How Pomodoro Method Transformed the Way I Work

Hi everyone. I'm Utkarsh, CEO of Network Capital. Today I'm going to tell you about the Pomodoro method or the Pomodoro technique, which has truly transformed the way I work and the way I'm able to get a lot done in a day. What does this method say? It tells us that in order to do focused, short bursts of activity, we need to break down the many hours that we spend participating in different tasks, working, getting stuff done into 25 and five minute chunks. So for 25 minutes, whether you are reading a book or finishing a writing assignment, or shipping a piece of code, spend 25 minutes doing just that. No distractions used to screen, blank out, no multiple windows. And then after a 25 minute burst of activity, take five minutes to just unwind, do whatever you feel like. And breaking your workday into morning, afternoon and evening into little bits of Pomodoro method has been transformational for me in getting a lot of focus, deep work done. A good chunk of what I do in a day is writing, reading and thinking. And you can't really write a daily newsletter, a book, multiple articles for magazines and newspapers with a brain that is scattered or which is doing too many things. So many of my friends and colleagues think that I'm great at multitasking, but the truth is that I don't multitask nearly as much as people think. When I'm immersed in a particular activity, that is all I do. But I do it in chunks of manageable chunks of 25 minutes. So to give you a flavor of how I approach perhaps writing this book. This book has hundreds of chapters. Each chapter has sprinkled with research, insights, and lots of other detail and depth has gone into this. But you'll notice that anyone who's gone through the book from COVID to cover will notice that there, there's a remarkable consistency in the voice of the book. And even this consistency, the quality of research that I've been able to cite just putting it all together was, you know, hundreds and thousands of hours of work. But when you divide that into chunks of 25 minutes, it leaves you with something that you actually look forward to. So what's my suggestion or what's my call to action for all of you? Please do not work with hundreds of videos or hundreds of tabs opened on your computer. Don't think of working in 3 hours, 5 hour chunks. I think it's much better to focus on one task at a time for 25 minutes and taking a break of five, getting back to the task and continuing that work. You can also occasionally switch tasks. So after 25 minutes of writing and five minutes of just chilling and unwinding, you can perhaps read something or take your call. The idea is to give your mind a break every few minutes so that you can perhaps do the context switching, but not too frequently that it inhibits your creativity. In writing or speaking, you have to draw upon multiple strands of thought. You have to dabble between anthropology, writing, literature, business, all of these things. And do that, you need a calm mind, one that is focused on one major task and not 25 others. So let's try giving deep work a shot. But in the Pomodoro Method, let me know how your adventure pans out. Nothing gives me more happiness than hearing from all of you about how you're applying some of these principles of deep work, principles of doing creative work and directing your energy and focus to something that truly moves the needle. Don't get seduced by the illusion of hard work. Who you choose to work with and the problems that you choose to focus on is far more determinant of success than the number of hours. Take care, and I hope you spend your day and the rest of the week applying some of the principles of the Pomodoro Method. Thank you very much. You can find us on NetworkCapital TV. Building network capital has been an adventure of a lifetime and watch Listeners like you, readers like you, subscribers like you, have made this adventure worth it. Take care.