Hi-Tech/Low-Tech: Two Polar Productivity Tools

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Hi-Tech/Low-Tech: Two Polar Productivity Tools

pomodoro

Over the last few weeks, in the unending quest to fine-tune my productivity, I’ve tried out two interesting new methods. One didn’t work for me at all, but the other one seems to be a total winner. Let me fill you in…

RescueTime

The RescueTime software tool permits easy understanding and optimization of the way in which an individual or a group spends time and focuses attention. Amazingly, no data entry is required. You simply install a small application on your computer if you’re using the Individual version, or on all computers in the company for the multi-user versions. From then on, RescueTime keeps track of the software programs and web sites actively used on a computer. The data is collected, spun off into reports, and can be analyzed in various ways. You can learn all about it by checking out the product tour.

Since I’m self-employed, I was interested in only the Individual version, which comes in three flavors: Solo Lite (free), Solo Pro ($5.30/month), and Pace ($4/month).

Solo Lite: Simple monitoring of application and site usage.
Solo Pro: Allows you to specify focus times in which you can block distracting websites; tracks offline time such as meetings and phone calls; break down document usage; set alert rules to alert you when you’re wasting time; unlimited data storage.
Pace: Furnishes project-by-project reports; tracks offline time; break down document usage; import projects from Basecamp or Microsoft Project; unlimited data storage.

I tried the free 14-day trial of Solo Pro, although I only used it for a few days. I can see that this product could be extremely valuable to others, but I suspect my personality didn’t make me a good match for it. One thing that really bugged me was to step away from my computer for a few minutes and then sit back down only to find a nagging note asking what I’d been up to! Thanks for your interest, mom, but it’s none of your business…

In addition, I didn’t find the program intuitive. I’m the type who almost always just starts using a program, figuring out how it works as I go, but I couldn’t do that with RescueTime. There wasn’t really a Help system, either, and I do think this product needs at least a simple User Guide. So in the end I decided RescueTime wasn’t for me.

However, please don’t let my lack of enthusiasm deter you from trying this program out. It might be just what you need. I suspect it’s the kind of tool that you either really love or really don’t. The website displays raves from other users, who apparently find it a great way to be more productive.

Beyond that, the use of such a program in businesses or large enterprises might be extremely beneficial. The 2-week free trial is a perfect way to determine if RescueTime works for you or your organization.

The Pomodoro Technique

This is the one that seems, so far, to be a keeper. If it is, you can expect me to report back at greater length in the future. But right now here’s a quick overview and some downloads to get you going:

The Pomodoro Technique was created back in 1992 by Francesco Cirillo, and it’s been slowly gaining in popularity ever since. A college student at the time, he was seeking a method for focusing concentration, cutting back on interruptions, and alleviating anxiety. What he came up with is incredibly simple—but it works.

To start, all you need is a kitchen timer, a pen or pencil, and a ToDo list, with tasks arranged in order of importance. Then:

Choose the topmost task from the list
Set the timer for 25 minutes
Work until the timer rings
Mark the task with an x on the ToDo sheet.
Take a short break of 3-5 minutes.

Keep on working in “pomodoros” (25-minute sessions), with 3-5 minute breaks in between, until the task is completed. Then cross it out on the ToDo list. Every four timer rings take a longer break of 15-30 minutes. That’s it!

Well, that’s almost it, anyway. There are a few things to do at the end of your workday, such as an activity inventory. There are a few rules such as the fact that a pomodoro is indivisible: if your task takes more than 5-7 pomodoros, you must break it down; if it takes less than one pomodoro, combine it with one or more tasks. But for all intents and purposes, what you need to do is contained in the 5 steps given above.

Here are a few great Pomodoro Resources:

You can download a 1-page “”Pomodoro Technique Cheat Sheet” to get a quick look at the whole process.
If you want to know more, download a free copy of Cirillo’s 45-page book, The Pomodoro Technique. The book goes into detail on how and why this method works, and it offers way to enhance the overall technique. BTW, this is the only productivity manual I’ve ever encountered that quotes Charles Baudelaire.
The focusbooster is a free, downloadable timer devised specifically to work with the Pomodoro Technique. It automatically re-sets to 25 minutes; gives you a 5-minute break; and then re-sets to 25 minutes again. You can change the break and pomodoro time lengths if you like. And a nifty aspect of the timer is that it changes color as it counts down, starting off a cool green 25 and ending up at a red-hot 0. Adobe AIR is required to make focusbooster work; it downloads with the timer.

I view this technique as a variation on GTD, although it seems simpler and less fussy to me. I don’t always want to take a break between sessions, but I do it anyway. Why? Because it’s good for me. When I’m really humming along with my work I often forget to take breaks for hours and end up tuckered out. The little 3-5 minute breaks prevent that—and, I find, spark new ideas that emerge when I head into the next pomodoro.

One last thing: When Cirillo invented this method, he used a tomato-shaped kitchen timer. In Italian, a tomato is a pomodoro—hence the name.

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