Free Gems (AIR edition): Focus Booster
I’m not sure why it took me this long to write a Free Gems post about an AIR app, but it’s time. Focus Booster is a fantastic little utility for improving your time management. It uses the Pomodoro technique, which is based on the following five steps:
- Choose a task to be accomplished
- Set the timer to 25 minutes
- Work on the task until the timer rings
- Take a short break
- Repeat, taking a longer break every four rounds
The app keeps this technique simple with a single-click to start and a stop button if need a timeout. You can even set your own work/break length. The UI is beautiful and a pleasure to have on the desktop.
I think time management and personal workflow are essential for any profession. I’ve been trying to start a routine lately, beginning jotting down a list of to-dos for the day. And since I work from home, I take a walk around the block to get into the working-mood. On the walk, I make sure my car is where I left it, especially after my recent impound experience. It’s also nice to get some fresh morning air.
I bring this up because life in front of the computer takes a toll on your body and surrounds you with an endless array of distractions. The more complex the workload, the more stressful it can be to focus. What techniques or apps do you use to stay on top of things?
Uhm…. the server is down….any mirrors I can download this awesome piece of software from?
@Daniel — Ouch… I’m not aware of any mirrors. Hopefully, it will be back soon.
Haha, I’m sure it’s already back up, or will be shortly. I’m just one of those impatient guys that needs to have something when he hears about it.
Thanks for sharing this. I really need help with time management and I think this will be a good tool to help. I tell my wife I’m working on a project that should only take 30 minutes, yet it turns into 3 hours because you know I’m “multitasking.”
My wife is my current app for helping me stay on task. It’s great but not really the best for your relationship at times. We’ll see if Focus Booster can help. Of course any tool like this is only good if you actually use it and obey your own rules.
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I’m a big fan of using Klok (another promising Air app . . . eagerly waiting for version 2.0). By picking a single task to work it helps keep me focused and away from the multi-tasking-productivity-drain that tends to be my routine. It has the added benefit of keeping track of how long I worked on each task (so I can bill!). I really like the idea of forcing myself to stop every n minutes and just take a break though. The only problem I have with SCHEDULED breaks like that is that sometimes I’m just “in the groove” flinging code faster than mortals should and if a “ding” breaks that concentration I could possibly lose a lot of productivity. For me productivity is king.
You are right. The more complex the workload, the more stressful it can be to focus. I’ve been trying to manage my time, and frankly I couldn’t. Distractions comes from anywhere. However you are blessed by working at home. I work at the company and I have to hear all the talks around me, even the ones I’m not supposed to hear.
However this app, has a task limit to 40 minutes only so I”ll have to break some tasks into smaller pieces. I’ll consider getting done the tasks within the given time, a challenge!
Thanks for sharing!
I have been using this for a few days now and I really like it. In fact, I’m not using it right now which would probably explain why I got sidetracked reading your blog and now leaving this comment. Time to launch focus booster and get back to work. : ) Thanks for sharing this gem!
What about an update to destroytwitter? cheers
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Thanks for sharing, it has really helped me w/ distractions. It makes you feel pressured