to commit himself to just 25 minutes of focused work.
It’s very simple:
Step 1. 🤔 Decide on the task to be done.
Step 2. ⏱ Set the pomodoro timer (typically for 25 minutes).
Step 3. 🔨 Work on the task.
Step 4. ☕ End work when the timer rings and take a short break (typically 5–10 minutes).
Step 5. 🔁 If you have finished fewer than three pomodoros, go back to Step 2 and repeat until you go through all three pomodoros.
Step 6. 🌳 After three pomodoros are done, take the fourth pomodoro and then take a long break (typically 20 to 30 minutes). Once the long break is finished, return to step 2.
So why does it work?
🍅 gets you started
You know the struggle to start working on a new project, document, task. Especially if it’s complex and ambiguous, or boring and just has to be done. When I tend to start thinking about the problem, I usually reach a moment of hesitation which often leads to procrastination. This is when you need to “just do it”. Just start with jotting down the plan, or writing those first lines. Setting up your Pomodoro timer works well as a first step, it gets you started. You showed up, you set that timer and you’re one step closer to making progress.
🍅 helps to fight distractions
Notifications are a productivity killer. It’s so much easier to pick up your phone or check emails and get immediate gratification than forcing yourself to make progress on a difficult task. With the timer in front of me, I find it easier to fight the urge to distract. You don’t delay the distraction until an undefined moment of your willpower weakness. You delay the distraction for a fixed period which counts down in front of you. I also prefer using the Time Timer for my pomodoros, because it visualizes the time.
🍅 increases the chances to get from good to great
If you are close to task completion but haven’t spent four pomodoros on it, the technique forces you to go on. This extra period which you already committed to dedicating to the topic, Francesco Cirillo called “overlearning”. You might have achieved your goal in less time than you expected. But if you keep going, you might discover some new insights or make even further progress and get from good to great, without succumbing to perfectionism.
Guess what — I wrote this post using the Pomodoro technique.
