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If the Pomodoro Technique Doesn't Work for You, Try Flowtime
Benefits of the Flowtime Technique
- You can use your Flowtime data to see how much time you're dedicating to different types of tasks. This can help you create better estimates for how long future jobs will take.
- Consider adding a column to track interruptions like calls, texts or emails to help you discover your biggest sources of distraction.
- Keeping track of how long you can focus can help you identify days and times of the day when you're most focused or most distracted.
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The Pomodoro Technique
Pomodoro is doing focused work in 25-minute sessions throughout the day. After each session, take a five-minute break. After completing four consecutive Pomodoros, take a 20 to 30-minute break.
The Problem with Pomodoro
Pomodoro is excellent for tackling tasks you don't feel like doing or jobs that require little thought.
However, other tasks, like writing or coding, require uninterrupted time. The problem with the Pomodoro method is that the timer is a consistent interruption that prevents you from getting into a state of flow.
The Flowtime Technique
It is a modified Pomodoro. And it solves Pomodoro's big problems.
- It works by writing down one task you intend to work on during a focus session.
- Then work until you start feeling tired or distracted, write down the end time, and take a break. A break can be anything from 5 minutes to 15 minutes.
Because you're not tied to a timer, you're more likely to find yourself in a flow state from time to time.
Benefits of the Flowtime Technique
- You can use your Flowtime data to see how much time you're dedicating to different types of tasks. This can help you create better estimates for how long future jobs will take.
- Consider adding a column to track interruptions like calls, texts or emails to help you discover your biggest sources of distraction.
- Keeping track of how long you can focus can help you identify days and times of the day when you're most focused or most distracted.
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The time-blocking method
Simply means planning out your day in advance and dedicating specific hours to accomplish specific tasks.
Doing this requires determining in advance what you will accomplish and exactl...
The most important task method (MIT)
Rather than writing out a massive to-do list and trying to get it all done, determine the 1-3 tasks that are absolutely essential and then relentlessly focus on those tasks during the day.
Once you determine your 1-3 most important tasks, they are scheduled first in your day. You then make progress on essential items before you get bombarded by distractions.
The Pomodoro Technique
Is all about working in short, massively productive, intensely focused bursts, and then giving yourself a brief break:
- Choose a task
- Set your timer for 25 minutes
- Work on the task until the timer ends
- Take a short break (around 5 minutes)
- Every 4 Pomodoro sessions, take a longer break (15-30 minutes).
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Key Ideas
Breaks keep us from getting bored
The human brain just wasn’t built for the extended focus we ask of it these days.
The fix for this unfocused condition is simple—all we need is a brief interruption (aka a break) to ge...
Breaks and brain connections
Our brains have two modes:
- focused mode, which we use when we’re doing things like learning something new, writing or working) and
- diffuse mode, which is our more relaxed, daydreamy mode when we’re not thinking so hard.
The mind solves its stickiest problems while daydreaming—something you may have experienced while driving or taking a shower.
Breaks help us reevaluate our goals
When you work on a task continuously, it’s easy to lose focus and get lost in the weeds. In contrast, following a brief intermission, picking up where you left off forces you to take a few seconds to think globally about what you’re ultimately trying to achieve.
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Key Ideas
“Time management is not a peripheral activity or skill. It is the core skill upon which everything else in life de..."
Brian Tracy
Work Around Your Energy Levels
Productivity is directly related to your energy level.
Find your most productive hours — the time of your peak energy — and schedule Deep Work for those periods. Do low-value and low-energy tasks (also known as shallow work), such as responding to emails or unimportant meetings, in between those hours.
Plan Your Day the Night Before
Before going to bed, spend 5 minutes writing your to-do list for the next day. These tasks should help you move towards your professional and personal goals.
You’ll be better prepared mentally for the challenges ahead before waking up and there won’t be any room for procrastination in the morning. As a result, you’ll work faster and smoother than ever before.
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