How do you spend your time during the day?

The fact is that the sense of time is subjective. Games, social networks, YouTube videos - it's addictive. And time flies quickly. At the same time, working on the most boring report can last only 20 minutes, but it will seem like an eternity.

We tend to exaggerate the time we spend on useful activities. Conversely, we downplay the harm of time wasters. That is, the error always goes in a harmful direction.

This is where timing comes in handy!

What is timing?

You go around and write down what you do and for how long. All day.

For example:

• called Vasya - they talked about football - 15 minutes;
• went for bread - 10 minutes;
• read Lifehacker - 40 min;
• programmed the database - 50 min.

Error

5 minutes is more than enough.

Even rough timing is extremely useful.

How long to do this?

Of course, there are people who keep timekeeping all their lives. But I, for example, don’t do that.

2-3 days is enough to...

…get the big picture!

Yes, you will get a clear picture of what happened to you, how your time was distributed.

You will see how much time you REALLY spend on:

• social media;
• games;
• calls;
• cooking food;
• reading;
• "zombie box";
• sport.

You will see how much you REALLY work.

In 100% of cases, a person is surprised when looking at these results. Or horrified. This is even better. But now he knows his weak points. It is most important!

How to use all this?

At one time I saw that my weak point was phone calls.

I'm an extrovert and a talker. Many extroverts lose track of time when they chat. No wonder I wasted 1-2 hours a day on idle chatter.

It's bad to be like this!

I took the following steps:

1. I announced to all my friends and partners that the preferred method of communication is email.
2. When a call is still necessary, I prepare for it: I draw up the main points of the conversation and a list of questions. When I sit down to talk, I have a cheat sheet at hand.
3. I'm learning to be brief. Conversation cheat sheets help again. You just run through all the prepared questions. When they end, it's time to end the conversation.

What to use for timing?

There are several options.

1. Notepad, pencil and watch. As the day progresses, we add all our activities there.
2. Dictaphone. I used this option as the biggest promoter of using a voice recorder.
3. Various services and gadgets. We live in the era of Big Data. More and more gadgets are appearing that track our activity, which are stuffed with various sensors. I think that in five years it will be possible to keep track of time entirely automatically. And at the end of the day, receive a beautiful report-diagram with the distribution of our activities throughout the day. In the meantime, you can install the program.

Total

You can't manage what you can't measure.

Where to start building your time management? From the timing!

Even a ninth grader can handle this.

Write in the comments!

Have you done the timing? How much time do you spend on social networks, watching TV, etc.?

P.S.

The series of articles “Time management in simple words” is completed!

Here is a complete list of all articles.

My colleague Evgeniy Bondarenko wrote very well in his article about what timing is and why it should be done.

We definitely need a simple and convenient tool that allows us to record our time consumption at any time and anywhere. The most convenient option is an application that will run on a portable device, such as a PDA or mobile phone.

What are the different ways to keep time?

• Keep timekeeping on paper. Wildly inconvenient. Not only do you have to carry around a bunch of forms, but in the evening you also have to calculate the total and fill out a new form.
• Use the program on your computer. Much more convenient. For those who do not leave the computer all day, the LazyCure program is a good option.
• Dictaphone. Of course it is possible. But you still have to transfer the measurements onto paper or into a computer, and manually decipher the messages to yourself. And this is a waste of time.
• Mobile phone. If your phone runs the Windows Mobile operating system and you are comfortable with MS Outlook, use Gleb Arkhangelsky’s method.
• Mobile phone 2. If you have a regular mobile phone and do not have MS Outlook, “Mobile Timing” is perfect for you - a simple and convenient program for any mobile phone with Java support, which you can download from the developer’s website www.forbant.com. I will tell you about it further.

Grouping cases

The most important and most difficult thing is to decide on your daily routine. Divide all tasks into 5-10 groups. Here are my things:

1. Health - food, hygiene, sports
2. The main things are the things that bring me closer to my cherished goal
3. Everyday life - cooking, cleaning, walking with a dog/cat/ostrich
4. Waste of time - chatting on the phone, VKontakte, TV, ICQ and other nonsense
5. Routine - boring, repetitive tasks
6. Self-development - English courses, trainings, reading
7. Planning - planning for the next day, setting long-term goals

Later, I discovered three more groups of tasks that took up a lot of time and that I wanted to control:

1. Girl - dates, etc.
2. Friends - meetings, entertainment - social networks do not count - they are a waste of time
3. Transport - time in traffic jam

This is what my to-do list looks like on my mobile phone screen in the Mobile Timekeeping program.

Timing is a rather boring task at first glance.

At first it was a total blast! There are a lot of things to do, but it’s not clear how to group them correctly, even the toilet is a matter! And which group to send him to - “Health” or “Waste of Time” - this is a question that everyone must decide for themselves.

For example, I spent a lot of time thinking about the meaning of life. And if you just think and do nothing, then this is a 100% waste of time! If you want to find the meaning of life, go to the “Meaning of Life, Values” training, achieve a specific result - and then such a lesson can be safely enrolled in the “Major Things” group.

Or, another example - I am creating a website. In the program the item “Main things to do” is marked. Then a friend calls me and spends 23 minutes telling me how he took a girl home yesterday. No offense, dear friend, but these 23 minutes are a “Waste of Time.” We need to move these 23 minutes from the “Major Things” group to the “Waste of Time” group.

The result of changing case groups in the Mobile Timing program

A week later, I was already keeping track of time automatically using Mobile Timing, clearly dividing tasks into groups. At the end of the day, I analyzed the “temporary losses” and carefully planned the next day.

By the way, I should note that it is very important to do one thing at a time and not be distracted by anything. You can’t chat on the phone, write a term paper and answer ICQ at the same time. Listen - this is harmful and does not save time at all!

While working with the program, I noticed that when you keep time, you try to be less distracted by interruptions, because you are too lazy to get into your phone and switch between tasks. And that's great! This disciplines and helps you get things done!

Every time I need to do something, I ask myself which group to classify the matter into and how much time I am willing to spend on it. I take my phone and make a note to start the task.

Summing up the week

The program remembers measurements for any number of days, it all depends on the free memory of the phone. You can view the archive of measurements directly on your phone.

Also, the Mobile Timing program can upload archives to a file with a CSV extension, which can be easily read through MS Excel.

And here it is an honest picture of my time consumption over the week.

Result of uploading archives to MS Excell

There is something to work on

How long will I keep time? This has already become a habit for me, which I don’t want to quit.

How long you will keep the timekeeping is up to you. In any case, it's worth a try. I am sure that you will find many time sinks that you can and should fight.

Timing is disciplined; many times a day you will think about what exactly you plan to do and how much time you will spend.

Change your habits and find time for yourself!

Download and buy the Mobile Timing program

Filippov Alexander, September 2010, email: [email protected]
The article was written specifically for the site. Document address on the website:
Publication in free online publications is permitted without additional approval from the author, while maintaining the integrity of the text, including this notice, and working hyperlinks. Publication in paid online publications and paper media requires approval from the author.

Part 1. Chronometers with auto-tracking of Internet activity and applications

It is not necessary to start mastering ManicTime after launching the program. This can be done after sufficient data has been collected for analysis. The application runs in the background without distracting you from your main tasks, and statistics are continuously recorded on the timeline.

Below we will consider the capabilities of ManicTime in the order of tabs.

Day

In the “Date” section, in the first tab, any day is available for selection, including the current one, with viewing statistics on the timeline.

The timeline is divided into four parts:

• Labels: Labels are used to group applications. They simplify the analysis of statistics, allowing you to group data in different directions: for example, you can specify a project or customer. Labels are entered separated by commas, so you can set the nesting depth: “level 1, level 2... level n.”
• Computer usage: The scale indicates the presence or absence of the user at the computer. If the user does not perform any actions for a long time, when returning, he can add a label that explains the reason for his absence. It should be noted that subsequent participants in the review, as a rule, also have this opportunity.
• Applications: a scale with information about the operation of applications - thanks to it, in particular, you can track changes in window titles.
• Documents and the Internet: Web browsing statistics in the form of URLs.

In order to protect private information, you can temporarily stop monitoring using the Stop watch button.

Schedule

The Russian localization of ManicTime is replete with errors, and by “schedule” you need to understand the accounting sheet, which in the original sounds like “timeline”. In this section, the user can group tags of interest assigned in the “Day” section to calculate the time spent on a particular task. The pivot table is quite flexible in configuration (for example, tags can be nested), with the ability to summarize by day and week.

Statistics

ManicTime statistics are divided into several tab sections. “Length of day” allows you to find out how long the user was at the computer on a certain day of the week, when the session was started and ended, and how long the period of activity lasted.

This is followed by the sections “Applications”, “Documents and the Internet”, “Top Tags”. The top in each section allows you to find out which applications and sites took the most time, in hours - the information is available in the form of graphs, charts and tables. These statistics are grouped into different time intervals and generally give a very clear picture of the time spent. It is also easy to export the necessary information to CSV format.

ManicTime contains a small number of settings. Greater functionality was expected from the Pro version of the program in terms of working with statistics. In fact, it doesn’t even have a comparison option by tags and categories.

Summary

ManicTime is a full-featured timekeeping program with the ability to build graphs, pivot tables, collect statistics on working with applications and Internet surfing. The simple interface makes ManicTime a clear and convenient tool for working in single-user mode.

[+] Simple interface
[+] Good functionality
[−] Limitations when constructing graphs
[−] Localization errors

Motivate Clock

Motivate Clock is a free timekeeper for analyzing activity when working with programs and on the Internet.

First, it is proposed to select the operating mode - project or non-project (also known as basic). In the first case, Motivate Clock calculates how much time is spent working and resting while working on a project. The user determines the list of “working” applications independently. All programs that are not related to the project will be classified in the statistics as “Recreation”. In the basic, off-project mode, time is calculated by manually switching between applications.

Statistics are available in the main program window. Here you can find information about visited sites and open applications. It is easy to distinguish project applications from non-project applications by the color of the timestamps.

With one click, the generated document is exported in PDF format. The output file contains information about the creation time and activity (total time spent) of the project. The data is conveniently structured: the links at the top of the document lead you to the desired date. Unfortunately, there are no settings for statistics, as well as visualization or other display options.

The program interface is successful in that, firstly, it does not distract from work and, secondly, that all important options are at hand (pause, switching between projects, settings).

Summary

One of the best user-friendly time tracking programs is free, functional, easy to use and equipped with concise documentation. Motivate Clock has commercial potential, and if not in the free version, then at least in the paid version of the product, I would like to see more features regarding statistics, as well as online synchronization. Unfortunately, the program has not been updated for about a year.

[+] Functionality
[+] Design mode of operation
[+] Convenient compact interface
[−] Uncustomizable statistics

Time Doctor

Time Doctor is a web service designed for multi-user time tracking, program monitoring, and Internet activity. Thanks to these capabilities, you can obtain detailed information about the use of tools for a project, user, or company through the web interface.

The service uses a remote timing method, and at the same time, it integrates perfectly with the Desktop using a special client. To install, you need to download it from the page, having previously registered an account on the same site.

The first impression of Time Doctor is that it resembles an organizer task manager. Therefore, it is easy to understand how a todo list and project are created. By selecting the desired task from the list and clicking the “Start!” button, you can start timing.

The bottom part of the window displays the current task and various statistics: time spent on a task, statistics for a certain period (day - month), including rest time.

An activity bar is displayed on top of the windows, which plays not so much an informational role as it serves as a reminder of what the user is currently working on. In addition to this panel, when there is no activity, a dialog appears, which is intended to control work.

A significant advantage of the program is that all information is stored on the server - accordingly, the issue of synchronization is resolved, just as remote access solves many issues. Thus, the project manager can monitor the quality of employee work by looking at screenshots taken while the user is working. The snapshots correspond to the name of the task; it is not possible to install a specific filter for applications (like TimeSnapper). However, screenshots provide clear evidence that the application or site was used for its intended purpose and not during an unplanned vacation, or vice versa.

The productivity scale is available in the Productivity section. Here is a list of employees, working hours, and hour scale. Data can be grouped by day and week.

Using the Reports section, you can get all kinds of information about the user’s activities: use of time for other purposes, rest time, for a specified period, web activity, etc. Each type of report, after generating it (Generate Report), can be printed in a readable form using browser. Data export to CSV/XLS is possible

If you combine the functionality of a screen recording program with a chronometer, you can get a powerful tool for analyzing the time spent on projects and tasks. For example, if there is a need to monitor the work of another user, the time tracking program should have the function of taking “control” screenshots. In the description of TimeSnapper on the developers' website you can find arguments and recommendations for using the program: restoring lost text from screenshots, bug testing, monitoring how other users use the computer, etc.

Most importantly, TimeSnapper can record user activity within specified applications. For these purposes, you can configure a filter for specific applications, for example within a project. As a result, it is possible to “reproduce” the user’s working day with a given accuracy, depending on the interval of taking screenshots.

Productivity assessment is available in the Play/Browsing day section. The principle of calculation is easy to imagine: the ratio of time spent in programs related to work (Productive applications) to the time of “rest” (activity in other applications).

In addition, you can obtain information about the activity of any application during a specified period of time. To do this, use the search capabilities of TimeSnapper (Find section).

Detailed statistics are available directly in the Reports section. Here you can view the time spent on the computer or applicable to each application, compare productivity over different periods, and learn about changes over a selected period of time.

To comment on statistics, it is convenient to use flags in TimeSnapper, indicating the user, project, tags, comments and other information that will help not only the participant in the recording navigate the data, but will also be suitable for third-party analysis.

A noticeable drawback of TimeSnapper is that Internet activity remains “behind the scenes” - there is no information about visited sites in the statistics. And the second point is that report data is displayed as rows, and this is not very convenient for printing or displaying statistics without scrolling.

Summary

Using TimeSnapper, you can not only analyze your own activity, but also monitor the quality of work from others. Recording screenshots inside favorite apps details statistics. This feature makes TimeSnapper stand out among time trackers.

[+] Convenient search, filters
[+] Taking screenshots for specified programs
[−] Lack of analysis of Internet activity
[−] Limited statistics display modes

Timing is a program for recording and analyzing personal time. The application allows you to conveniently record the amount of time spent and analyze how rationally the time was spent. Features: + Apple Watch support + real-time display of calendar events + custom reminders + data export to CSV + data export to Dropbox + backup/restore + category report for day/week/month/year and specified interval + income monitoring /expense for activities and categories + custom categories + custom colors for categories “I force myself to ask my secretary every nine months to keep track of my time for three weeks... I promise myself and I promise her in writing (she insists on this) that I will not fire her when she brings results. And yet, although I have been doing this for five or six years, I cry out every time: “This can’t be, I know I’m wasting a lot of time, but it can’t be that much...” I wish see anyone with different results of such accounting! - Peter Drucker * CONTROL YOUR TIME TO BE PRODUCTIVE * We will be glad to hear your wishes and suggestions - [email protected]

Screenshots

Reviews

• Best for Timekeeping

  From Mikhailyuk Bogdan

  I've been using it for a very long time. I also used it on Android, then I lost the need to keep track of time. A year ago the need arose again, and I’m using this application again. Very convenient, there are some minor rough edges and functionality concerns. But, unfortunately, it was not possible to contact the developer. Dear developer, if you are interested in listening to suggestions for functionality, please contact me.

• Freezing

  From Dmitry12356789

  After the update, the application began to freeze. Please correct

• Battery drains

  From Pavel Makevich

  Excellent app, very convenient. But the battery drains quickly.

• According to the Lyubishchev system

  From It's a Strange Life

  The best there is. Without unnecessary movements. Everything is to the point. Buy paid. I advise

• User

  A good app to find out what you are doing all day. And how much I earned and how much I could earn;)

• Great

  Convenient, practical, not energy-intensive. Unloading in a fairly convenient structure. The only thing to add is removing descriptions from the list, although it’s not critical.

• Very great!!!

  wonderful application. Thank you! I used the free version for a year and decided to buy a scarf! It’s a pity you can’t import everything from the free one to this paid one

• Best Timesheet.

  Supe application. The event is quickly filled in when compiling a Timesheet. Developers: 1. In the Activity List, reverse the order, because the last records are corrected, but you have to search for them by rewinding, or using a button to select the order of records. 2. Write in the title (Timesheet) exactly what people are interested in and what they are looking for. 3. Correct EXPORT to the computer so that it is read in Russian and produces a table with vertical and horizontal columns.

• Doesn't export correctly

  When exporting to Documents, the table is viewed only in Finder, but in Numbes and TextEdit, etc. opens in rows without columns. EXELS does not synchronize in Unicode at all, and only in NeoOffice was I able to select the correct table and text type in the settings.

• Super

  Very convenient thing

• Joy

  Like it very much. Simple and clear.

• Calendars don't work

  I can't stand it when promised functionality doesn't work.

• Excellent program.

  In addition, it motivates not to waste time.

• Feedback

  I didn’t find a feedback form with the developer, so I’m writing here. The application is excellent (I think it’s the best among analogues), but the “reviews” page has become glitchy. When you click "interval", a white bar appears at the bottom with no options to choose from. The application freezes and has to be restarted. Possibly related to the "upgrade" to iOS8. Please correct it if possible.

• Great app!

  I've been looking for a timekeeping app for a long time. The phone has Windows Phone, and the application that is on it is super inconvenient: (I took out the iPad and installed the excellent Timekeeping application. Now keeping time has become more interesting, it’s like a race with yourself for your own productivity. I like it!

• Author, please fix the program.

  Upset with the purchase. I ask the author to complete the program and then I will correct the review. It's much better on Android. 1. On the fourth iPhone, the record button is covered by 1/3 of the bottom panel. 2. It is not possible to set your own reminder interval. 3. It is not possible to set the night mode so that reminders do not go off at night, etc.

• I've been looking for a long time

  I like it, there is room for improvement, but it’s convenient to use

• My first review

  From Frail

  Good application, simple and convenient. But here, in fact, there is still work to be done: competitors are still better.

• Installed a paid one immediately

• Everything suits me!

  An excellent application for monitoring and managing time. There are all useful functions. Convenient, practical!

• Super!!!

  From Zhul"kp

  Thank you very much!

• Comfortable

  Very convenient and simple

• Very bad

  From Ivan Hafizov

  I installed the free version first, used it, everything worked, I liked it. Bought. And away we go: 1. Data cannot be transferred from the free one; 2. If the task starts today and ends tomorrow, then negative percentages appear in the report (-23% of the time was spent sleeping); 3. Today, the data entered from the program disappears from the program tomorrow without a trace and inexplicably; 4. When editing values, the “record” button sometimes disappears. That is, it becomes impossible to save what has been edited; 5. When editing values, there are no notifications if cases begin to overlap (while editing, I accidentally saved the case on another day. It turned out that on that day there were two cases at the same time, and on the one that I edited there was a hole. And to find which one the day this recording flew away, I had to look through everything!) In general, if we add to this the periodic lack of any reaction to pressing buttons in the program, then it will become completely clear that the developers of this program should not be given stars, but given a huge file so that they They were able to, if not bring it to fruition, then at least finish it to normal performance.

• Okay, but it's a mess

  A good application, but fix the bugs - if there are two or more notes (types of to-dos) in a category, it is impossible to describe one more - the buttons disappear, the same thing if there are two or more events in the calendar. You also cannot turn off calendars. Removing it helped, but Google's is not removed.

• An excellent application for time management and self-control, which has been long awaited.

  From Stas Kornienko

  Request: make the notification sound different from the standard SMS sound to avoid confusion.

Very often, when sitting down to do some specific task at the computer, we are distracted by various unforeseen little things. Mail, social networks, games and so on. And the task, which in total does not take very much time, is constantly postponed. And now the whole day passes, and you have not moved from the dead point. But were you doing something? Where did all the time go? Here's about counting and timing this time, as well as about its effective use and we'll talk today.

The problem of controlling working time is an eternal problem for fans of time management. In a classic office job, we work under the unsightly eye of a boss or director, who constantly demand some kind of reports and results of the work done, and this pushes us to get results.

A freelancer, blogger, or anyone who works at home on a computer does not have such control. The artificial stimulus disappears. Everyone takes responsibility for the time spent at the computer. It is very difficult to concentrate alone when no one is pushing you or “kicking” you. Well, it’s true, you’ll agree.

It seems like you have a clear plan and you know what to do, but you sit down at the computer and start doing something unknown. Communicating on, viewing traffic to your resource, or unplanned viewing of a training or film - all this takes up our precious time. And then the whole day passes and you seem to be sitting at the computer, but the matter has not moved forward and there are no results. It's a shame, isn't it?

This is postponing the completion of a task until later or constant preparation for completing it. You say: “Now, now. I’ll just check my email or see who liked me on VKontakte. Now, I’ll just finish watching this video on YouTube” and so on. What needs to be done right now stretches out in time for an indefinite period. You seem to understand this with your mind, but there is still no result.

Time counting and timing programs for efficient use of computer time

To overcome this and begin to fulfill the tasks set for yourself, you need. How to do this without the participation of outside forces? With the help of special programs that should help us with this. They will be the ones who will be able to increase the efficiency of their own work at the computer in a specific period of time.

Watch the video if something is not clear to anyone:

LazyCure – effective timing. Analyzing the time spent

Another timekeeping program that allows us to evaluate our effectiveness at being at the computer is a free program. . It allows you to record all actions with subsequent analysis of their effectiveness.

You launch it on your computer and before starting the task, you write down what you will do. Click Finish. The program begins counting down the action being performed. We finished, started the next task and again noted what we started doing. So during the day. The program shows the timing of the actions performed.

Monitoring can then be carried out. How much time was spent on what matter? You'll be surprised to see where your time actually goes. You went to have tea in the kitchen, and found yourself two hours later sitting near the TV.

It is very important to do one thing. It is necessary to completely measure your day. See where all your time goes, who or what is absorbing it. Try to lead with this information within a week. This will be an accurate enough slice to understand your weaknesses in wasting useful time.

Everything is recorded day by day in a so-called log and saved on the computer.

You can open a file with a date and compare your activity at one time or another.

The results obtained can be analyzed using statistics available in the program. It can also show your effectiveness.

The program settings are quite standard. The only interesting option is the ability to post the completion of the completed action on Twitter.

These are the simple helpers who can very effectively stimulate you to increase your own efficiency. These programs for counting and keeping track of time will help you use your active time at the computer more efficiently and help you concentrate on one specific task.

I hope these tools will help you in your struggle with yourself. That's all. Don't forget to subscribe to blog updates, there is still a lot of interesting things to come.

LazyCure – effective timing. Watch the video:

Read more interesting things on the blog