Is Pomodoro Time Boxing Right for You?
Pomodoro is often used as shorthand, but it can mean a variety of things. Perhaps the most important underlying idea, is that dedicating a specific amount of time to a particular task helps improve focus, while taking periodic breaks boosts long-term productivity.
What is Pomodoro?
Pomodoro is a specific flavor of time boxing; in which you spend a specific amount of time on a single activity, followed by a scheduled break before starting another work session.
It’s typically based on the insight that people can’t sustain optimum focus indefinitely, so integrating short breaks into a work routine actually enhances overall productivity.
How long is a Pomodoro session?
It’s generally accepted that an official Pomodoro session is 25 minutes of focused work, followed by a five-minute break. But where does this magic number come from?
I think the biggest misconception is that science has determined 25 minutes to be ideal. Therefore, adhering to this schedule will achieve optimal results for everyone. Let's take a moment to distinguish between the two aspects of the Pomodoro: work time and break time.
When first starting out, some people may struggle to stay focused for five minutes. While someone else, whether through natural inclination or practice, may maintain strong concentration for an hour or more. If everyone were to start off with 25 minutes, some would struggle while others would stagnate.
By that same token, different people may need different amounts of break time. I think this largely depends on how effectively someone can reset. For example, someone who walks outside and stretches for a couple of minutes may be more mentally prepared to work effectively when they return than someone who checks email for 10 minutes.
So I don’t think there’s anything sacred about the 25 and five minute timer. But rather, folks should experiment to find a good starting point for them, then see if they can increase their focus time little by little.
Pomodoro, Time Blocking, Time Boxing, and Deep Work
You may hear the terms Pomodoro, Time Boxing, and Time Blocking used almost interchangeably. This is because they're related to each other but they're not quite the same.
All of these work approaches share the underlying concept of working in a flow state, as described in "Flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.
Let’s break down how they are related. "Deep Work" gives super tactical advice for how to structure your day (and life) in a way that allows you to maximize flow.
Time Blocking, is generally characterized by the use of a calendar. This approach encourages you to schedule blocks of time to work on projects and grouping similar recurring activities together, like paying bills.
While similar, Time Boxing involves dedicating predefined amount of time to a singular activity. It’s essentially the same as a time block, just without a fixed schedule. I like to do time boxing relative to my own "now" and current needs. It's an intention I set to focus on something for the next certain amount of time. Sometimes the length will be based on a hard stop, while other times it'll be an estimate of how long I think it'll take.
A Pomodoro session is a particular flavor of time boxing that additionally includes a built in break. So the 25–5 session is referred to as one Pomodoro. Depending on who you talk to, the duration may or not be flexible to still be considered a Pomodoro session.
It’s worth noting that other time boxing approaches aren’t discouraging against brakes. They may simply take on a different form, like a writer who works intensely for two hours and then goes for a walk in the park.
What’s the Best App for Pomodoro Timing?
As with most things in modern life, when you’ve got a problem to solve, there's an app for that!
Some are simple timers or YouTube videos of a certain duration. Others attempt to put safeguards in place to block access to other apps. But using apps to help you focus is a bit like going to a dance club to meditate. Ultimately it works best if the thing keeping track of your time operates independently from the devices that are competing for it. I created Focus Timer to work as a physical device that's also visual so you don't experience "time blindness". You know...that feeling when the timer going off reminds you what you were supposed to be working on in the first place?
Controlling your impulses is also an important element of focus. There will always be things tugging at you, whether they're things on your phone, on your computer, or from your surroundings. As your focus becomes sharper, these impulses will still be there, they’ll just pass without you acting on them. So it’s better to build up this practice without relying on an outside app to serve as a tracker or enforcer, especially since your phone itself acts as a significant source of distractions.
Pomodoro as an On-ramp
Why has Pomodoro become such a popular productivity method? First, I think it’s a nicely packaged form of time boxing that’s easy to understand and get started with. It’s got a catchy name and tells you exactly what to do. In that way, it’s like a diet that helps people overcome the overwhelming feeling of eating healthy by selling pre-made meals.
It’s also an attractive starting point because doing a focus session for 25 minutes is something most folks can do with a bit of practice. Most importantly, it allows you see immediate results. But while the prescribed breaks may help some folks maintain better focus over long periods, some may use the breaks as a way to check back in on social media, serving as a reward. If an exercise program said you could eat a doughnut if you walk for five minutes that may be popular too. And you can’t argue with the fact that walking is good. But it comes down to whether the break time is used as a distraction reward or truly spent doing something that clears your head.
Lastly, even if the concept of working for block of time and breaking them up this way to maintain focus is sound, Pomodoro advocates can be a bit dogmatic about the length of time. 25 minutes might not be the optimum amount of time for all people. Folks just starting out with time boxing may want to start with just a few minutes and work their way up. And as folks become more comfortable with the work practice it probably makes sense to at least experiment with longer blocks to see if they can work even better.
Pomodoro as a jumping off point
Perhaps the biggest reason folks find Pomodoro to be effective, has nothing to do with the amount of work time or how long the brakes are. It may be that Pomodoro is their first experience of time boxing so they feel the benefits of focusing on one thing. Then they attribute those benefits to all of the specifics of Pomodoro. If Pomodoro works for you, I'd recommend experimenting with the durations a bit more. You may be able to build up to 90 minute session or experiment with different ways to manage breaks and mix up your day.
On the other hand, if you struggle with Pomodoro, you may need to start with a shorter session or try another productivity method all together. Some people do well walking while thinking through a challenge. Others need to rely heavily on rituals informed by tastes or location.
I love that Pomodoro has popularized distraction-free work and that folks have found it beneficial. I hope people can build on that success by expanding their own capacity to focus, as well as explore complementary approaches.
