LIFE HACK: HOW TO BE MORE PRODUCTIVE AT EVERYTHING

Sometimes it happens that focus is a problem.

I know. You don’t relate at all.

Unlike me, I am sure you never procrastinate. You are never distracted by Facebook, Instagram, food, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, email, food, research, your horoscope, food, the sudden panicked need to clean/file/organize and maybe occasionally, eat food.

BUT! If you do occasionally get distracted by the ten thousand other things that can seem more interesting/fun/necessary than the thing you need to do (cost reports, anyone…? Anyone…? Bueller…?), then have I got just the thing for you! Half price for your beautiful sister. What? You’re her mother? Impossible. Here, take two…

But I digress.

The not-so-secret secret; the key; the passage-way from not-doing to done? I’ve got one, tasty word for y’all: POMODORO.

You are thinking, “What does an Italian pasta sauce have to do with productivity??” But no, this life-changer is not edible. Sadly.

I first encountered the concept of Pomodoro’s from the remarkable Rachael Cook (she of “Conscious Business Design” –  not the super model). If you are an entrepreneur of the solo or very-few-employees variety especially, I strongly encourage you to check her out. She will change your life entirely for the better by filling your head in the kindest way with useful, success-enhancing information like how a Pomodoro can hack your work life.

The “Pomodoro Technique” as it’s formally known, is a time management process developed by Francesco Cirillo in the 1980’s. Francesco named the method a “Pomodoro” after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer he used as a university student to time study intervals.

      The Humble Tomato Timer

SO WHAT IS IT, EXACTLY?

A Pomodoro is a deceptively simple way to overcome your sabotaging self by breaking a large task down into short, timed intervals (called “Pomodoro’s”). Between each work set is a scheduled small break. By working in short cycles you train your brain to focus for short periods, helping not only improve your attention span and concentration, but helping you get shit done. And in a remarkably painless way too. BONUS.

HOW IT WORKS:

Set a timer for an amount of time that feels short, yet productive. Traditionally this is 20 or 25 minutes, but if you work better in chunks of 45, go for it. This work-block is the “Pomodoro.” Without an actual tomato timer myself, I use my phone.

Begin work knowing that when the timer goes off you will be rewarded with a 5 (or even 10) minute distraction of your choice. This is the “small break” between rounds of focused work. Scroll Instagram, lurk on Facebook, take out the trash, do a little yoga series, eat… When the timer goes off after 5 minutes of doing whatever you want, reset for another 20 minute round – another Pomodoro – of work.

After 4 rounds of Pomodoro’s – 80 to 100 minutes or so of focused work – take a full-on 20 or 25 minute break. Lunch! A walk! Laundry! Whatever you like.

OK, BUT…

When you begin a Pomodoro, distractions are scheduled exclusively for your 5-minute break. This means no responding to phone calls, emails or anything else during the 20 minute block. You are WORKING.  Be assured that pretty much anything short of a house fire or dangling limbs can wait 20 minutes for you to be done.

IT WORKS! HERE’S WHY:

Working in short sprints ensures you’re consistently productive. The regular breaks help keep motivation up and creative juices flowing. It’s deviously simple genius lets you EMBRACE your distractions (food) - which is to say, rather than having distractions manage you, you manage them.

Pomodoro’s keep you focused on a singular task. Thank goodness for that, as new research tells us multitasking not only doesn’t work, but may actually damage your brain! Among the memorable quotes from a recent article on the subject by Emotional Intelligence author Travis Bradberry, “IQ drops of 15 points for multitasking men lowered their scores to the average range of an 8-year-old child.”

**crickets**

OK then. About staying on task….

Pomodoro’s are high intensity interval training (HIIT) for work productivity!!

HIIT is the foundation of workout crazes like Crossfit – a craze, by the way, because it is insanely effective. The principal of HIIT is that you alternate short periods of intense anaerobic exercise with less intense recovery periods.  Sports science proves that short, intense workouts not only provide improved athletic capacity and condition, but are an excellent way to maximize a workout in limited time.

 HIIT does for your body precisely what a Pomodoro does for your productivity.

Over 30 years ago, John Stanton opened The Running Room, a business that has since become a national institution. The Running Room has graduated tens of thousands of would-be-runners from couch-potatoes to full-on marathoners, all based on a method he calls “10 and 1’s” – run ten minutes, walk for one. Know what this is? Yes, it’s a POMODORO!  Do 4 running Pomodoro’s and do you know what you’ve done? A 10K!!

As John Stanton himself says, “By alternating walking and running from the start, there’s virtually no limit to the distance you can cover.”  It’s a metaphor for all things Pomodoro.

I love this technique because it has limitless applications. Writing reports, e-books, doing your taxes… Need to clean your house but are finding 100 excellent reasons/distractions not to? Pomodoro!  Your kid can’t settle into homework? Give them 20 minutes, then tell them they can hang off the fridge door or madly text their best friend for 5 non-stop minutes when they’re finished. Do that three times? Homework: DONE.   Pomodoro’s are perfectly suited to focusing the hormonally surging, easily distracted teenaged brain – and if that’s not an endorsement, nothing is.

As the saying goes, the only truly non-renewable resource is time. This being the case, don’t you want to ensure you’re using it in the most productive and efficient way possible?

You say “Tomato,” I say “Tomahto.” You say “I’m bored/lazy/hungry/need to sleep/clean/ 'research'/ update my status?” I say “POMODORO!”