Introduction

Lately, I had a conversation with a developer friend on how challenging it can be as a developer having to work on multiple projects concurrently, attend meetings and responds to urgent emails and still remain productive. I mentioned to him a technique I have adopted since I was in the university and still continue to use with great success - Pomodoro Technique.

Pomodoro Technique

Lately, I had a conversation with a developer friend on how challenging it can be as a developer having to work on multiple projects concurrently, attend meetings and responds to urgent emails and still remain productive. I mentioned to him a technique I have adopted since I was in the university and still continue to use with great success - Pomodoro Technique.

Pomodoro technique is a time management methodology originally invented by Francesco Cirillo. He named it Pomodoro because of the shape of the timer clock (tomato shaped) that he used to keep track of his tasks. The technique involves planning at the beginning of the day what activities are to be undertaken and breaking down the tasks into smaller subtasks with assigned priority and the tasks should be completable in 25 minutes.

You should record the tasks in a to do list app or on paper if desired. I normally use Todoist a to do list and task manager for creating and managing my tasks, it is multi-platform and allows having my tasks accessible on my computers and mobile, with ability. to before selecting the topmost task or task with highest priority and set. You need to have a timer to notify you of a completion of a pomodoro, todoist paid subscription has a timer that can notify you or alternatively you can use tomato timer at https://tomato-timer.com/

To effectively use the pomodoro technique, you need to have breaks after each pomodoro or completion of a task which can be 25 minutes as recommended by the technique. A pomodoro should not be interrupted, but in reality there will be interruptions, these are to be recorded in the todoist app for considerations later, you have to resist the urge to stop the task you are currently working and quickly attend to the interruptions. I personally prefer and use a cycle of 1 hour after which I take 5 to 10 minutes breaks to maybe check my social media feeds, take a coffee or tea break to cool off, refresh and be active for another cycle.

Conclusion

Using pomodoro or any other time management technique is to effectively make you productive and get a lot done within a reasonable amount of time, for any technique to work you have to be consistent and disciplined to get desired result.