Dose your work on "tomatoes": the miraculous pomodoro technique will increase your productivity and still make you feel less stressed
You may have noticed it too, but if you don't start the work, it never gets done. It's just that work, whether it's office work at the computer or even cleaning the house, is sometimes harder than it seems. Attention wanders, we get distracted by our surroundings, we do this little thing, we do that little thing... and before you know it, hours have passed and you haven't really moved on with the work itself. And you've been "doing it" since 8:30!
Do you recognize yourselves? Then you should try the ingenious and brilliantly effective time management: the "tomato technique". It's popular all over the world and is a lifesaver for people who have trouble keeping their attention or forcing themselves to work at the right time and not put everything off until later.
What is the pomodoro technique
The popularity of the pomodoro technique is undoubtedly due to the fact that it is simple. The basis is the division of time into regular work and rest units:
- Choose one task to work on.
- Set a timer for 25 minutes and get to work.
- When the time is up, drop everything and take a 5-minute break.
- Repeat the process one to four times and then take a long break.
Voilà, you've just mastered the pomodoro technique to perfection. The magic of its effectiveness is that by setting a timer you create a slight, but also enough pressure to actually work in the time given. You will thus achieve a short period of intense work, but not too long that it totally exhausts you.
One unit of time of 25 minutes is one "pomodoro". And with pomodoros stacked one after the other, you can eventually handle large projects. But the key is not to slack off, but to actually spend time working. Fortunately, though, you know it will only take 25 minutes, so your brain isn't stressed out by the impression that it's now "spending its youth" on the work.
Why is it named after tomatoes
Pomodoro means tomato in Italian. Why is the technique called tomato? Because whoever invented it used a kitchen minute in the shape of a tomato. It was an Italian named Francesco Cirillo in 1987 who was looking for a way to optimize his learning in college.
First, he set just two minutes on the tomato-shaped minute machine and tried to concentrate as much as possible on his studies during those minutes. When he succeeded, he extended the interval and found that it actually helped him focus better. Gradually, he came to the conclusion that 25-minute stretches were the best. 10 minutes is not enough time to get anything done. Hourly intervals, on the other hand, are already too exhausting.
Cirillo's goal was to find a way to make time his friend, not his enemy. Instead of being stressful, dwindling time becomes motivation. In fact, a set countdown creates a sense of urgency, instead of a sense that you have plenty of time left to work and therefore don't need to get on with it.
Try hardcore mode
"Sometimes I go really hard," Bryan Collins writes for Forbes about his implementation of the pomodoro technique. To force himself to work, he uses mobile and computer apps that block his internet access. He also eliminates distracting ambient sounds. "Sometimes I'll wear headphones that cancel out ambient sound and listen to neutral music continuously."
There are a number of ways to make the tomato stretches even more effective. You can try all sorts of alarm clocks or smartphone apps that encourage concentration. It might also help if you shut yourself away somewhere completely silent instead of listening to music. Or if you just leave your computer and mouse on your desk and take everything else, including your phone, to another room so you can't be tempted.
Zdroj: GiphyTips for making the most of pomodoro technology
In order to tomodoro with maximum efficiency, it's a good idea to follow a few more rules.
- Start in the morning - Collins recommends starting your pomodoro slicing time in the morning. "I find that the pomodoro technique works best early in the morning when I'm fresh and want to focus. When I start the 25-minute interval, I know I'm not allowed to check emails, social media, or news feeds. It's such a brain workout."
- Plan your tasks - Regina Borsellino of The Muse advises thinking ahead about what you'll be doing during a pomodoro. "That way you can get straight to work and not waste time thinking." Alternatively, you can also use the first pomodoro of the day to just plan the rest of your day. Or use the last one of the day to think about tomorrow's tasks.
- Find a tomato partner - another piece of advice from Borsellino is to find a partner to pomodoro with. You don't have to be in the same room or do the same job. Just agree to start at the same time and let each other know how you're doing during breaks. Maybe by text. Everything goes better when you're together and knowing that someone else is working the same way as you is a great motivator.
