The Pomodoro Technique is a very simple way to boost your productivity and stay focused. It also has some hidden benefits that we will discuss.

How it works

Simply set a timer for 25 minutes and focus very hard during this time. When the timer goes off, take a 5 minute break, then repeat the whole process over again.

That sounds really stupid!

I thought so too, and so I didn’t try it for years after I first heard about it. “That’s too simple. Of course I can focus for 25 minutes, I do it all the time!” I thought. However once I got past my initial reaction I found that inside this very simple formula was a powerful tool to boost productivity, improve my estimates, and prevent burnout.

The details of the Pomodoro Technique

You must begin with a task in mind before you start. This should be a larger task although sometimes I will do a pomodoro dedicated to the myriad of two-minute tasks that eventually need to be accomplished.

With your task in mind you start the timer. This can be a physical timer or an electronic timer, although serious users of pomodoro recommend a physical timer that must be wound by hand. They also recommend one that makes a ticking sound. These physical stimuli are supposed make you more focused. I don’t do these but if you try it, please leave a comment and let me know how it worked for you. There are many pomodoro apps that provide a timer. I personally use the timer built into Kanbanflow. The timer is set to 25 minutes, although there are alternate timing strategies you might try out. I plan on trying a 52- minute pomodoro to see what it does with my productivity.

Once the timer is started you begin your task. Dig right in and focus, without any regard for external stimuli. When I begin a pomodoro I sometimes find my brain remembering all of the many errands I need to take care of later. Then I wonder if the book I ordered is shipping yet. This can go on and on, producing a great amount of distraction from your focus time. However, you have a secret weapon that has been around for over 2000 years: Paper! Simply jot down these annoying little questions and external distractions and move on with the pomodoro. If a distraction is truly urgent enough to deserve a break of focus then you must abandon your pomodoro and count it as if it never happened.

If you happen to finish your task before the timer rings do not stop the pomodoro early and do not work on the next task. Instead you should use this time to improve the quality of the work you were just doing. If you were building a feature, look it over and make sure everything works just right. Consider adding in some extras or making the user interface look a bit better. This is your an opportunity to improve the quality of your work.

When the timer rings set it for 5 minutes and take a break. Go walk outside, get a drink, or just shut your eyes and sit back. It’s a break, so don’t go answer that email you were putting off or keep working on the task. These breaks are just as important as the focused time because they keep you motivated and energized. When the break is over begin your next pomodoro and repeat.

What does pomodoro mean anyway?

Pomodoro is the Italian word for tomato, named for the tomato-shaped egg timer used by Francesco Cirillo, the inventor of the Pomodoro Technique.

Added benefits

I promised that this technique could improve your estimates, which is a big promise to make. This happens because the pomodoro is a much better unit of work than normal time-based units. When you are estimating how long it will take you to build a feature you need to break it up into the smallest pieces you can. Once that is done the pieces will often take between 1 and 3 pomodoros (sometimes pluralized as “pomodori”). If we use the language of time then you might estimate that a particular task will take 1 hour. But a 1 hour estimate doesn’t account for the fact that 8 hours of work can not be completed in 8 hours no matter what industry you work in. So if you estimate that a particular task will take 1 hour, then you are also estimating that you could finish 7 similar tasks in the same day (assuming an eight hour workday). This simply will not happen and it is one of the reasons that software is very hard to estimate.

If, however, you estimate that the same task will take 2 pomodoros then you are making a different claim, because the typical work day doesn’t contain 16 pomodoros, but rather it usually contains something like 10 or 12. Once you try it you will see that focused time is very mentally exhausting and when you do 10 or 12 pomodoros you are drained. But you will also find, like I did, that you have gotten a lot more work done than a typical workday before you used pomodoros! This means that you can set a workday goal based on focused work rather than just time, because time is a terrible metric for work. The worker who punches the clock and drifts through the day might be only half as productive as the focused, productive worker on a half day. When you start using pomodoros try to make it to 8 in a day, and when you are consistently hitting 8 then move up to 10 or 12. You may have longer days when a project is behind schedule where you will surprise your self and put in over 20 pomodoros, but if this is your goal you will burn out.

Speaking of burnout, I also promised that the Pomodoro Technique could help you to avoid this motivation killer. The Pomodoro Technique gives you an excellent tool to get a little bit more fresh air and remove some stress along the way. You can use the technique to set your daily quota of focused work and when you reach it you know you have put in a full day of good hard work, even if you usually work for another hour. Take this time off and give yourself a pat on the back. Remember that the main goal of the Pomodoro Technique is to increase your productivity, and it works. You can double or triple your productivity by having a set amount of focused time. This is a big positive for your employer. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t take the extra positive for you and take it easy when the work is done. If you meet your goals then you have earned that free time. In fact, getting to that free time is one of the motivators that keep you setting the timer when your pomodoro breaks are over. Don’t feel bad about increasing your productivity by leaving a time-based system behind. And don’t get discouraged when you are having a bad day and you might need some extra time to meet your pomodoro quota.

When you get over how simple it all sounds and give it a try, you will find that the Pomodoro Technique provides a big boost to your productivity!