A kinder, less scary way to analyze your time
(Props to @thirdhandworks for the title !)
I’m tracking my time. Conventional wisdom says that it isn’t the big things in life that suck away our time, but the smallest, barely noticeable ones.
This week, I’m testing that theory. I tweeted about it today and enough people asked that I’m explaining it here in detail.
Warning 1: I issue a challenge at the end of this post. It might be fun.
Warning 2: If you’re hoping for sophistication, look elsewhere. Low-tech suggestions follow. 
You’re self-employed. Why are you doing a time analysis?
Some days I work my tail off and have nothing to show for it. I’m 100% ON at my desk for 7-9 hours and I get -squat- completed. And I have no idea why. My business is my livelihood, though, and I have big goals for the year.
Because I’m nerdy like that, I’m doing an analysis. I have a theory about where the time is going, but I’d like to get good, raw data first before I make any adjustments.
The method:
I’m ignoring the other conventional wisdom that says to write down what you do every 15 minutes. I have ADD. I will forget what I did 15 minutes ago. I will also forget 15 minutes have passed. But my ego will want to fill in the blanks later which elicits useless, made-up information.
Instead, I’m writing the time when I switch from one activity to the next. It looks like this:
You probably can’t read it, so here’s a sample:
- 7:56 Prep mailing
- 8:07 Bead making frustration
- 8:13 Clean up cat stuff
- 8:15 Facebook – re: cats
- 8:16 Back to mailing
- 8:22 Out to mailbox
You get the picture. I did it yesterday and have two whole pages of information. Nerdy bliss!
The key:
Curiosity is the key. If I tried doing this with an attitude of judgment and self-hatred, it would only hurt me and I’d quit. Instead, I’m practicing being genuinely curious about how I work, what I do, where my attention goes and how often.
Already I’ve noticed that I switch tasks every 10 minutes or less. I almost wrote “I switch tasks frequently”, but even “frequently” is a judgment. Sticking to facts makes me more curious. I start wondering, “How many minutes, exactly?” Which elicits information I can use.
A challenge (if you’re up for it)
I’m going to post in a week to share what I discovered from this process and what tweaks I might make to my work flow.
If you’re willing to play along, do a time analysis one day next week – any kind you like. Then reply to my post on Friday to share what you learned.
Would you like to play?
Organized under Spacious time. Labeled as self-employment, small business, time, time analysis, time management.
56 days ago,
Crystal (Silver) said:
This idea appeals to the geek in me, too! Lists are awesome; data is awesome; and if I can think of some way to stick this in a database and use it to show a trend, that’d be awesome, too.
Out of curiosity, have you done the Toggl thing yet? I’ve been slacking on it in 2010 so far, but when I was using it regularly, it was nice to be able to see at a glance the different chunks of time I was allotting to different tasks and projects each week. A different sort of data, but the more, the better?
56 days ago,
Lori Paximadis said:
I’m a bit petrified of what I might learn from this exercise, but yeah, I’ll play.
And writing down when you switch tasks makes so much more sense than the 15-minute chunks — genius!
Lori Paximadis´s last blog ..Best of 2009: Place
56 days ago,
jennifer said:
Lori – Yay! I feel better knowing I have an ally on the path with me. I promise to be nice to you about your discoveries, if you promise to give yourself the same.
Gentleness and curiosity rule! I’ll look for your post next Friday!
Crystal – You know, I’d totally forgotten about Toggl. I’m such a pen-and-paper person, the low tech is more likely to get done.
So, are you in, then with a different tool?
55 days ago,
Qrystal said:
In defense of the idea of tracking fifteen-minute chunks, it can be a little easier to analyze when split into equal-sized pieces. I use a bubble sheet, which I like because it’s simple and friendly. Reviewing a day is as simple as glancing at how many bubbles were where.
However, I can see the benefit of writing down task transitions too. It would be faster, because you wouldn’t have to process your tasks into categories at the time of recording it.
It might be interesting to track the transitions as you describe, and then at the end of the day, enter it into the bubble sheet to see how things go… and since the bubble sheet I use is virtual (BubbleTimer) it is like putting it into a database. I just haven’t figure out quite how to mine it for its trend data yet (said with a nod and smile to Crystal) but I know it’s possible.
55 days ago,
jennifer said:
Qrystal – Oo! A BubbleTimer! It;s the first I’ve heard of such a thing.
I don’t know if it would work for me, but they have a free trial – and it looks neato! http://bubbletimer.com/
Thanks for the tips!
jennifer´s last blog ..A kinder, less scary way to analyze your time
54 days ago,
Jennifer Louden said:
I love you. Just wanted to say that.
I’m working on this SO TOTALLY too (say that 3 times really quickly) mainly by 1) meditating/yoga first before anything; choosing one big thing to do first each day, the big thing; and trying
to schedule / batch all the bullshit that sweeps me around into the afternoon. So far shaky but better.
Jennifer Louden´s last blog ..50% to Haiti
54 days ago,
jennifer said:
Hi Jen! Good for you! Really, when it comes down to it, the goal is mindfulness. Consciousness. For myself, I hope that someday most of my actions will be purposeful, rather than reactive.
Your meditating, yoga, and batching are all ways to be present. Not coincidentally, they all take practice. Thank goodness *perfection* isn’t the goal.
Thanks for the comment! (hug!)
jennifer´s last blog ..A kinder, less scary way to analyze your time
52 days ago,
Sherri said:
I think I’d like to try this. Sounds like a good idea. But keeping up with the notebook…???
52 days ago,
jennifer said:
I hear you, Sherri!
If keeping up with the notebook sounds like a chore – don’t force it on yourself. Seriously.
I’m only doing the time analysis for a week. Having a *specific timeframe* for the analysis makes it manageable in my own mind, instead of overwhelming.
Remember that you don’t have to be perfect at it. I have big gaps in my notebook already.
The other thing is to remember why I’m doing it. I want to be more focused while I’m at work – so that I have more free time to do other stuff I love.
Time analysis is clearly not sexy. But having a richer, slower life definitely is.
Does that help at all?
jennifer´s last blog ..A kinder, less scary way to analyze your time
38 days ago,
Amy Crawley said:
Hi Jen,
I used Charlie Gilkey’s heat maps for a few days to assess my most productive time in the studio. It confirmed what I was already thinking but never admitted to myself; that I’m most productive between 9am and 4pm.
I also noticed that, depending on what I’m working on during the week, I tend to get bored with certain projects by mid-week and have to switch gears and work on something else.
It is really interesting to observe ourselves to learn how we use our time. Now I have to put what I’m learning into better practice.
Amy Crawley´s last blog ..Standing at Water’s Edge-Chapter 10 (Final)