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Productivity tips?

by johnfelix on 10/19/10, 6:38 PM with 3 comments

Hi guys...I find it a bit hard to concentrate on the work and motivate myself to get the work done. I just find excuses to read books, watch some movie etc. Would you guys mind to share some productivity tips and the kind of schedule that you follow. Thanks :)

  • by Construct on 10/19/10, 6:52 PM

    Try the Pomodoro Technique. Give yourself 25 minutes to focus, and absolutely force yourself not to do anything else but the task at hand. No exceptions. When the 25 minutes are up, you have 5 minutes to relax and unwind. Force yourself to do anything but work for these 5 minutes. I'd strongly recommend leaving your computer/workspace and walking around rather than browsing the internet, but to each their own. Again, no exceptions on the not working part though. When the 5 minutes are up, get back to work.

    Adjust the time intervals as appropriate. I tend to prefer 45/10 but other days I do the original 25/5.

    There are plenty of pomodoro timer applications for every OS. My favorite for windows is pomodairo: http://code.google.com/p/pomodairo/ and I can't recall the name of my Mac OS X timer at the moment, but I'm sure you'll find it with a little searching.

    Here is the original website for the technique: http://www.pomodorotechnique.com/

  • by tyng on 10/19/10, 7:06 PM

    Read the productivity bible "Getting Things Done" (GTD), which outlines a systematic approach to get yourself more organised and ready to take actions.

    If in doubt, just google "GTD" to find out more. There are tons of third-party applications to help you implement the system