The Pomodoro Technique

The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method used to help you be productive by breaking down your tasks into 25 minute increments. This time management method makes tasks less intimidating or unattainable. I’m using this technique right now, to help me write this article on it and about methods for being more productive.

Have you ever looked at Lightroom or your cameras memory card, laptop or even your smartphone and thought I can’t be stuffed editing those photos right now. I’m not in the mood to scroll through the endless amount of images, looking for the best ones. If that sounds like you, use the Pomodoro technique, it does wonders for productivity.

I’ve just come back from my holiday and I have over 1,000 images I need to back up, double backup, sort through, edit and upload. It’s a daunting task. Pixel pushing and fine-tuning each image. It can take a while, and I can’t devote an entire day to that kinda admin right now. This is where the Pomodoro technique comes in handy. I can set a timer for 25 minutes, and do as much work as I can, dedicating time towards the task I’m dreading to do. After a while, well for me at least I hit the flow state and get in the groove of things. I write and write, I edit and edit. Before I know it 25 minutes is up and I’m still working on the task at hand. That’s the magic of the Pomodoro Technique.

The Pomodoro Technique tricks your brain, by breaking down a task into something achievable. Once you start the task you get into the flow and continue the task beyond the set time of 25 minutes. It’s Kinda weird, I sit down to a task I don’t want to do, and before I know it I’m in the zone and near the end of completing the task altogether. I learned this wonderful Jedi mind trick from Thomas Frank from College Info Geek.

If your ever in a creative rut, unmotivated or have a task you really don’t want to do, but it has to be done, try the Pomodoro Technique. I tackel this technique by using noise cancelling headphones, which blocks out any audio or ambient noise. The added bonus of wearing headphones is it puts up a social barrier, people feel rude interrupting you when you have them on. I listen to an app called Tide. It automatically sets a timer to 25 minutes and plays background sounds, mine is set to rain. That’s all you need to do to put yourself into the flow state. A little mind trick of self-induced psychology, a nice productivity hack.

You know what, it's been less than 15 minutes and I’ve already written this article. Task done, and all it took was putting on some headphones and pushing a button on an app. So the next time you have an overwhelming task or editing job, try the Pomodoro Technique.