In lieu of the usual link-fest! Some of these may be obvious, but here are 5 things I have noticed after nearly 2+ weeks of continuous time tracking with fairly good accuracy.
(I record things fairly close to real-time rather than trying to recall back a few hours. I get really burdened down trying to hold in my head even a few hours of activity if there is task switching, so this works much better for me. I use 15 minute increments, rounding up or down when needed. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty close.)
1- Time tracking might make you more self-compassionate. I have a tendency to self-flagellate myself (um, you may have noticed at times) for bad days or time “wasted” or just not getting through what I wanted to. But tracking time has helped me to see that on many such days, this has nothing to do with personal failure or even self-discipline. It’s just . . . math! For example, on Wednesday I spent over 5 hours taking the kids to various appointments (PCP for G & C, ortho for A) and activities (gymnastics, guitar).
I also taught BLPA2.0 (which went well! Inaugural class!) and had another work meeting.
Can I really be mad at myself for ‘not getting more work done’ (and also choosing not to also drive to the gym after all of that driving?!)
No, I cannot. I cannot look at that time log and feel anything other than “wow, that was really a lot of driving and a full day.” I’m not saying this was an ideal situation, but it’s just a more accurate view than blaming myself for somehow not also fitting in several hours of creative productivity and a gym workout.
2- Time tracking might reveal a lot about your current stage of life. As discussed, I drive a lot right now. And I’ve accepted that this is just how it’s going to be for a while (at least the next 2 years). It won’t be forever. (And just to be clear, I am sharing the load – I typically do 2-3/5 morning drop offs, 0/5 afternoon pickups, and less than half of the nighttime activity driving. And yet it’s still a LOT OF DRIVING, some of that just getting myself to and from work. Nothing is super close together where I live, though it’s all relative, I suppose. I’m sure rural areas are scattered much more! I will say that I am very happy that most of the time, I am not fighting terrible/unpredictable traffic, unlike when I used to take I-95 from Miami Beach to Hollywood and back every day.)
Instead of being mad at it, I will just notice it and try to make the most of it: podcasts, music, talking to kids if they are in the car, and sometimes talking on the phone. I also have made a pact with myself to relax and not think about traffic or how long any given drive takes once I am in the car. It isn’t actionable (once the drive has already started) so WHY ruin the driving time ruminating on it?!
3- Time tracking might point out that you are trying to cram too much into your day. Yeah. Real talk: I rush too much trying to cram things in. I knew that, but the meta-awareness of time tracking helped illustrate how bad it is sometimes. I will eat in like, 5 minutes. I will shower/get ready sometimes in an outright frenzy trying to leave for work on time.
I don’t like this feeling of time scarcity and I’m really going to work on moving past it. In most cases, I’m not even rushing towards anything worthwhile. Nothing terrible will happen if I arrive home 15 minutes later, or if I skip a workout once a week in favor of a more relaxed morning. I want to REALLY focus on this over the rest of the summer.
4- Time tracking will make it very clear how you use your “free time”. Some days this week, I chose to do things like read and play piano (the Bach two-part inventions = good choice! My fingers mostly remembered the first one from many decades ago, which was cool). Other times I scrolled mildly toxic Reddit threads. Guess which made me feel better afterwards?
Honestly, the causality is NOT so straightforward, as it’s much more likely that I’m in toxic Reddit mode when my mood is already bad. But I can confidently say that the scrolling DOES NOT make it better. I think it’s time to go cold turkey again (like Kae did with soda!) and make this a total non-option for how to spend time. I feel . . . ready.
5- Time tracking will not magically open up extra hours. There absolutely might be some people who track time and realize they actually DO have more time to organize, or write, or pursue a hobby. But I think I need to accept this is not going to happen for me. This isn’t to say it’s not useful, because I think that discovering many of the things in #1-4 HAVE been useful.
If anything, I think this exercise has encouraged me to be more choosy with my commitments. I am thinking of dropping Club Pilates for a bit, for example (I DO enjoy the classes, but CP is expensive both in time AND money, and now that I achieved the highest level at my studio the thrill of the chase is sort of gone . . .).
I am going to continue tracking for now. I feel like it’s giving me some insight and meta-awareness that feels worth the effort (and when it stops feeling that way I’ll stop!).
And now for a belated dance recital pic!
G danced hip hop + ballet and A did ballet.
5 Comments
Quit Reddit now. It is a toxic cesspool of bitterness and hate. Do not look back. If you need something mindless, candy crush is much less corrosive.
I’m so proud of you for your #1-4. 🙂
i’m bad at spatial things (and would probably struggle at candy crush!), but i should just start doing a million word games. so true. mindless but non-toxic can be good. and thank you!!!!
Just wanted to chime in to say that these lessons struck a chord with me! I haven’t time tracked recently but I too am often hard on myself for not getting more done, but then I’m also frustrated with not having enough time to relax and do things I enjoy. And by many standards I think I’m pretty productive!
It reminds me of something you said on a recent BLP episode about almost never checking off everything on your list, but if you can get to 60-70% you are pretty pleased.
So thank you for sharing!
Really good point about the self-compassion! I always think the purpose of time tracking is to figure out ways to become more productive but sometimes…it’s not.
Great call on trying to fit too much into a day and rushing bc of it. I find myself doing this when I try to do 8 things in 15 min or something quick before I leave and then having that rushed feeling of time scarcity. 5-10 mins won’t make or break my days so I need to adjust accordingly. My efficiency urge can be too strong at times. Also trying to slow down my eating to help in enjoyment and be more in-the-moment bc I’m in the 5 min breakfast and lunch club!