Time management for developers is a real challenge—something we constantly strive to improve but struggle to measure. Where there’s a need, someone is trying to fill it, although seldom for free.
The Developer’s Dilemma
Agile, lean, scrum, kanban—they seem like components of “The Seven,” the antagonists from “The Boys.” From the outside, they look like superheroes promising to solve all problems, but as we know, some barely manage to solve their own. In contrast, others become schizophrenic nightmares with dictatorial rules that end up hurting anyone who crosses their path. And that’s just team management.
When it comes to solving a dev’s problems, aside from therapy, you could read hundreds of books teaching you how to organize your life with manuals with quirky titles or mix the experiences of stay-at-home moms with those of Silicon Valley CTOs.
But that’s what fascinates us about these Anglo-Saxon manuals, which are often copied here too. Fortunately, a European dev tends to be more cynical, despite sharing common problems.
The Struggle with Distractions
These days, no task goes uninterrupted. Anyone who’s tracked their phone usage shudders at the weekly screen time reports. The worst part is that the time spent on the phone multiplies with the time it takes for the brain to get back to what it was doing before posting that picture of the neighbor’s cat. Neuroscientists estimate a recovery time of about 30 minutes. And that’s not counting the quality of work, which suffers significantly when constantly interrupted.
If you’re like me and spend about three hours a day on your phone, your guilt is directly proportional to the mountain of work piling up. Usually, I react with drastic measures, like removing all social apps from my phone (except LinkedIn, which I “need” for work), reactivating the Pomodoro app to block distracting sites during focused work sessions, and cursing spam calls. I even have a picture of Cal Newport on my desktop as a reminder.
Once I calm down, I try to do things right and review my notes on how to clean up the mess. Naturally, Cal, staring from my desktop, points me back to his “deep work” principles: working in a state of distraction-free focus to maximize productivity.
Cal, who lives without social media and therefore writes books as if there’s no tomorrow, summarizes everything in four rules:
- Work Deeply: Newport provides strategies for building deep work habits, like setting aside dedicated time blocks and creating a distraction-free environment.
- Embrace Boredom: Train your mind to resist distractions and tolerate boredom, improving your concentration ability.
- Quit Social Media: Reduce or eliminate social media use to minimize distractions and maximize work time.
- Minimize Shallow Work: Cut down on time spent on activities that don’t significantly contribute to your professional goals.
Time Management and Priorities
So, out go the social apps, the notifications, email checks every 30 minutes, and ruthless cuts on unnecessary calls. In the office, be the first to take the coffee break and decline all others; your liver will thank you. If you work from home, fend off your spouse and lock the fridge.
If you’re bored, you could watch old national team matches or read condo notices—anything will make a training video on YouTube feel like “Fast and Furious.”
The Franklin Matrix
The infamous Franklin matrix helps prioritize tasks. Cillian Murphy could demonstrate the four quadrants with different moods:
- Quadrant 1: Urgent and Important
Immediate attention is required, crucial for short- and long-term goals.
Examples: crises, imminent deadlines, health issues. - Quadrant 2: Not Urgent but Important
Long-term fundamental tasks that don’t need immediate attention.
Examples: strategic planning, personal development, and long-term projects. - Quadrant 3: Urgent but Not Important
Distractions that require immediate attention but don’t contribute to long-term goals.
Examples: non-essential calls, and unproductive meetings. - Quadrant 4: Not Urgent and Not Important
Pure distractions that waste time.
Examples: mindless social media browsing, TV watching, and unproductive hobbies.
Once the major tasks are sorted into the right quadrant, another book comes to the rescue: To-Do List Formula: A Stress-Free Guide To Creating To-Do Lists That Work!
Making To-Do Lists Work
The key to an effective to-do list is limiting it to 5-9 actions. Too many tasks can lead to stress and anxiety, productivity’s sworn enemies. Make your list the day before, write it by hand, and keep it realistic and specific.
Staying Focused
I’ve used the Pomodoro technique so often that I could start a virtual cannery, but it doesn’t work for me. I prefer the flow state—total immersion without time boxing. Modern IDEs with built-in plugins help streamline tasks, keeping me focused. Remote work in a quiet room with only my rubber ducks for company is ideal.
Final Thoughts
If you don’t want to hear the phone ringing in your head, like in the classic Joe Jackson song covered by Anthrax, you need to organize yourself effectively. Each of us has our own priorities and preferences, but the key is measuring and refining our daily practices.
There’s immense satisfaction in flipping through a notebook full of completed to-do lists, except when you realize you forgot to send that one life-changing proposal six months ago…
