Tracking your time
Understanding time tracking
Have you ever thought to yourself, “I don’t have any time to get my homework done?” Do you know where all your time is actually going?
Tracking your time as you go (rather than trying to remember later) can help you clearly see how you’re using it. You can’t effectively adjust or implement time-management strategies without first understanding how you currently spend your time.
After recording your time for one week, reflect on your observations.
How to track your time
Using the Time Tracker worksheet, record your time for a full week contemporaneously – meaning you document your time as it happens. Do not do anything different than you normally do. After you have tracked an entire week, reflect on the questions that follow.
- What things do you currently spend the most time on during the week? What things do you currently spend the least time on during the week? Be as specific as possible.
- What are your personal values or priorities? What are the “time wasters” that do not fit into your priorities and personal values? What can you eliminate or reduce? If we are not living in alignment with our values and priorities, we may feel a loss of autonomy and lack of motivation. Every 24 hours is a new day to start over and make adjustments.
- How many hours do you spend studying every week? Does the amount of time spent allow you to complete your assignments and study?
- What surprised you after tracking your time for a week?
Need more support?
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