Advising Tip | Keep Distractions at Bay with the Pomodoro Technique

Tetyana Dovbnya

By Tetyana Dovbnya
Academic Advisor / International Student Advising Specialist

Would you call yourself busy? If so, how productive is your “business”? When you are busy, do you actually work on the task at hand, or just think and stress about it while the time is ticking?

No doubt, it is hard to keep all the distractions at bay while working. One technique that is useful for staying focused and effective while working is the Pomodoro Technique, which helps you break up studying or work into smaller, more manageable sections.

Here are simple steps to follow if you want to try this technique:

1. Choose a task to work on.
2. Set a timer (or Pomodoro) for 25 minutes.
3. Work on your task until the timer goes off, avoiding ALL distractions. (Put aside your cell phone and no chatting!)
4. When the timer goes off, put a check mark on a piece of paper and take a five-minute break.
5. After four Pomodoro intervals, take a longer break of 15-30 minutes. Reset your check mark count to zero, then go back to step 2.
6. Check out Life Hacker for additional info and Pomodoro apps.

In essence, the Pomodoro Technique organizes your distractions, limiting them to those 5-minute spans of time.

Wishing you all a productive Week 5!