Applying the Pomodoro technique in isolation

Focusing on daily work is orders of magnitude harder nowadays, because of the C thing. In addition to previous distractions, there are new ones around now — their scope and intensity varying. I had to reconsider my ways of working as I found myself more distracted than ever before.

I read about the Pomodoro technique by Francesco Cirillo, tried it, then dissembled and reassembled it, and tried again and again. After a while I discovered a combination that helps me navigate through my days as a designer. I hope my findings will help others as well.

This is what I did.

The original idea of the Pomodoro technique is to work on a selected task for 25 minutes, then have a 5 minutes break, and start another round. After four Pomodoros, it’s time for a break of 15–30 minutes. At the beginning of each day, you should prepare a to do today sheet and an activity inventory sheet, and track the progress during the day.

I wanted to adjust the method to minimize the early planning and create information capsules that contain all I need to go forward, even if my work is interrupted.

I did these changes because in addition to the more creative side of my work, there are ad hoc requests I should respond to swiftly, and meetings, which are another incarnation of context switching. I can do a couple of Pomodoros each day, but I rarely know how many.

Thus, I started experimenting with the following:

• Ready, steady, go… no. At the beginning of each day, I ask myself what is the most critical thing to start working on first. This is the hardest decision of the day, and it’s very easy to fool yourself here. It’s tempting to start with something easy and claim it’s very critical indeed, because it feels good to get something done quickly. The faster I’d like to make this decision, the more I should slow down.
• Turn left and don’t look down. After each Pomodoro, I have a look at where I am. Then I write down what is the most critical thing to do to continue on the task I just worked on. If it’s absolutely necessary to switch to another task after the Pomodoro, this information will guide me when returning.

When applying the Pomodoro technique this way, the flow of Pomodoros will change. If you’re able to continue with the same task, you may not get much out of what-to-do-next notes you just wrote, because these things are still in your head. Also, your next Pomodoro will be delayed.

However, in case you’ll need to switch to another task and then head back, your mental spaceship has to travel further and can get lost. Here your coordinates and logbook will help you.

A word of caution. It’s not obvious at all to see when it’s absolutely necessary to switch to another task. It’s good to have a small break and take another look before rushing into something, well, easy or unimportant. The thing you were supposed to do will have its eyes on you when you make this decision, and wait.