For two weeks in the spring of 2013, I kept a meticulous record of how I spent my days from the moment I woke up until my head hit the pillow at night.
My log of choice was one of those black and white marbled notebooks. Everything I did — from writing a post on Facebook to talking on the phone to texting my kids to taking a shower — was recorded in that book, down to the minute.
I don’t recall what prompted me to run this time management experiment, but at its conclusion I was grateful to have conducted it. I was also grateful that it was over because it was hard. One of the hardest assignments I’ve ever taken on, in fact. But definitely worth the time and discipline it required of me each day to be hyper aware of every decision I made in each new 24 hour period.
One of the biggest takeaways from that experiment was how little time it takes to be an active participant on social media. I discovered I could create or curate content and post it in as little as 10 minutes a day, leaving me with 23 hours and 50 minutes to do other things.
Because an old year has just ended and it’s the beginning of a new one, everyone is obsessed with doing things differently, i.e. making changes with the hopes of improving one or more areas of our lives. Along with becoming more fit and saving more money, better time management tops the list of priorities for millions as 2015 gets underway.
Tech companies who believe their latest productivity app is going to solve the time management challenge many people struggle with are banking on this as I write.
Just yesterday I saw an ad on Twitter promoting “6 new productivity apps for the iPhone 6 to keep you productive on the go.”
Here’s a reality check.
Unless you are already good at managing your time, and have a medal-laden track record as a time management and productivity champ, chances are slim to none you will see marked improvements in that department this year, no matter how ambitious your training goals may be. While I have a greater appreciation for and awareness of time as a result of my experiment, if there was an Olympic event for keeping track of every second of every day, let’s just say I wouldn’t qualify for the try outs.
And I’m perfectly okay with that because I follow a system for meeting deadlines, serving clients, and getting stuff done that works for me. Never one to discourage people from giving something a shot, I’m excited for anyone who invests in one or any of these productivity apps and indeed becomes more productive as a result of using it.
As the old saying goes, you can’t change what you don’t measure.
A (small) percentage of the people who invest in productivity apps will gain valuable (and in some cases, shocking) insights into how they are using their time. With the data about their time usage staring them in the face, they will then be able to make different decisions about their time accordingly. And that’s never a bad thing, as I learned first hand.
For all who want to believe the latest time management app is going to make a difference, the intention is admirable.
As for execution and long-term follow through?
Well…
There is a reason exercise equipment is one of the most common items at garage sales.
