How would your life improve if you were more productive and focused? I have time when I read through many books on a topic of interest. The Time Method is one of the books I read while learning about productivity and time management. When you read several books on a topic, you get a diversity of thought. And you also have the opportunity to form your own opinions.
Some books talk about time management, while others say that time management is not a problem, focus management is. With all the books I’ve read so far on time management and productivity, I find that I learn something from each book.
What Is Time Chunking?
You schedule your workday into 30-Minute chunks of time. Twenty-five minutes for work and five minutes for a break. This sounds like the Pomodoro Technique. After four chunks, take a 15-minute break. During the 25 minutes of focused time, work only on one activity. Ignore distractions.
Have you read?
The Pomodoro Technique by Francesco Cirillo, Review
Work for 25 minutes
Have a 5-minute break
Work for 25 minutes
Have a 5-minute break
Work for 25 minutes
Have a 5-minute break
Work for 25 minutes
Have a 15-minute break
In the book Time-Blocking, the author, Luke Seavers says if you cannot achieve your goals, or if you’re unproductive, you don’t have a time management problem, you have a focus management problem.
In this book, The Time Chunking Method, the author, Damon Zahariades speaks a lot about time management. Focusing is very important to goal achievement, so I’m going with what Luke Seavers has to say on time-blocking.
When you have many small tasks that will take minutes to do, such as taking out the garbage, and watering a few houseplants, batch these small activities into a 25-minute chunk of time.
If you're working on a task, and it finishes before the 25-minute chunk of time, and you've checked your work, abort the time chunk and take your five-minute break. Review your to-do list and start a new time chunk. The time chunking method goes against all the productivity methods and not necessarily in a good way.
4 Reasons Time Chunking Helps People to Become More Productive
- It limits the amount of time the brain has to focus.
- Demolishes a tendency to procrastinate.
- Reduces distractions because of multitasking.
- Facilitates completing tasks instead of simply working on them.
Time chunking is designed to eliminate lack of motivation because the work is divided into 30-minute chunks of time, which is easy enough for everyone. Distractions kill productivity. Systems are meant to make you more productive. For me, 25 minutes of focus work is not long enough.
I think for some tasks, 100 minutes with a 20-minute break would be a better fit. How about for you? That would be chunks of two hours. Do you need a break every 25 minutes?
Test out different chunks of time to see what's best for you, and also try different lengths of time for breaks. Design a schedule that suits your workflow and lifestyle. Plan for the interruptions from others.
What's the Difference Between Time Boxing and Time Chunking Method?
Time boxing is a method for limiting the amount of time you allocate to a specific task or project. When you finish the time box, ask the question. “Does the work I've completed so far satisfied the job requirements?” If your response is ‘Yes’, you've done the task or project. If not, create another time box.
Timebox was created as a way for teams to manage projects. This methodology prevents you from succumbing to Parkinson's Law, which states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. With timeboxing, set a limited time frame to work on an activity. When you commit to the timeframe, you set a deadline.
Time chunking is a form of timeboxing.
2 Things That Influence Your Productivity
- Your ability to focus on the task at hand.
- Ability to ship (complete the task).
Time chunking addresses your ability to focus, but not to ship. Timeboxing addresses your ability to ship, but not to focus. The Time Chunking Method recommends that you combine both techniques.
How much sleep do you need to be your most productive self? Exercising regularly helps you to be more productive. The food you eat affects your mind. And stress impacts your productivity.
Set daily, weekly and monthly goals.
4 Traits Every Goal Should Have
- Specificity (precise).
- Track in support (track progress).
- Complement your lifestyle.
- Realistic (achievable).
Example
If you want to write 2000 words per day, and you know you write 400 words during each chunk, you need four chunks each day to achieve that goal.
To track your progress while working in time chunks, use a spreadsheet. You’d have the following columns.
- Date.
- Day of week.
- Word count.
- Average word count.
- Number of time chunks completed each day.
The data points in the spreadsheet give you a lot of useful information.
All work and no play makes Jill a dull girl. Take a vacation even if it's a staycation. It's important that you have times when you're completely off. Unplug from technology. Saying ‘no’ is also critical to being more productive. What are some activities you can do during your break?
A break is not only for rest, it could be for doing an unrelated activity. Sometimes that's when your brain connects the dots. Taking a break includes the following things.
- Bathroom break.
- Walking the dog.
- Making a sandwich.
- Doing a load of laundry.
- Doing simple exercises.
- Reading email/mail.
The book includes the names of apps to help you to become more productive. One of them is called Google timer, which I’ve since used and it works well. For the system to work for you, you have to use it.
Conclusion: The Time-Chunking Method by Damon Zahariades
The Time Chunking Method will give you some simple productivity ideas and strategies. However, if you want to become more productive, you'll need to read more than this book. As a rule of thumb, if you want to build a strong foundation for any topic, you need to read at least five books. Authors have different perspectives on a topic. When you read several books on a topic, a benefit is that you can make up your own mind. You don't have to accept what any one author says. Learn to question everything.
Next Steps
- Buy and Read Time Chunking Method by Damon Zahariades
- Join the Art of Learning Membership Site
If you want access to Bookish Note The Time Chunking Method: A 10-Step Action Plan For Increasing Your Productivity by Damon Zahariades, which has more information than the above summary, please consider joining my membership site, the Art of Learning.
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