This is the Best Time Blocking Technique I’ve Found

Time Blocking using Immersive and Process Time

Make Work Easier

Work Clean by Dan Charnas

• I talked about this amazing book back in Episode 28: 4 Practical Steps for Planning for Tomorrow
• Work Clean covers productivity and organization from a culinary perspective
• Absolutely anyone can take away huge value from this book!
• Get a copy by clicking here

Immersive time

• Any task that requires you to be “hands-on” needs immersive time
• Tasks that need more than 15 minutes
• Tasks in which you need to immerse yourself
• Examples:
  • Outline a new blog post
  • Design a new product
  • Revise the draft of your essay
  • Compiling a report
  • Working on a major project

Process time

• Any task that you can briefly start or maintain and then be “hands-off” needs process time
• Tasks that require 15 minutes or less go here
• I keep a running list of process tasks, and plow through them in one block of time
• Examples:
  • Answering email
  • Answering voicemail
  • Filing
  • Minor website tweaks
  • Quick questions for colleagues

How I schedule my day at work

1. Each day begins with 45 minutes of process time
2. I then time block specific immersive projects throughout the day
   1. These are usually in 90-minute blocks with 30-minute breaks
3. I schedule a deliberate 60-minute break each day
   1. This happens when my energy is lowest: usually around 1 or 2 PM
4. The last 30 minutes is for my Daily Mise
   1. Check out Episode 28: 4 Practical Steps for Planning for Tomorrow for an in-depth look at this amazing technique!

The Tools I Use for Time Blocking

Make Life Easier

Technically, this section makes both life and work easier!

Simple day planner (free download!)

• I developed this quick Google Sheets file for simple time blocking
• I use it all the time when I’m just looking for a fast way to block my day
• Most often, this is used to plan my busy weekend days
• I’m happy to share my file with you! Click the button below to grab it ?

Get the FREE day planner

Microsoft Outlook

• Outlook’s calendar is my primary time-blocking tool at work
• I find Outlook to be the most flexible for editing
• If you have access to an Outlook calendar, I definitely suggest giving this a shot
• Here are a few best practices:
  • Never use the web-based tool. Always download Outlook to your computer and use the full app.
  • Set your interval to 15 minutes. This is the perfect balance between visibility and detail.
  • Use work week view

Google Calendar

• I’ve recently started using my Google Calendar to time-block my personal / business time
• I use week view for scheduling

Always trying new things

I’m always trying new methods and tools. If you have any ideas, I’d love to hear them: shoot me an email at podcast@wordpress-739001-2510787.cloudwaysapps.com