Tomatoes and Monotasking

What’s that? Sarah’s finally on her way on that downward slide into mental frailty? Well, maybe but stick with me for the ride because this is about a skill writers, and all of us really, can use in our lives.

Are you a multitasker? Do you pride yourself on all of the plates you keep spinning on any given day? the piles of paperwork, the busy-bee like hoping you do from one to another and back again. All energy and anxiety, and burnt out by the end of each day? Yep. It’s the standard American state. We never wear just one hat, we never do just one job. We never sit still.

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So let’s talk about what’s happening with multitasking. You’re not actually doing multiple things at once, your brain is cool, but it ain’t that cool. The truth is that you’re task-switching. Focusing in short bursts of time on one thing, only to move to another before you can fully complete, appreciate, or solve the task you’re on. The real kicker to this is that it’s actually not very efficient, and it can lead to poorly done work, distraction, not finishing, and feeling like everything you did that day was half-assed. And it was. Or…half-brained.

What in the hell does it have to do with tomatoes? Ah, yes, excellent question. Now that we know that multitasking is actually hurting our brains and productivity, I want you to think about monotasking. That is, just as you would think…working on mononucleosis. No. Just kidding. It’s working on one thing at a time.

*gasp* But how will I accomplish it all?

Well, first of all, remember, you don’t have to accomplish it all. Society, work, culture, pressures, none of it is actually real. These are concepts and constructs we’re controlled by so…prioritize first. Pick 5 things. 5 goals for the day or week and if the rest of your ‘to do’ list doesn’t support or contribute to those 5 things, then feel free to drop them to the side. Now you have a paired down and necessary list. Ta. Fucking. Da.

But what about the tomatoes?! Right, right, I’m getting to it. So now that you have your goals, instead of bouncing from one to another and back again, we’re going to try a little technique called Pomodoro. What’s that you ask?

Why it’s Italian for “Tomato”.

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This technique was created by Francesco Cirillo who initially used the tomato-shaped timer in his kitchen to keep tabs on his productivity. And it goes a little something like this:

Choose a task, get prepped for it.Set a timer for 10, 20, or 25 minutes (if this is new, start with ten, if you’ve got mad focus skills, you can work your way up to 50, but no more than that). You can use your phone (away from your desk) the microwave, an alarm clock, an hour glass…It doesn’t need to be a tomato timer. But how fun if it were.Sit down, sans your distractions (put the phone in another room), and work on the task at hand. Just that task. Whether that’s writing, or bill paying, or marketing, or physical therapy. Don’t quit, don’t stop, don’t task switch, until that little ‘tomato’ sings the song of it’s people.Take a five minute break, stretch, move your body, throw some laundry in the washer, play with the dog, get a glass of water, meditate, do some breathing exercises…whatever gives your brain a break.Reset your timer, and start on the next (or same) task for another chunk of time.

The Pomodoro Technique is more than just a nifty way to manage your time, but it gets your brain into the habit of focus, and with focus (especially for us writers) comes flow state. Flow state is that lovely area where we become engrossed (don’t like that word) in our work and our characters and the rest of the world melts away. Its good for your endorphins, it’s good for your writing, and it’s good for you.

Plus, the small breaks between actually serve another purpose by helping your mind “consolidate” what you’ve been working on. Neural consolidation is an actual thing wherein, after learning or working on something, taking a break will allow your brain to rest, think, and forge new neural pathways so you’ll actually absorb and save the information you’ve worked on. See? The brain is cool.

I’ve been doing this now for a while and I’ve realized that on the days I try to multitask, I get less done and feel more frustrated. But 30-40 minutes of concentrated time, actually equates to a lot more quality work getting done and me being able to give the focus and time to each task like it deserves. I also feel more relaxed and accomplished at the end of the day, instead of flustered and overstimulated.

Give it a shot and let me know how it works out for you.