Anyone read it? Is it worth reading? 44 pages is pretty lengthy if it's just the usual masturbatory self-improvement stuff (but I'm willing to believe that it's not, if someone can summarise why it is better than the other stuff)...
You track your interruptions. It is similar to the "trusted system" in the GTD system. It is also similar to meditative techniques where you let go of extraneous thoughts instead of trying to actively suppress them.
By the way, I've only read the first two chapters which is maybe 10 pages long. I haven't bothered to read the rest of it, though I'll probably add it as a pomodoro. I don't really plan on using it in a team setting and I was itching to get started on stuff after reading it.
As for the kitchen timer, I wrote shell two shell script that tells mplayer to play the Final Fantasy 6 harp theme after 25 minutes using the 'at' daemon.
Why does it work best for small tasks? His example tasks are 5-8 pomodoros long.
In my opinion, no self-help guide applies for everyone; we all have our own strengths and vices.
It seems that this one is designed to help build concentration and minimize interruptions by defining concrete "work unit" blocks, thus helping to build discipline in fighting off distractions (internal & external).
I don't feel strongly about his views on the perception of time, but it's not that important to the whole article.
"In my opinion, no self-help guide applies for everyone; we all have our own strengths and vices."
This one seems to work particularly well for me precisely beacause my perception of time fits better with the sequenced than the abstract. I also dislike multitasking and I've been practicing concentration exercises and catching internal interruptions outside of work anyways. I can leverage a lot of things I already do. Not everyone is going to be able to do that.
My main problem is just getting started on a task, but once I get started I can usually follow through. What do people here do to get over that inertial bump?
1. Shock yourself out of the inertia of the previous context by removing yourself from it quickly and decisively as soon as you realize it's time to get to work. Devote a few minutes to something as far removed as possible for the explicit purpose of clearing your head of what you've been doing. Do not delay. Leave things unfinished: if it is not as important as the task you're switching to, then by definition it can wait.
2. Start with the smallest, simplest, most self-evident and well-defined part of the larger task that you can think of. Reduce every task until you find something you can do right this minute without having to think more than a few minutes ahead, and repeat. Make reversible decisions by guesses or random selection if necessary to keep moving forward. Resist the urge to prematurely optimize by batching, list-making, or prioritizing until your attention is fully on the new task.
The timeboxing described here works well for me because it makes me just sit there and start. I've noticed doing that with other things. The reasoning is if I have to sit here anyways, might as well work.
Just so you know, I set up my office along pg's suggestions. I had moved off all non-work-related stuff to the desktop computer.
I've also been using Pivotal Tracker. The gig I'm working on had pulled in Hashrocket, and they insisted on it. The stories are chunked down to easy bite sizes, so I've been able to crank it out.
The real test though will be doing this for the non-consulting projects, where the payoff is going to be far far away...
I read the whole article. It is designed for certain types of task, and it is not appropriate to others. For example, sometimes my tasks involve, "travel to the city and speak with Joe." "Travel to the city" takes 40 minutes. It should not be split into two work units with a break in between. Further, "speak with Joe" would not be splittable. How am I going to say, "Joe, when the timer rings, we are going to get up and not talk to one another for 5 minutes."
However, for desk-work it might help me. I have to stop every 20 minutes and take a 5 minute break anyway due to RSI. Using this interval as an atomic unit for task completion, recording, and estimation may be useful.
I've been using this trick when dealing with boring tasks, to prevent my mind from wandering. If you are on a Mac, this widget can crack the whip on you by chiming at regular intervals: http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/status/prodme.html
Of course, the preferable solution is to find a job where your tasks aren't boring.
I like the general idea, although if I had a kitchen timer ticking on my physical desktop and going off every 25 minutes, my officemates would beat me senseless, which could have some impact on my productivity.
This sort of thing seems to work well when you have a lot of well defined work to do.
But what do you do if your work is not well defined or clear cut? Sometimes slowing down, taking a step back, looking at the big picture, and thinking outside the box produces much less work with much more impact. Then you don't need your timer nearly as much.
I have been using the technique for a couple of months now. I love it and I would say that for me, it works for both kinds of work. I know it sounds silly, but it has come to a point where the ticking sound is my work-mode reminder which helps me stay focused. Also, I have started competing with myself to see how many pomodoros a day I can do.
I've been using a timer on the computer. I think a ticker might drive me nuts, but I get what you mean by the ticking sound.
I've been using something similar for my meditative practice, only I use incense. I sit there until the entire stick burns off. What ends up happening is that I subconsciously associate the meditative state with the smell of sandalwood incense.
If you have an iPhone, it has a nice timer app built in (not necessarily directed only to you creativeembassy, but to the general, largely iPhone-using HN public)
