Pomodoro Technique

People assume that, being an Engineer in the software development field, I spend all my time working on some of the most complex and interesting problems out there.  While its true to some extent, the reality is that, its not always. Some days are filled creative tasks like finding obscure bugs, brainstorming design decisions etc., which really makes you glad you choose this field.  But, time to time, on some days, even us engineers are subjected to the "non-grey cell consuming", soul crushing , boring , mundane tasks.  And the irony is, you can't have one without the other.

Now, based on my work experience so far, I found that I have a tendency to procrastinate all these mundane not-so interesting work until the last minute.  And one fine day I walk into my office, open my office email, and BOOM ! my manager needs the report in the next hour.  You start cursing yourself for neglecting it so long, and start working on it asap ignoring even that cup of coffee you brought in to drink.  Needless to say, it causes lot of stress, and also takes valuable time away from more important things that has to be attended to on that day.  I tried many ways to get around this problem, and one of the most effective way, that really works for me, is the pomodoro technique.

In a nutshell, quoting straight from wikipedia:

The technique uses a timer to break down periods of work into 25-minute intervals called 'Pomodori' (from the Italian word for 'tomatoes') separated by breaks. 

So, this is how I tackle these mundane/routine tasks at my office these days:

1. First thing in the morning, make a TODO list of the tasks to be completed.

2. Pick the least interesting / mundane tasks and fit all of them into one of the day slots (usually post lunch, unless its required to be completed before that) 

3. Before beginning the task, start a timer of 25 mins and start working on it.

4. Take a break for 10 mins, and then start another timer of 25 mins and continue to work, so on until the task is completed.

The reason this has been working, in my opinion, is that, it brings in a psychological relief to me.  When I start a timer for 25 mins, I'm telling my mind that - "hey its ok, even if the work is boring, I've to survive it only for the next 25 mins".  It has so happened that sometimes, at the end of the 25 mins, the work no longer seems boring , and instead of the 10 min break, I just go ahead and finish it. 

If you have any other techniques to battle the routine/mundane tasks, put them in the comments below.   Cheers !

(link to the original image:  http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Il_pomodoro.jpg/220px-Il_pomodoro.jpg)