The Pomodoro Technique

The Pomodoro – Italian for tomato, or a kitchen timer in the shape of a tomato.

The Pomodoro – Italian for tomato, or a kitchen timer in the shape of a tomato. The time management technique was developed by Francesco Cirillo.

I discovered this technique while working in an eXtreme Programming (XP) team.

The Pomodoro Technique

A pair would set the timer to 25 minutes for a focused pair programming session, and then they would take a mandatory 5-10 m break before setting the timer for another pairing session.

Working in a focused manner has been very helpful in clearing my cluttered mind, and I get to work through a chore or kick back on my chair and tinker through a problem. Because I know I can get up when the Pomodoro is over, I feel relieved that I have only one thing to do right now.

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