One of the greatest strengths of the Pomodoro Technique is how easy it is to implement. The process that I follow is:
- Each morning I pick out the tasks that I want to accomplish that day.
- I then decide how long each task will take. The Pomodoro Technique works on point system. Each time you work through a 25-minute task you earn a point.
- Typically, I try to earn 10 Pomodoro points each day. This means that if I have 3 tasks that I know will take an hour each, I will earn 6 points for those tasks. And it means that I have 4 additional 25-minute slots available for the rest of the day.
Did you notice how I kept saying 25-minute time slots? There is a reason for the odd number. The Pomodoro Technique places a high priority on taking scheduled breaks. After completing each 25-minute task, you take a 5-minute break. During this free time, you can do anything you want. You can get on social media, you can take a walk around the block, or anything that you want to do. Just make sure that your break does not exceed 5 minutes.
Have you ever tried dieting before? When I was younger I struggled with my weight and to help fix it, I tried a number of intense diets. This included nutrition strategies such as dramatically decreasing calories, or killing off carbs. However, I noticed that I'd stay true to the diet for a few weeks or even a few months, but eventually I would fall back into poor eating habits.
In the same way when I was younger I fell into the same pattern with working on tasks. I'd get excited about working on a project or learning a new programming language. And I would spend countless hours working on what I wanted to accomplish.
Additionally, after I have finished my work for the day and have earned my 10 Pomodoro points, I feel a sense of accomplishment that I never felt before. And after work, I don't feel guilty spending time with my family and friends, because I know that I completed every task that I set out to work on that day.
So how can you implement the program? There are a few ways. To start off, you can simply use the timer on your phone and then count up each of the tasks/points that you achieved each day. That's how I started off working with the Pomodoro Technique.
Additionally, there are a number of smartphone apps that have Pomodoro timers and even allow for creating a task list that you can use as a pick list for your tasks each day. I like these types of apps because they also give you historical analytics so you can see how many tasks you've completed each day. The Pomodoro focus app (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pomodoro-time-focus-timer/id973134470?mt=12) is my personal favorite (and it's free).