Scott Cheatham’s Weblog

The Pomodoro As A Time Keeper!

Can a tomato shaped timer enhance and improve your productivity? For Italian software designer Francesco Cirillo, it made all the difference in the world. In designing his “Pomodoro Technique” time management system, Cirillo developed a way to stay focused, lessen the severity of interruptions, and get more done during his work day.

I heard of this system last week when a Twitter friend directed me to a time management piece written by the Wall Street Journal. Columnist Sue Shellenbarger tried out three time management systems and then reviewed the pros and cons of each one. Included in the three were the venerable favorites, GTD (Getting Things Done) by David Allen and Stephen Covey’s “Focus” method. Sandwiched in between was “The Pomodoro Technique”. The system is named after a tomato (Pomodoro in Italian) and has its roots in the fact that it was through the use of a tomato shaped kitchen timer that Cirillo developed and perfected his system.

In a nutshell, the system breaks down into managing your time in short bursts of productive time with a brief interval of recovery (A Pomodoro). This isn’t unlike the recovery methods discussed in the book “The Power of Full Engagement” that I reviewed last year. And it’s very much like the “Power of 48″ method I’ve discussed where you work for 48 minutes and take a 12 minute break.

The real beauty in a system like this is its simplicity and the way it can integrate with methods you might already feel comfortable with. The technique, like any time-management system, requires you to keep a log of your tasks (an inbox to process), a list of activities to accomplish each day (a results or to-do list) and a record of your achievements that you can keep either on paper or through a spreadsheet so you can manage projects more effectively and budget the right amount of time for them in the future.

I particularly liked Cirillo’s method of handling both internal and external interruptions to your work day. This has many applications depending on your employment situation but is adaptable to any method.

You can purchase a bound copy of the book describing the method or you can go to Cirillo’s site and download a free copy of the eBook for “The Pomodoro Technique”. It’s 45 pages long and took me less than two hours to read after I downloaded it. It also includes sample forms for you to use to get started measuring your projects and actions in “Pomodoros“.

One observation from my first read: This system would seem like a no-brainer for people working in offices and tied to their desks all the time be it home office or work office. For a pastor like myself, I can see the benefit in timing out the administrative and study time I need by budgeting my mornings and/or afternoons and thus, freeing up other time for visitation or meetings. Since the nature of my work has me out for several hours at a time some days, it makes sense to minimize distractions when I’m at my desk to get things done in a timely fashion so I can move on to activities that involve people, which is my main business!

All in all, I like the idea of the “Pomodoro” technique. Cirillo has found a way to simplify tracking your tasks and getting more done with less distraction and the fact that he has made the system free for downloading is quite nice indeed. Download a copy of the eBook and share your thoughts on this new way of looking at time management.

And I wrote this piece in one Pomodoro! So now, I’m taking a break!

I don’t know much about the development of this product but I know this..I want one! Microsoft’s “Courier” tablet is in the process of coming to market and I think it will change the way we work with computers.

Apple’s working on their iTablet to try to beat Microsoft but I think this might be the superior product. I will wait for a while and let the market bear out.

Check out the videos on the Gizmodo site that shows off some of what this new generation of tablet PC’s will be able to do!

As the holidays approach, I always like to think ahead and plan for some good reading during that time. Last year, I shared some books with you that I took in during that time. This year, I’m open to some new suggestions..

What books have you enjoyed this past year? Are there any you would recommend to a bibliophile like myself?  Comment and let me know!

Kennedy's Book

As a collector of time management ideas and tips, I picked up Dan Kennedy’s time management book on recommendation from a friend.  Kennedy has made a bunch of money in sales and knows how to manage his time for maximum efficiency. The book is part of a series of books written by Kennedy under the “No B.S.” label. As a Christian, you might be offended by the label but long ago, I learned that you can mine the good stuff from literature and throw the rest away. Other than the title, there’s no language to deal with within the covers and the information here is pretty solid.

Kennedy’s methods are designed for the business professional but have value to ministers also. His tips on managing the phone, focusing on goals, and preparing your execution plans are all valuable nuggets to adapt to your situation. In Kennedy’s words, he looks for the “Time Vampires” in your life, those people or things that can suck the life right out of you, and he gives you workable advice for handling them.

The book pulls no punches. Kennedy himself says you might not like all of his ideas and that is perfectly alright. Take what you can and run with it. He gets to the point, gives you a problem, a solution, and the way to get there. Chapter done. Then, he discusses something else. He writes like he speaks and he doesn’t waste paper here.

One of the things I liked most about this book was Kennedy’s insistence to focus, focus, focus! In ministry, we can get caught up in the mundane and keep ourselves busy but if we aren’t making progress in certain areas, then we really are just spinning our wheels regardless of how busy we are. Near the end of the book, Kennedy shares his best advice when he says to identify three things you know will make you successful in whatever enterprise you are involved in. From those three things, identify an action you can take from each one and DO THEM. Focus on your goal, what it will take to get there, and don’t get sidetracked by meaningless details. This rang quite true to me as I’ve heard veteran church planter Steve Sjogren say essentially the same thing in his writings. As a church planter/pastor, I could easily get bogged down by the latest craze, endless ministry programs, and meetings with others than avail nothing. These aren’t bad in themselves but when they become the bulk of our execution for the day, they rob us of truly accomplishing what God wants to do in our church and our life.

Again, if you can get past the title, there’s much to be gained here. It’s a good book with good information.

If you’re like me and enjoy a good quality wood pencil to write with but hate having to throw them away after using only about half of the pencil, keep reading.

A few years back, I switched back to wood pencils in my writing. I’ve written before about my attempts to switch to mechanical pencils with no success. When I switched back though, I began a search for quality pencils that I could enjoy using. Much of what is marketed in stores today is cheaply made wood with lousy lead fillers. No wonder though if you throw them out every few weeks, why spend more?

But after you’ve used a quality pencil (and paid a bit more for it), you want to use as much of it as possible. Enter the Alvin Aluminum Pencil Lengthener. As the picture at right show, the device is a simple aluminum barrel with a screw top clutch that holds your pencil securely. When you’re nice pencils wear down like before, simply put them in the pencil lengthener and get many more weeks use from them. For a while now, I’ve used the Lyra Beechwood extenders with a collar that slides down over a semi-hollow barrel. These were okay but not what I was looking for. A few years back, I read about a Japanese manufacturer named Kutsawa that built nice pencil lengtheners but they weren’t easy to find. My good friends over at Pencil Things started to carry these so I waited until I needed some new pencils to have them throw one of these in there.

I wasn’t disappointed. The devices are relatively inexpensive ($3.00 for one  or $7.97 for a three pack) and they are nicely built for that price. As I mentioned earlier, the barrel in these lengtheners is hollow so you have put a half used pencil in them and work it down to the nub before throwing it away. This will extend the life of my pencils by at least 40% and looks professional in my messenger bag when I use it.

You pay good money for your quality pencils. Now make sure you get as much from them as possible. I recommend the Alvin Aluminum Pencil Lengthener for its balance of price, value, and convenience. I’ve not seem these in any store though since most office supply stores don’t see a need for stocking quality pencil products. You can order these online from Pencil Things and have them in your hands usually within a week.