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If you\u2019re still working remotely as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, then give yourself a pat on the back. You\u2019ve made it over two months carrying on your professional life as best as you can from your kitchen table. You\u2019ve probably faced distractions and challenges you never thought possible \u2013 like screaming toddlers, toilet paper crises, and conflict with your spouse\/roommate\/partner over who has to go to the grocery store. Still, you\u2019ve made it this far. The question is, have you used time-tracking to do so?<\/p>\n
Automatic time-tracking software<\/strong> can be a game-changing strategy for anyone working from home \u2013 whether you regularly worked remotely even pre-pandemic, or your job is transitioning you to a permanent state of work from home<\/a>. By automatically logging your working hours and minutes, automatic time-tracking helps you stay accountable to your goals (and employer, if applicable), focused on the task at hand, and perhaps most importantly, aware of your own productivity.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how automatic time-tracking with Timing can help you slay your goals and keep winning the battle.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Perhaps one of the most significant challenges of working from home is the lack of accountability<\/a>. As we mentioned in this article<\/a>, it can be difficult to stay focused without the potential of a boss or coworker peeking over your shoulder, or even without the communal feel of a bustling office. You\u2019ve got dishes to wash, items to order on Amazon, pets to feed, and children to play with. Who\u2019s to know if you take a 10- or 20-minute break? When those breaks add up, however, you\u2019ve got a problem on your hands: a half-completed workday by 5 PM.<\/p>\n Solopreneurs and freelancers also have to wrestle with the challenge of accountability. Without sticking to a strict schedule, they\u2019re susceptible to falling behind deadlines, disappointing clients, and hitting a wall when it comes to income. And of course, they\u2019re vulnerable to the same at-home distractions as everyone else. Instagram feeds, dirty floors, chatty roommates..the list goes on.<\/p>\n Time-tracking can help you stay accountable to your employer, your to-do list, and your own personal goals with the following:<\/p>\n At the end of each workday, give yourself an honest review of how you\u2019ve spent the day. Did you spend a reasonable amount of time on specific projects and tasks? If you didn\u2019t finish something, or missed a deadline, is there a reason why? Timing<\/a> can help you answer these questions and more with the following:<\/p>\n Performing an end-of-day review will help increase your personal awareness of your time usage – key to staying accountable.<\/p>\n If you\u2019d like to begin a project and spend, say, 2 hours focused and keyed into that task, then you can use Timing\u2019s start and stop timer (available in Timing Professional and Expert<\/a>) to stay accountable. Simply go to General Preferences by hitting command + comma, and go into Menu Item to set a timer. When you know that your time is being tracked for a specific task, you\u2019re less likely to fall off the tracks, so to speak.<\/p>\n That being said, we don\u2019t recommend you use a start and stop timer for all of your work. One of the benefits of using Timing is that it automatically accounts for all of your working hours and minutes without you lifting a finger (or clicking a button).<\/p>\n Now, more than ever, you\u2019ll want to get into the habit of goal-setting.<\/p>\n Why?<\/p>\n Because goal-setting gives you daily vision for a) what you\u2019re aiming to accomplish, and b) how to accomplish it. If you\u2019ve completed your goals at the end of the day, you can know that the day has been a success. If not, you can try again tomorrow.<\/p>\nBeing able to quantify your productivity in this way while working from home gives much-needed structure to your day\u2026.and again, helps you to stay focused and on task. <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n At the beginning of each work day, set three goals that you want to accomplish by the end of the day. Don\u2019t be overly ambitious, but don\u2019t set your standard too low either. Three goals: Perhaps one larger project, and two admin tasks. Or, a combination of administrative tasks. Whatever your goals are, keep yourself accountable to them by writing them down.<\/p>\n At the end of the day, review your goals. Did you meet all three? If not, open up your Review tab in Timing, and take a look at your time usage. Did one of your goals take much longer than it should have? Did you end up getting side-tracked by another project? When did your focus begin to wander? Around lunchtime, or 3 PM?<\/p>\n If you did a great job at meeting<\/em> your goals, then you\u2019ll want to explore that as well. How long did each task take? When were you most productive?<\/p>\n In any case, using time-tracking with Timing can help you identify both your strengths and weaknesses in terms of goal-setting \u2013 and help you to be even more effective in the future.<\/p>\n Finally, Timing will allow you to zero in on points of distraction.<\/p>\n Working from home may involve two kinds of distraction: external<\/strong> distractions \u2013 like your pile of laundry, and digital<\/strong> distractions \u2013 like an endless stream of notifications on your cell phone.<\/p>\n Here are strategies to cope with both kinds:<\/p>\n Lastly, you may want to try the Pomodoro Technique<\/a> for achieving your best work, which breaks down work into 25-minute intervals separated by short breaks. You can use Timing to review your success with this method, by going into your Review tab at the end of the day and checking how well you adhered to this time frame.<\/p>\n At the end of the day, it\u2019s about winning the long game in terms of focus. If you can develop a routine that helps you to stay on task for the majority of the time, then you\u2019re succeeding. Once again, Timing can help you to check your progress and monitor your productivity<\/a> on a larger scale by giving you an Overview of your time usage on a weekly, monthly, or even yearly basis.<\/p>\nStay Accountable<\/h2>\n
End of Day Review<\/h3>\n
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Use a Start and Stop Timer<\/h3>\n
Set Goals<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nMake a Plan to Avoid Distraction<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nWinning the Long Game<\/h2>\n