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Pomodoro means tomato. In Italian. I learned that yesterday — 1-1-11.

I’m not much for New Year’s resolutions because they are so rarely kept. Most involve food, exercise and excessive weight. Those are virtually never kept. Too bad. Obesity is the new plague of the United States, replacing tobacco.

I made a list though — two actually. The first for business (I plan to keep them) and the second for personal…we’ll see about those. I started one from the business list today. The Pomodoro Technique.

Pomodoro is a time management tool I had never heard of until yesterday. I have worked around some of the best time managers that ever lived. In my twenties I had the opportunity to observe two chiefs of staff and one appointment secretary in the West Wing at the White House. The very definition of these two incredibly difficult jobs is Time Management. They practice it at the highest level.

Perhaps because I can compare myself to these extremely high standards, I have never felt that time management was one of my best attributes. I am determined to change that. In today’s economy I don’t see how you succeed as a small business owner if you don’t do a great job of managing your own time. You can never get it back.

So, my work time will now be broken down into thirty minute Pomodoros. Twenty-five minutes of uninterrupted work followed by a five minute break. Every four Pomodoros earns you a thirty minute break — perfect for running the three Springer Spaniels I take to work with me virtually every day.

So if I don’t answer the phone or an e-mail right away, I’m probably in the middle of a Pomodoro with both turned to “silent”. It’s not that I’m not interested in what you have to say, but I’m more interested in getting your project finished — yours and other clients as well. I will get back to you as quickly as I can — I promise.

In the end I will accomplish much more work, and have more and better quality free time. You see, my number one resolution is, “Work Hard / Play Hard”. I intend to keep that one!

Ciao…!