Pomodoro method: manage your time and boost your productivity

Having "too many things to do", "being overbooked" or "never having enough time"... Have you ever heard these words? It's not uncommon at work to want to extend our days, which are too short for our liking, with the desire to do more. But as we all know, time is not extensible. The art of mastering our time lies in our ability to make the best use of the hours we have available in a working day.

In this article, we'll see that good productivity goes hand in hand with successful time management. Among the various methods available, we have selected the Pomodoro technique, to find out how to manage your time effectively by segmenting your work into two-hour cycles, themselves interspersed with short breaks . Find out how to put it into practice and discover its many benefits!

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Efficient time management: one of the keys to success

Your time is worth its weight in gold

We're all aware that our time is precious. So it's in our interest to make the most of every minute of it, to get as much done as possible, quickly and efficiently. However, human beings are not machines, and aspiring to be is a utopian dream. However, there are ways of exercising a certain amount of control over our time. So how can we do this, without lengthening our days or interfering with our sleep?

Staying in control of your time...

Time can be both a friend and an enemy if we don't know how to tame it. It's often tempting to want to complete certain tasks at the same time, thinking that we'll be able to tick off the boxes on our "to-do" list more quickly . But it's a myth that we're more efficient when we're multi-tasking. Juggling our activities quickly can give us a sense of control, and induce a certain euphoria.

But beware: faced with too much information to process, the brain becomes saturated and real productivity drops drastically. In fact, the opposite can happen: we've started more tasks, but we don't feel that we've completed any of them, which can be frustrating.

The solution is to organize your working time by breaking things down into sequences, defining priorities and planning tasks realistically, making sure you prioritize the most urgent ones. The ultimate goal: get more done in less time.

Inspired by Christine Carter's painting "Achieve More by Doing Less

... while respecting your abilities

But how can we do more without spreading ourselves too thin? Switching from one task to another gives us a deceptive impression of flexibility and efficiency, all the more so as we're using up a lot of mental energy. To be focused is not only to mobilize our mental capacities towards a single object, but also to remain permeable to any external stimulus capable of diverting our attention from that object.

The brain naturally has an anti-distraction system: in "concentration mode", neurons communicate with each other more clearly and intensely. So, if our brains are overstretched, we run a greater risk of making mistakes, as shown by a study published in 2015 by researchers at the University of Michigan who looked at the daily lives of emergency physicians. So it's important to respect this way of working, by trying as far as possible to keep distractions at bay and filter out all activities unrelated to the task in hand.

"He who wishes to travel far, spares his mount": don't overlook the benefits of breaks!

On the other hand, we all need to take our minds off things to avoid mental exhaustion: taking a break to increase productivity and better assimilate information later on. Finally, we strongly recommend :

• Incorporate breaks into your work schedule,
• distribute tasks throughout the day according to priority and degree of difficulty,
• vary the intensity of your work, so you don't always have to make the same kind of effort,
• don't forget yourself: it's in everyone's interest to stay in tune with your personal abilities.

The Pomodoro method: time management in intervals

Origin: a kitchen timer

The Italian Francisco Cirillo is the creator of this work method (The Pomodoro Technique, now a registered trademark). As a student in the 1980s, he realized that you could be more productive by concentrating on a single task, rather than trying to do several in parallel.

To time himself, he used a tomato-shaped timer, which gave the concept its name (pomodoro means tomato in Italian). In practice, this means dividing your work into 25-minute intervals, called tomatoes, with 5-minute breaks in between.

The main principle of this method is the segmentation of tasks into pomodori (plural of pomodoro), which represent periods of intense work of limited duration. The idea is to divide large projects into small, limited tasks and carry them out without interruption, so as to regain control of one's time and no longer be a slave to distractions.

To achieve this, a great deal of self-discipline is required: you have to motivate yourself! But there's no need to be stressed: all distracting thoughts can be noted down as they arise and considered later, to clear the mind and achieve greater concentration.

Separate thinking from doing, so you can execute faster and think better.

« Separate thinking and execution to execute faster and think better. » — Sol Tanguay, Imarklab

Tomatoes for action: the step-by-step method

Now let's take a look at the steps you need to follow to set up this method. All you need is a pencil and a sheet of paper, or the digital version of a notebook or spreadsheet, for example.

A way to apply the Pomodoro method
2015 Elvindantes.com

Step 1: choose a task

Lean on your to-do list for the day and define your tomatoes. This involves planning the number of pomodori you'll need for each task. It's up to you to evaluate the time spent on your activities with practice!

For example: PowerPoint presentation slides = 3 tomatoes; competitive intelligence = 2 tomatoes, etc.

Step 2: Set your stopwatch for 25 minutes

For 25 minutes, all your attention will be devoted to your tomato. The timer can be mechanical, like the ones we use in the kitchen, or virtual, with many options available on the web, as we'll see later.

Step 3: get to work

Start working. The idea is to concentrate on a single task for the allotted time, to be efficient without getting distracted.

Step 4: stop working

The idea is to stop as soon as the timer rings, even if you haven't finished. You can use several tomatoes for the same task.

Step 5: Record your progress

Take notes both to keep track of progress on the task in hand, but also to review your progress on each work cycle and in general on your day.

💡The good idea : note-taking is also sensible for freeing your mind from all the thoughts that will have arisen during your work. The things you've jotted down can be taken up again during breaks.

Step 6: Take a 5-minute break

Take advantage of the break to detach yourself from your screen, have a cup of tea or a glass of water, stretch or carry out any other activity that takes your thoughts away from the task and allows you to relax.

Step 7: Get back to work

Repeat the steps from the beginning for another 25 minutes.

Step 8: After 4 tomatoes, take a long break

After 4 periods of work, take a break of around 15 to 30 minutes, depending on your needs, and devote it to lighter tasks requiring less mental effort.

Step 9: Start a new work cycle

Continue by starting a new work cycle of 4 tomatoes interspersed with short breaks. Keep up the momentum until you've got the right amount of work for the day.

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The benefits of Pomodoro

Profiles concerned

This method is particularly suited to people who recognize themselves in one or more of the following situations:

• you have difficulty focusing on a single task over a long period of time,
• you are prone to external stimuli,
• you have a tendency to procrastinate (i.e. to put off until tomorrow or later what can be done today),
• you often have the feeling that your planned workload for the day has not been completed.

Intensity and efficiency: a recipe for success

This technique has many benefits, and you'll reap the rewards if you keep at it. It is based on the following pillars: discipline, monotasking and concentration.

Discipline vs. dissipation

Self-discipline is at the heart of its operation: by imposing constraints, it pushes us to break unproductive habits . Its effectiveness will therefore depend in part on our firm determination to bring about a significant and lasting change in the way we work.

Monotasking vs. multitasking

The method commits us to dealing with just one task at a time, possibly broken down into sub-tasks, and to ruling out, once and for all, multitasking , the best enemy of productivity.

Concentration vs. distraction

Finally, it trains us to work without interruption: you devote 100% of your attention to the task in hand. What's more, it encourages us to alternate between periods of high concentration and regular short breaks, essential breaths of air to release the pressure and enable better concentration later on.

☝ Tip: to best adapt this method to your work habits, make a note of your accomplishments, and also note possible improvements, such as working on interruptions (telephone, colleagues, loss of motivation).

In practice: tools to help you

There are applications for Mac and Chrome, such as Pomotodo, available as a web version and on Android, iOS, macOS and Google Chrome (extension). With its minimalist interface, Pomotodo features both a to-do list and a timer system. Statistics are available to visualize the number of tasks completed, as well as their history.

A multitude of options are available, including :

• Clear Focus (available on Google Play),
• Scheduler (available on Android),
• Pomodoro Focus Timer (available on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch),
• PomodoneApp (available on Mac, Windows, Linux, Web App),
• Focus Booster (available on Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android),
• FocusList (available on iPhone, Apple Watch and Mac),
• and many more.

Ready to get started?

To improve personal effectiveness, it's in everyone's interest to be proactive and choose a working method that suits them, in order to achieve positive results. In the end, after the initial difficulties, you'll be delighted to see your first productivity gains, and the new good habits will quickly fall into place. You now have all the keys you need to adopt the Pomodoro technique - all you have to do is put it to the test!