By now I’m the biggest fan of Pomodoro technique. Most recently I picked up a book called Deep Work by Cal Newport. Great reading.

Cal makes a point of having to spend hours in highly concentrated deep-work-producing state. You might be thinking this doesn’t sound like Pomodoro.

You can concentrate for hours and still take breaks. Just don’t do anything distracting. Don’t do things that mess with your focus. Don’t check your phone, your email, your Facebook, Twitter, KPI dashboards, just take a real break.

Taking a real break with full-screen mode of FocusList

Close your eyes and breathe, count to 10, or do some other meditation voodoo.

Do push-ups, sit-ups or jumping jacks if that’s your thing. But don’t take any of that cheap dopamine offered by internet distractions. Internet is what kills your concentration.

I myself tend to close email app and put phone into sleep mode until the task is done (which can span multiple Pomodoros, see FocusList screenshots.)