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Discussion on: How do you take breaks throughout the day?

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Matt Del Signore

How do you deal with taking a break when you're deep in a problem? That was always my problem with pomodoro, I'd be deep in a problem and the timer would go off.

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Mario See

Changing up the time in pomodoro to 45 minutes of work and 15 minute breaks works for me. Adjusting it to your work style could help prevent untimely breaks when trying the conventional 25/5 split.

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Lindsey Kopacz

Yeah I've totally heard of this too! Whatever works best for your productivity 😃

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Pritesh Usadadiya

same here, pomodoro has never worked for me.

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morgana

Something that helps me here is not to divert your attention on your breaks to anything that requires concentration e.g. striking up conversations with co-workers, thumbing through emails, social media etc. Doing something like a short walk or getting some water like Lindsey suggested helps your subconscious keep working at the problem while the working memory gets a break.

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Lindsey Kopacz

This is tricky because it depends on the personality type. I personally have no problem getting back to it after my break is over because 5 minutes is so short. If it were longer (like 10-15 minutes) I may have a lot more trouble with it.

Sometimes I find that when I do take the break, even when I am deep in a problem, the "fresh" start actually helps and I start hitting the ground running. My intent is always to get back to it after my break, and I am pretty good at it!

It's hard to tell if this is just who I am (personality) or if it's actually my mindset.

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Lindsey Kopacz

I will say though, even if you don't take the full break like I do...we could all benefit from taking a few breaths and remembering to drink water :D

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Max Ong Zong Bao • Edited

Pomodoro technique is awesome, been using it since last year to work on my daily task.

The notifications for pomodoro apps, can help in reminding you to take a break when you have a earpiece.

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Lindsey Kopacz

Yeah, I have one on my desktop at work!