Pomodoro Technique is my favorite tool to improve productivity being easy and simple so that any person can improve their time management whether it is to study or work.
The Pomodoro Technique is a time management technique developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. The name was giving due a Pomodoro (tomato) kitchen timer.
Sometimes I think with myself that making a break is a lost of time, I can just finish what i am doing and later get a rest, although it may take to long or even the whole day to have a task done.
Before I get started with Pomodoro, I was tired, drained, stressed and before the end of the day I was already knocked out! This technique provided me not just a good time management but also a better mood and disposition.
The technique is basically to set a timer, traditionally to 25 minutes and forget about everything else that is not related to it, you will focus 100% in one and just one task, so planning and organizing what should be done is also really important step. I would break down in 6 steps:
- Organize and order what should be done;
- Set the Pomodoro timer;
- Work on the task;
- End work when the timer is over and write down on a piece of paper that you are one Pomodoro over;
- If you have fewer than four Pomodoros done, take a short break (5 minutes) and then return to step 2; otherwise continue to step.
- After four Pomodoros, take a longer break (15–30 minutes), start a new count, then go to step 1.
The goal of the technique is to reduce the impact of internal and external interruptions on focus and flow, when interrupted, i normally just jump to the break and don’t count that Pomodoro.
It is really important to know how much time you take to do something, it just don’t make you more organized but also helps when creating a briefing or pushing back some unrealistic requests.
Pomodoro Technique Tools
There are tons of apps, sites and even youtube videos that help you with the timer and counts, I will share below a list of my favorite ones that fit on my needs.