Being more productive with your working day can help you manage your time more effectively and prevent you having to work through your lunch, in the evenings or even over the weekend.
There is a simple technique called the Pomodoro Technique that will transform the way you work. You can even apply it to your daily life and use it to help you get those boring jobs done around the house or that life admin that you’ve been putting off for months!
What is it?
The Pomodoro Technique is based on scientific evidence that humans can only focus on something for short amounts of time, typically 25 minutes. When approaching your next piece of work or your household chores, rather than think about it as a one big block of work that needs to be completed, address it in 25 minute chunks. By addressing your task in this way you will be have maximum focus and creative freshness to help you complete the task faster and more efficiently.
How to use the Pomodoro Technique
Tackle your task intensively for a 25-minute period. Don’t let yourself be distracted by anything else so turn off your emails, ignore the phone and leave social media well alone!
Have a break
After 25 minutes of focusing solely on the task at hand, treat yourself to a 5-minute break. Your brain needs time after this intense period of work to rejuvenate so there’s no harm in having a short period away from your task to relax.
Back to work
After your five minutes off it’s time to hit it hard again for another 25 minutes. Repeat the process, until your task is completed.
You will be amazed at just how much you can get done when you focus your attention in this way.
Why does it work?
The frequent breaks keep your mind both relaxed and focussed on the task. If you have lots of tasks on your to-do list, the Pomodoro Technique could be the perfect solution to help you blast through it as you are forced to adhere to strict timing, which can help you speed through the task. It can also help you realise how much time you are spending procrastinating and eliminate it from your working life.
