The Pomodoro Technique, in five minutes.

What is the Pomodoro Technique?

The Pomodoro Technique, also called the pomodoro method, is a time management method that Francesco Cirillo created in the late 1980s while he was a university student. You work in short timed rounds with a break after each one. Cirillo used a tomato-shaped kitchen timer, and pomodoro is Italian for tomato, so each round is called a pomodoro.

The steps

1. Choose a task.
2. Set a timer for 25 minutes.
3. Work on that task, and only that task, until the timer rings.
4. Take a 5-minute break.
5. Repeat. After four pomodoros, take a longer break of 15 to 30 minutes.

Our pomodoro timer runs this cycle for you, breaks included.

Why people stick with it

Twenty-five minutes is easy to commit to, even on a hard task you'd never give a whole afternoon. The timer decides when you stop, so you don't have to wonder whether you've done enough. Breaks are part of the method, which means rest is scheduled instead of something you have to earn.

You also end up with a count of your work. "Six pomodoros" tells you more about your day than "busy all day".

Common problems and how to fix them

"I keep getting interrupted."

Write the interruption down and go back to the task. If it really can't wait, deal with it and start a fresh pomodoro afterwards. In Cirillo's version a pomodoro can't be split, so a round you abandon doesn't count.

"25 minutes is too short."

For deep work, 25 minutes can end just as you get going. Try 50 minutes of work and a 10-minute break, or a 90 minute block. The focus timer has both.

"I skip the breaks."

Take them anyway, even when you feel fine. They're there so you still have energy for the fourth round.

"My task is too big."

Break it down until each piece fits in one to four pomodoros. "Write the report" becomes "outline the report", then "draft section one", and so on.

Pomodoro® and Pomodoro Technique® are registered trademarks of Francesco Cirillo. Dayflint is not affiliated with him.