It does seem a bit "Catch 22" doesn't it? You need more time, so that you can learn how to make more of your time. Well that was exactly the situation I found myself in, one soul searching Saturday night towards the end of June.
I thought that it would be a useful starting point to know how I was spending my time. So I decided that the following week, I would break out Excel or Word and just make a list of the things I did each day.
I have found the idea of recording what you do, to be an essential tool in the fight for more time. However analysing the data using my first 2 suggestions lost me heaps of time.
So, I turned to Google - there must be an IT based solution out there for people in my situation?
I am happy to say that I found quite a few. However, I lost a shed load of time playing with them, trying to find the right one for me.
I am now going to save you a lot of time (well at least 16 hours) testing various pieces of software by telling you the only 2 you actually need. Both are very simple use - which is essential.
The first is a fantastic piece of software called YaTimer written by NBD Tech that logs time against tasks and projects you are working on. You can leave it running when you are away from your PC / laptop too, so it is great for tracking meeting times, conference calls as well as tasks where you are PC based. It has great time sheet reports and you can export the data to Excel if you want to manipulate the data further. You can even use it to log billable and non billable time. Best of all, it is a dream to use. You can check it out here:
http://www.nbdtech.com/yaTimer/
Next there is another fantastic piece of software called RescueTime Solo from RescueTime. This is a fit and forget piece of software that automatically logs all of your PC based activities down to the documents you open and the websites you visit (if you want it to). It can then give you very detailed productivity statistics and enables you to set goals for yourself. Again it is a dream to use and once you start using it, you will never look back. The basic version is free, but the Pro version gives you the extra granularity and is worth the 8 bucks a month it will cost you. You can find it here.
http://www.rescuetime.com/
Use these two properly and within a week, you will have a good idea of where your time is going. Use them for a month and it may change your life forever!
The process of monitoring your time should become a habit as soon as possible.
In my next blog I will be sharing more things I have been trying and how they are working for me.
