The Pomodoro Technique: How a Tomato Could Make You More Productive

You say that as though there's nothing to be learned about self-discipline or as though there's no way to increase your ability in self-discipline by using a technique you don't already know.

There are lots of little techniques and tricks that people can use to fake or encourage self-discipline until neural pathways build that make the whole concept come more naturally. The Pomodoro technique works for lots of people.

Personally, I've found that I can induce a lot of focus by putting on a pair of noise-canceling headphones and listening to music without words. I have a rule whereby I can have my headphones ONLY if I'm doing real work.

The other thing that works really well for me is the "just one little thing" strategy. If I'm avoiding some task because it's huge and daunting, I decide to close my HN browser window for a few minutes and just do one little thing to make progress on the overall task. Nothing big, just one little thing. Maybe if I'm going to start a new web site, I decide to just create the repository or import a template.

It's a good trick since typically what ends up happening is that one thing is easy so I decide to do another... and another. Before I know it, I'm engrossed in the task and feeling good about making progress.

One of the top comments implied that this technique is primarily for those who procrastinate. This is not necessarily true, at least not in my case. There are studies (apologize for the lack of sources, on the bus) that show that your brain - although it may not feel like it - stagnates in regards to concentration after 25-35 minutes.

This technique can therefore force you to split up your work into intervals causing your brain to rest. To me this has proven to be very effective, especially during programming. You will be surprised how quickly you return to the "the-zone".

There is a deeper philosophy to it. Check out this concept called 'Flow'. Its pretty much the opposite of this philosophy.

Best is to use a sitting desk, but to get up every so often and move around:

   Sit to do computer work. Sit using a height-adjustable,
   downward titling keyboard tray for the best work posture,
   then every 20 minutes stand for 2 minutes AND MOVE. The
   absolute time isn’t critical but about every 20-30 minutes
   take a posture break and move for a couple of minutes.
   Simply standing is insufficient. Movement is important
   to get blood circulation through the muscles. And movement
   is FREE! Research shows that you don’t need to do vigorous
   exercise (e.g. jumping jacks) to get the benefits, just
   walking around is sufficient. So build in a pattern of
   creating greater movement variety in the workplace (e.g.
   walk to a printer, water fountain, stand for a meeting,
   take the stairs, walk around the floor, park a bit further
   away from the building each day).

Note how they recommend getting up every 20 to 30 minutes--a perfect fit for a Pomodoro timer.

I find that the timer doesn't interrupt being in the zone--I can just keep thinking about what I'm working on while I walk around for a couple minutes, and the fitness break is essentially no interruption at all. If I'm not in the zone, then after the break I will do a Pomodoro-like thing and check email and reevaluate what I should be doing before getting back to work.