Whether you have a home office or are working remotely from home for the first time, staying on schedule can be difficult. Many remote workers claim that their home has too many distractions and they can’t be as productive as they would be in their office. But the truth is that with the right strategy you can be even more efficient while working at home.
The pomodoro technique is not only a great way to attack your to-do list, it can even benefit your mental and physical health. If you’re intrigued, read on to learn more about the pomodoro technique.
The pomodoro technique has been used since the 1980s to help busy people work effectively. The technique involves alternating between 25-minute hyper-focused work periods followed by 5-minute rest periods. The name, pomodoro, was named by its inventor for the Italian word for “tomato”. This was the shape of the kitchen timer he would use to track the intervals.
The idea behind this method of working is that we can remain very focused and work effectively with a short, manageable time limit that we enforce ourselves.
The format of the pomodoro technique is straight-forward:
- Choose a task that you would like to get completed
- Set a timer for 25-minutes (does not have to be tomato-shaped, but it can be!)
- When the timer goes off take a 5-minute break to relax
- After 4, 25-minute sessions (also known as pomodori) take a longer, 15-30 minute break
- Repeat as many times as you can and want to for the day
There are more benefits to the pomodoro technique beyond keeping you focused at work.
Breaking up working time into smaller increments is known to improve concentration, motivation, and overall productivity. And allowing for shorter, planned rest times prevents exhaustion or feeling overwhelmed.
Additionally, this technique can help you better plan your day and stay organized when you are trying to juggle many competing priorities.
Perhaps most exciting is that there are even health benefits to working in this manner. If you use your 5-minute and 15-30 minute breaks to get up and move around, meditate, stretch, or prepare a healthy snack you are taking full advantage of every element of this technique.
You can use the pomodoro technique throughout your day.
The pomodoro technique is highly versatile. You can use it at work, cleaning your home, or doing yard work. You can interchange personal and professional tasks into your pomodoro routine as well.
If you are someone that likes organization and schedule, this technique will fit seamlessly into your life. And if you are someone that is not as organized, this technique will help you become one, easily!
The tomato is ticking, give it a shot to stay focused while you work from home.
You have nothing to lose by trying the pomodoro technique. Try it out. Write your list, find a timer, and get going!
If you don’t have a standard kitchen timer you can also use a stopwatch or regular watch. You can even use your cellphone timer or look for one of several pomodoro apps.
As always, consider getting an ergonomics assessment of your home office setup from an expert. Working from home can be a challenge. Whether your work environment is too distracting or if your wrists are hurting from improper keyboard ergonomics – there are a variety of low cost, creative solutions which an ergonomics consultant can recommend for work from home/remote-work situations.
Right now, Solutions Northwest Inc. is running a special for Virtual Ergonomics Assessments (all you need is access to e-mail or a smart phone) in order to assist remote workers and others that are new to working at home.
Looking for More Tips on How to Create an Ergonomic Workspace? Contact us at SolutionsNW.com, we will be happy to help you!
At SolutionsNW.com we value the importance of a positive workplace culture. Part of a positive workplace is a safe workplace, Contact Us to schedule an ergonomics consultation or ergonomics assessment for your office today.
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