Originally published at TheFieryWell.com in October of 2022, this article has been updated and broken up over a series of posts for The Coworking Coven. This is the first article of the series.
What is the Pomodoro ® Technique, or method?
The Pomodoro ® Technique, or Pomodoro method as it’s more commonly called, was discovered and developed by Francesco Cirillo in the 1980s. He was a university student looking for a way to get more studying and homework done in less time. He challenged himself to accomplish his tasks within the timeframe of a timer – a pomodoro, or tomato, shaped kitchen timer. It worked. And he subsequently spent the next several years developing what we now know as The Pomodoro ® Technique (or method).
The technique is a method of working very focused on a task for a set period of time, followed by a short break. After four Pomodoro’s you rest for a longer period. Repeat until you are done with your work day.
Fairly basic, pretty straightforward, and deceptively simple.
How we get the Pomodoro Technique (or method) wrong
The Pomodoro ® Technique is an amazing way to focus your labor for a more productive output. Through detachment from work.
To be able to stop working. To work better.
It’s not about cramming your focus for everything into 25 minutes of work, continuously.
It’s not about constantly & only striving for increased output of your input (time, labor, focus, attention, etc.)
It is about giving the work a dedicated time and observation of the work being done, which leads to optimization of work within the time and eventual detachment from the work itself.
Which, in turn, increases the quality of the output of your work.
Under Capitalism, no one wants to discuss stopping as a strength or asset in our work. The risk to the system is having the workforce wondering: how much more often could we stop? For how long could we stop?
And… what else could we stop?
“By applying the Pomodoro ® Technique, many people have begun to understand the value and effectiveness of detachment. A break every 25 minutes lets you see things from a different perspective and enables you to come up with different solutions; you often find mistakes to correct, and your creative process is stimulated. Detachment enhances the value of continuity. … Stopping becomes synonymous with strength, not weakness.”
How we can get this method right
Continued use of the Pomodoro® Technique shows us that stopping is an act of strength. That rest is productive. This isn’t something you’ll read in a Forbes or WeWork productivity article. Stopping? Rest? In today’s economy? Impossible!
- Work smarter, not harder!
- Want to play hard? Work hard first!
- Work 50 years & get retirement
Let’s throw out the productivity hack article advice and go to the source.
Francesco has a fantastic, short, little book called “The Pomodoro ® Technique” that details his method and the process behind it. It is well worth the read!
I was elated to discover that the Pomodoro ® Technique is more aligned with the desire for attention and intention than the pure output of labor. Which, I realized, aligns with my craft.
Is Francesco a witch? That I cannot say. But the Pomodoro method and system? Pure magic.
But first, let’s look at some of the mundane qualities of the system. Namely, four of the rules of the Pomodoro® Technique.