The Pomodoro Technique

Hey friends!

Today I thought I would tell you about a really useful technique I often use to get stuff done. It's called the 'Pomodoro Technique'. You may remember I referenced this technique in a previous newsletter (the one about Stenography).

What is a pomodoro?

The technique has a bit of a weird name - 'pomodoro', which is the Italian word for 'tomato'. It got it's name because the inventor of the technique, Francesco Cirillo, originally used a tomato-shaped kitchen timer to balance his work and break periods. The idea behind the technique is that you set a timer and focus on your work for 25 minutes, followed by a 5 minute break, then rinse and repeat until you have finished your work.

How can the technique improve your productivity?

Setting a pomodoro allows you to efficiently divide your study/work time between different subjects/tasks. For example, you might set a pomodoro in which you check e-mails, another one in which you revise chapters 19-25, and one more where you finish writing the last section of your essay. Ideally, you use the technique to help you be more intentional about what you are supposed to be doing at any given time, and finding an efficient balance between work and break.

This doesn't really work for me. What can I do?

If you like the pomodoro concept, but the 25/5 doesn't fit with what you are doing, experiment with different times for the work and break periods until you find something that suits. For example, I almost always use a 45-15 pomodoro when I am using this technique, but you can also do a 30-10 or even a 50-20. It's up to you.

If you want to read a little bit more about how pomodoro works, you can check out the wikipedia article.

Thanks for reading!

Some of my favourite things

YouTube video

This is already more than a month old now, but l found it very interesting. Really gave me an idea of what is actually being done in Ukraine 🇺🇦

Book

'A Wizard of Earthsea', by Ursula K. Le Guin
I read this book almost a year ago, but it is still one of my favourite books of all time.

Quote of the week

"Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken." - Oscar Wilde

Have a great week!
Cheers, Toby