Developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s, the Pomodoro Technique is a clever time management technique to improve your work and study habits. It uses a timer to break work into intervals, traditionally 25 minutes long, with short breaks in between.
What is the Pomodoro Technique?
The Pomodoro technique utilizes a 25-minute kitchen timer in the shape of a Pomodoro (Italian for Tomato) which is where it gets its name from. The technique requires you to split up your work into segments which can be completed in one 25-minute interval each, referred to as One Pomodoro. In-between each Pomodoro it is advised to take a 5-10minute break before starting the next Pomodoro. After 3-4 Pomodoros it is advisable to take a longer 20-30 minute break.
Utilizing the Pomodoro Technique primarily serves to improve your focus and workflow. Here’s how the Pomodoro Technique helps:
- Often times at work we find ourselves indulging in more than one specific task at the same time. Spreading your attention span across multiple tasks can often be detrimental to your work itself as you cannot fully focus on any single task. The Pomodoro technique aims to fix that by allowing you to do only one task at a given time.
- The Pomodoro technique requires you to focus on only one job during each Pomodoro. Since the duration is only 25 minutes, you can stack multiple tasks and assign them to each Pomodoro so at the end of the day you will still be able to complete multiple tasks and at the same time while still giving your 100% attention to a single task at a given time.
- During work, it is common for us to procrastinate or take some time off work to recoup. Due to this, even simple tasks can take much longer than they should. Using the Pomodoro technique, you can systematically work for a specific amount of time (25 minutes) and at the end of each Pomodoro, you are automatically rewarded with a small break (5-10 minutes). This method has proven itself to improve productivity while still avoiding monotonous work with breaks in between.
- You can mark your progress and remind yourself that you’ve accomplished something each time you complete a Pomodoro session. This will help you keep a record of the things you have accomplished and will play a huge role in increasing your motivation. The effects of this will snowball into you being even more productive during the next Pomodoro session.
- Last but not the least, the Pomodoro technique improves your physical health. Lately, unhealthy work practices like sitting at your desk for extended periods of time are known to compromise posture, increase blood pressure, promote obesity, etc. Using this technique and getting off your desk every once in a while to move around or get a glass of water can have a hugely positive effect on your body.
So what are you waiting for? Try out the Pomodoro technique for a few days and track the impact it has on your work life. This article itself was written utilizing the Pomodoro technique which enabled it to be completed well within its deadline. Confused about where to start? Head on over to https://pomofocus.io/ or https://tomato-timer.com/ to get started using the Pomodoro technique.
