Tags
Achievement, Goals, Google Sheets, Hack, motivation, Planning, rituals, Technique, Time Tracking, Trick
“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” – Zig Ziglar
Image by Free Photos on Pixabay
It’s another Monday folks, and it’s time to get to work. What are you looking to do today? Are you on track to achieving your goals?
Today, I wanted to discuss a great way to track your day. I just started this last week. It is merely a way to watch how you use your time. Some recommend tracking every 5-minute chunk. I think this is a little over the top. Instead, I use a time tracker to log when I start a task and then put another time at the end of the task. Then I create a simple formula (time end – time start = time used). This formula, my title of the task I am doing and the category of what that task is related to are all in a Google Sheet. Each day I add a new tab labeled by the month and day the time is tracked. What I’ve discovered is that my ability to monotask has increased tremendously.
Why is monotasking important? First, let’s discuss what monotasking is. Monotasking is the opposite of multitasking. Monotasking is doing one thing and one thing only. By adding a time tracking task, I avoid multitasking, which is a horrible habit to get into. It is easy on a computer to do this because there are so many things grasping for our attention, but if you monitor the time you spend doing something, it can really benefit you. Stick to one task at a time, monitor the time you spend doing it (start time and end time) and after a while you’ll have some data about what you do, how long you do it, and when you do it.
I want to come up with a day that aligns well with my habits. I have discovered further efficiency by doing like things at like times. For example, I workout first thing in the morning. Then, I do my journaling. Then, I do my blogging, which I’m doing right now. This is followed by my book writing. After my writing is completed, I’ll take a break and do an hour of meditation, eat some breakfast, then move into my course work (online learning). Once all of my learning is completed, I do some administrative tasks like check email, check social media, review the news (Google News and Flipboard), then I get into my reading. If I have some today-only tasks, I will knock them out after I have done all of my “administrative” tasks. Reading is the final thing I do all the way until 4 PM. So whatever time I have left after courses and I dedicate the rest of my day to my reading.
4 PM is when I stop working and enjoy the rest of my afternoon and evening relaxing, playing some video games, and watching a few shows on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or Vudu. That’s my day in a nutshell. Recently, I changed my sleep schedule to heading to bed around 10 pm, so I get enough rest for my wake up at 5 am. It’s terrific to get to the gym this early because the gym is so empty. I love an empty gym. I get in, get my workout done, and get out before the morning crew shows up.
These kinds of changes occur when you seriously tackle the goals you have set for yourself. You will see new areas to adapt to for efficiency’s sake. I really enjoy the journey toward goals. Meeting a goal is fun, but literally opens new doors for new goals and achievements. I hope all of you have a great Monday and are ready to attack the week. If you have any “tricks” or “hacks” to offer, provide them in the comments below.
Until next time…
Dave
