THIS KITCHEN TOOL CAN HELP YOU BE MORE PRODUCTIVE AT WORK!

If you’re like everyone else, time management can be a serious problem. Whether it is because you’re a procrastinor or that big project just landed on your lap with a seriously tight deadline, finding out how to manage your 9-to-5 wisely to get it all done can prove to be a challenge. Then there’s that lengthy to-do list, constant emails flooding your inbox, reports to write – where do you begin!

With the Pomodoro Technique, that’s where.

The what?

Simply put, the Pomodoro Technique is a time-management technique where you break down all of your tasks into 25-minute focused blocks of time.

Why 25 minutes?

That’s because its creator – developer, entrepreneur and author Francesco Cirillo, who invented this system in the early 90s – used a tomato-shaped kitchen timer to track his work as a university student and so happen thought that 25 minutes was just the right amount of time for a person to stay focused on the task at hand.

Fun fact: Pomodoro is the Italian word for tomato, just so you know!

Here’s how it works:
#1 Pick a task that you need to complete.
#2 Set your timer to 25 minutes (each 25-minute block is called a pomodoro)
#3 Start work. Don’t be distracted – focus on the task at hand.
#4 Ping – timer goes off. Put a checkmark on a piece of paper.
#5 Take a short five minute break (go to the loo, grab yourself a drink)
#6 Repeat step 2 to step 5.
#7 After four checkmarks, give yourself a 15 to 30-minute break.
#8 Go back to step #1 If you’ve not completed the task, continue with it. If you’re done, pick another task that you need to complete.

WHY THE POMODORO TECHNIQUE WORKS

Simple – it reminds you to stay focus on that task. And the timer instills a sense of urgency so instead of feeling like you got all the time in world to get things done (newsflash – you don’t!), you try to do as much as you can in the 25 minutes you have.

Plus, taking a break after being 100% focused makes sure you aren’t just sitting in front of your computer hours and hours. It forces you to take a break so that by the end of the day you don’t feel burnt-out or completely zonked. After all, studies show that frequent breaks keep your mind fresh and focused. So even after spending 25 minutes completely focused, you come back from your short break still creative, still on top form.

What happens if you get interrupted during a pomodoro? You either end your 25 minutes there, go on a break, and start all over again – or you continue on with your 25 minutes, telling whoever it is that is disrupting you that you will get back to him or her soon (it can be part of your break time).

Go to the official website and you’ll get tons more ideas and tips, including a free timing sheet template. Check it out [here]!(https://francescocirillo.com/pages/pomodoro-technique)

Ready to show time management who’s boss? Get yourself a kitchen timer and start your pomodoros now!

Psst – there are a few Pomodoro Timer apps you can get that come with all sorts of other cool features. Try these ones that you can use straight from the Web or download into your phone – Tomato Timer, PomoDoneApp, Marinara Timer, Be Focused, Tomatoes, Pomodoro.cc.

Photo by Alex Ghizila on Unsplash