So, I ran into this thing called ‘kinya okada’ a while back. Someone mentioned it online, maybe on some old forum, I don’t really remember where exactly. They were talking it up like it was some magic bullet for getting things done, you know, like deep focus stuff.
My own focus was all over the place then, jumping between tasks, getting nothing really finished. So I thought, what the heck, might as well give this kinya okada thing a try. Couldn’t hurt, right?
Getting Started with It
First step was figuring out what it actually involved. The explanation I found was kinda vague, honestly. Something about setting a really specific intention, then working in short bursts but with zero distractions. Like, phone off, notifications off, door closed, the whole nine yards. Seemed simple enough on paper.
So, one morning, I decided today’s the day. Cleared my desk. Wrote down my one big task. Turned off my phone, felt weird doing that. Set a timer for like, 20 minutes. Okay, let’s do this kinya okada.
The Actual Trying Part
Man, those first 20 minutes felt long. My brain kept wanting to check something, anything. Just glance at email? Nope. Stand up and walk around? Supposedly not. Just sit there and do the work.
I managed it, kinda. But then the break came. The instructions said take a very short, specific kind of break. Don’t remember what it was, maybe just stare at a wall? Felt pretty dumb doing that. Then back for another 20 minutes.
Here’s the thing:
- It felt super forced.
- My mind rebelled half the time.
- I wasn’t sure if I was doing it ‘right’.
I kept this up for maybe three days. Sometimes, yeah, I’d get into a little groove for one or two of those 20-minute blocks. Felt good for a second. But mostly, it was just a struggle. Felt like I was spending more energy trying to follow the ‘kinya okada’ rules than actually doing the work I was supposed to be focusing on.
Where I Ended Up
After those few days, I kinda just… stopped. Didn’t make a big decision, just didn’t bother setting it all up the next morning. Slipped right back into my usual messy workflow.
Maybe the kinya okada thing works wonders for some people. Maybe the person who came up with it, this Kinya Okada guy, maybe he was wired differently. Or maybe the instructions I found were just bad, who knows.
For me? It was mostly just awkward. Didn’t stick. Just one of those things I tried and moved on from. Haven’t really thought about it again until now, just sharing my little experiment with it. Didn’t change my life, that’s for sure.
