Struggling to stay focused? Try this time management technique with a mindfulness twist! [Fridays: Mindfulness by Miles]
Miles Everson’s Business Builder Daily speaks to the heart of what great marketers, business leaders, and other professionals need to succeed in advertising, communications, managing their investments, career strategy, and more.
A Note from Miles Everson:
Hello!
Welcome to today’s edition of “Mindfulness by Miles!”
Every Friday, we talk about topics related to work, wealth, health, and our overall well-being. Our goal is to help you apply these topics so you can further improve your career without compromising your health.
Today, we’ll focus on the Pomodoro Technique.
Read on to know how you can maximize your work schedule and productivity with the help of this method.
Miles Everson
CEO, MBO Partners
Chairman of the Advisory Board, The I Institute
Mindfulness by Miles
Are you constantly feeling overwhelmed by things you need to accomplish on your to-do list?
Do you feel like you’re unproductive despite working on a number of tasks in a day?
Are you struggling to stay focused at work?
If your answer is “yes” to these questions, Miles Everson, CEO of MBO Partners, has a recommendation for you:
The Pomodoro Technique!
Photo from Luxafor
The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method developed by author and software designer Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. It uses a timer to break down work into manageable 25-minute intervals called “Pomodoros.”
[Fun fact: Did you know why it’s called the Pomodoro Technique? “Pomodoro” is the Italian word for tomato. When Cirillo was a university student, he used a tomato-shaped kitchen timer to organize his study schedule. Hence, the name of the technique.]
After each Pomodoro, you take a 5-minute break to rest and recharge before going back to work. The technique is based on the idea that working in short, focused bursts can help you avoid getting bogged down in a task or feeling overwhelmed by the amount of work you have to do.
What else?
When you break down your work into smaller chunks, you feel a sense of accomplishment more frequently, and that helps increase your motivation.
Leveling Up Your Own Pomodoro Technique
By itself, the Pomodoro Technique is already effective… but what if you take it to the next level by adding a sprinkle of mindfulness to it?
Everson personally suggests incorporating mindfulness practices such as deep breathing and body scans during your 5-minute breaks. These not only increase your productivity but also enable you to become more aware of your thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations.
Additionally, mindfulness practices help release tension and stress, promoting a better work life and personal life balance.
Let’s briefly discuss the mindfulness practices Everson mentioned in conjunction with the Pomodoro Technique:
- Deep Breathing
Also known as diaphragmatic breathing, this practice enables more air to flow into your body and helps calm your nerves. It also improves your attention span and lowers your pain levels.
To practice deep breathing during your 5-minute breaks, take slower, longer breaths from your stomach to counter the short, rapid breaths that you normally do when you’re anxious. Turn your attention to your breath and keep doing the technique. After a while, you will notice your body becomes more relaxed.
You may also try the 4-7-8 breathing method. Everson talked about this in a past “Mindfulness by Miles” article.
- Body Scan Meditation
Here, you pay close attention to your whole body and how it feels by mentally scanning your feet up to the top of your head (or in reverse) in a slow and deliberate progression. This practice lets you develop a deep awareness of your physical sensations and how they relate to your emotions.
To practice body scan meditation, sit or lie down in a comfortable position. Afterwards, breathe deeply and intentionally, then start bringing awareness to your body. Notice what you feel at each body part. If you feel pain or tension there, imagine sending a breath through those painful areas.
Doing this exercise helps relieve tension at the moment.
Everson says these mindfulness practices help bring your focus back to the present, allowing you to release the distractions of the past and the worries of the future.
He states by focusing on the “now,” you can approach your work with a clear mind and increase your focus and concentration on the task at hand.
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The Pomodoro Technique is a powerful tool to manage your time at work. It is also flexible and can be customized to fit your needs. The length of work intervals and breaks can be adjusted depending on your work style or schedule.
So, whether you’re working on a long-term project or need to get through a list of small tasks, Everson says the Pomodoro Technique will help you stay focused and motivated.
By breaking down your work into manageable intervals, you’ll avoid feeling overwhelmed and increase your productivity.
What’s more?
When you add mindfulness practices to your Pomodoro Technique, you’ll also lower your stress levels and promote a healthy work life and personal life balance.
Give it a try and see the results for yourself!
(This article is from The Business Builder Daily, a newsletter by The I Institute in collaboration with MBO Partners.)
About The Dynamic Marketing Communiqué’s
“Fridays: Mindfulness by Miles”
High-performance businesses are run by people who think and act differently.
In other words, these are people who are high-performing individuals.
Companies and individuals of this kind have found ways to escape the grind of commoditization and competition by focusing on the RIGHT goals.
High-performing businesses and individuals are also “return driven” businesses and “career driven” individuals. They conscientiously develop unique capabilities and resources that allow them to deliver offerings in ways no other firm or individual can.
Every Friday, we’ll publish tips and insights from MBO Partners and The I Institute’s “The Business Builder Daily” newsletter.
These will help you gain knowledge on the things that Miles Everson, the CEO of MBO Partners, often talks about regarding the future of the workforce.
We’ll also highlight other mindfulness advice on how you can be a high-performing individual both in your career and personal life.
Hope you’ve found this week’s insight interesting and helpful.
Stay tuned for next Friday’s “Mindfulness by Miles!”
Cheers,
Kyle Yu
Head of Marketing
Valens Dynamic Marketing Capabilities
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