What is POMO or Pomodoro
POMO, or short for Pomodoro, is a very popular time management technique, where you break your work into short, 25 minute intervals called Pomodoros, followed by a 5-minute break.
The purpose of the Pomo is to improve your focus on your work in that short period.
This was a method developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. It is widely used, and various POMO timer clocks are available.
I started using the system, but somehow it was incomplete for me. So, on to MOPO, my Evolution hack on the POMO
MOPO vs POMO, What is it ?
Let’s examine it here.
While the POMO- the 25 minute work period, is all about the Task;
The MOPO, the 5 minute Break period, is about Direction.
I have coined for myself the term MOPO, or MOdified-POmo, or MyOwnPOmo
For a more visual explanation, let’s treat it like a journey.
The Pomo is a straight road drive from a start to its end, while a Mopo is the Crossroads.
The Mopo complements the Pomo
What do you do at the Crossroads, the MOPO?
At the crossroads, you pause at the roadside stop.
You take out your maps, and Review, and RePlan.
Besides the Map, you also have a checklist or thought sequence.
- Are you proceeding on the right path?
- Did the last Pomo (work stretcch) give you the desired result, and teach you something more?
- Did you reach here on schedule as per your original plan?
- What is the current situation?, and what is the next best route to follow?
- Do you continue the same planned path, or do you change direction?
- Have you equipped yourself with resources for the next road stretch?
Stretch your limbs, take the required coffee break, and move on.
Now, that is a Mopo. It can be strictly 5 minutes, or whatever, you do your own math.
How I setup my Mopos
This is a personal choice, each to his own.
I name or Label my Mopo breaks. Quite simply, there are 2 breaks, A and B for every hour.
For eg., The Break from 3.55PM – 4PM, is called 4A,
and the break 4.25 – 4.30 is called 4B.
Instead of treating these like Relaxation breaks After the Pomo, I like to treat these as Preparation breaks Before the Pomo
Hence the time Labels, as shown. Notice that, the Mopo break ‘4A‘, occurs at 3.55pm,
and is the Preparation for Work-hour of 4PM, rather than a break for 3PM workhour.
Also the Morning Mopos, and Late evening Mopos have their own separate checklists.
The Early Morning and Late Evening Mopos are Longterm plans. The during-the-day-Mopos are short term, about the tasks in hand.
The reason I name my Mopos, is that over time it is easier to create habits by remembering which Mopo Label creates what kind of thought and action.
You can even refine some of Mopo Label Names to Weekly, Monthly directions.
The Label Name will automatically define your work.
Do tell
If you found this useful. let me know. More importantly, do share you own techniques as well, and your suggestions.