{"id":1310,"date":"2020-06-22T16:00:53","date_gmt":"2020-06-22T14:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timingapp.com\/blog\/?p=1310"},"modified":"2025-07-22T11:26:17","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T09:26:17","slug":"how-to-improve-your-productivity-in-just-14-days-with-the-free-trial-from-timing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timingapp.com\/blog\/how-to-improve-your-productivity-in-just-14-days-with-the-free-trial-from-timing\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Improve your Productivity in Just 14 Days with the Free Trial from Timing"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Is being a highly productive person instinctive \u2013 a natural-born trait that some people have and others don\u2019t? Or is it the result of developing great habits and strategically using the right tools?<\/p>\n

Here at Timing<\/a>, we\u2019re in the latter camp. Productivity \u2013 key to higher income, more free time, and general peace of mind \u2013 can be learned and maintained. That\u2019s great news for those of us who often struggle to focus, or who finish most work days wondering where all the time went. But even professionals who consider themselves decently productive can always improve. In fact, it might even be possible for some to attain a coveted 4-hour workday<\/a> (or 4-hour workweek!<\/a>) with the right strategies.<\/p>\n

We believe that all it takes is 14 days for you to see significant change in your time usage, improve your habits, and develop better habits toward being a more productive person.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how to use Timing\u2019s free 14-day trial to assess your current habits, strategically approach your time usage, and set new goals for being a more productive professional.<\/p>\n

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Getting Started: Create Projects<\/h2>\n

Timing is an automatic time-tracking application, meaning you can leave it completely alone and it will still deliver powerful insights into your time usage. Regardless of what kind of rules or projects you create, you can check Timing\u2019s Overview tab at the end of every day to see how much time you\u2019ve spent on your Macbook, and on which specific applications.<\/p>\n

That being said, it pays off exponentially to spend a little bit of time optimizing Timing by creating Projects<\/strong> at the beginning of your trial. Projects can connote actual projects \u2013 such as a particular campaign, a video you\u2019re producing, or an event you\u2019re planning \u2013 or different clients. How you choose to create projects will depend on your line of work and how you bill.<\/p>\n

In any case, creating Projects allows Timing to give you more detailed insight into what you\u2019re actually doing with your working hours \u2013 key to attaining greater productivity. (After all, you can work a 10-hour day and still not achieve your goals if you use your time inefficiently).<\/p>\n

\"productivity\"<\/p>\n

To create Projects, go to your Review tab in Timing and click on the \u201c+\u201d in the project list on the left hand side. Here, you\u2019ll be able to establish all the details necessary for Timing to correctly categorize your activity into a Project \u2013 such as name of Project, highlight color, productivity rating (which Timing uses to generate an overall productivity score), Keywords (which allow Timing to \u201cpick up\u201d related activity), and Rules (which we\u2019ll get to in the next section).<\/p>\n

Now, you\u2019re ready to start tracking your time \u2013 and assessing your productivity.<\/p>\n

Day 1: Review Your Time Usage & Create Rules<\/h2>\n

At the end of Day 1 of your free trial, head over to your Review tab in Timing and check out how many hours and minutes you worked total. Does the number surprise you? Is it less \u2013 or more \u2013 than you expected? For example, if you\u2019ve been sitting at your computer from 8 AM to 4:30 PM, but you were only active for 6 hours, you might want to think through your day \u2013 what sorts of distractions hijacked your day?<\/p>\nTaking stock of when you\u2019re most active and productive can help you maximize your strengths in strategizing for better personal productivity. <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n

Now take a look at your most active hours and most productive hours. Did you slay most of your tasks in the morning? Or was your afternoon coffee hour the best time to get your work done? Taking stock of when you\u2019re most active and productive can help you maximize your strengths in strategizing for better personal productivity. For example, you may choose to work on your most pressing tasks during these timeframes, and leave less intensive projects or administrative tasks for the remainder of the day.<\/p>\n

Finally, take a look at your productivity score<\/a>. If your score is low (50 or below), then that indicates that much of your work hasn\u2019t been assigned to a particular Project. You may want to take a look at the work you\u2019ve done and spend a few minutes assigning work to the proper Project, and adjusting Rules where necessary (which you\u2019ll learn more about next).<\/p>\n

Remember, you can assign (and change) a productivity rating to a Project, helping Timing to produce a more accurate score.<\/p>\n

Now, open up your Review tab, where you\u2019ll find more detailed specifics on how you\u2019ve actually spent your time. This gives you an opportunity to further refine Rules for your Projects. To create additional Rules<\/a> with Keywords, Applications, Paths, or Websites, simply \u2325-drag an element from this screen onto the Project.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s say that you\u2019re a freelance graphic designer, and you have a client that runs a boutique marketing agency. When researching graphics for this agency, you often find yourself Googling the phrase \u201cdigital marketing.\u201d Timing is actually smart enough to recognize your Google search queries: To create a Rule that lets Timing know that this phrase is associated with that particular client, simply \u2325-drag \u201cGoogle Search\u00a0<\/span>\u25b8\u00a0<\/span>digital marketing\u201d from the “Paths” card onto your project.<\/p>\n

Likewise, you can perform the same action with specific URLs, applications, or keywords \u2013 which are simply all the words Timing finds in your website titles and document paths.<\/p>\n

Over the next few days, continue to create Rules as necessary, and monitor your time usage.<\/p>\n

Day 7: Assess Your Progress<\/h2>\n

Around the halfway point of your free trial with Timing, you\u2019ll want to check in to take stock of your progress over the last 7 days. Go to the Overview tab, and adjust the time frame to \u201cPast 7 Days\u201d (Note that if you decide to use Timing long-term, you can adjust the time frame according to your preferences \u2013 even giving you a year-long overview of your working hours and productivity!)<\/p>\n

Now, the Overview screen will automatically adjust charting to reflect your 7-day time usage:<\/p>\n

\"productivity\"<\/p>\n

This user worked a total of 22 hours and 11 minutes, with activity peaking on Tuesday. Her most active hours were in the AM and afternoon, dipping around lunchtime, and she spent the vast majority of her working hours on Google Chrome.<\/p>\n

Getting these sorts of insights into your working hours for a typical 7-day period can help you develop personalized strategies for upping your productivity. Here are some ideas:<\/p>\n