Timeboxing
The Universal Time Management Technique
High-intensity interval training, tik-toks, deadlines you meet at work, or even your weekly meeting scheduling. What is the one common string relating to all the above activities? If you guessed that they all are dependent on fixed timelines for optimum output, you are definitely on the right track.
Each of the above scenarios is an example of a timebox; high-intensity interval training involves short bursts of intense exercise alternated with recovery periods, tik-toks too, require a user to illustrate their concept video clearly in under a minute, in the same way, deadlines help you to set a target for task completion and finally meeting blocks assist discussion of important matters in a precise and efficient manner. Timeboxing as a process can help you gain a better understanding of where you can maximize your productivity.
So, what exactly is Time-boxing?
Contrary to the popular belief that time-boxing is synonymous with sprints and is a short period of time set to complete a specific task, it is actually a time management technique that includes a fixed and realistic timeline to complete a task keeping in mind its complexity.
We have all traveled by commercial flight. Take, for example, that flight is scheduled for take-off at 6:15 pm. The fact that you plan to leave your house at 3:15 pm; three hours prior, with an hour-long drive to the airport and all other tasks such as check-in, security check, and boarding time for the remaining two hours means that you’ve understood the mantra. You are a time boxer as opposed to the pushy person in your security-check line in a sprint ranting away about how they have to get ahead because their flight departs in fifteen minutes.
Time-boxing is in reality a very simple concept where you assign a certain amount of time for a certain task. This helps you put time constraints on a task and aid completion as opposed to the regular method of continually working on it until it’s done.
Why should you implement Time-boxing?
Time-boxing pretty much comes naturally to us, so let’s take another very relatable example to understand why one must utilize it. Remember the time when your parents instructed you to clear your room before they came home from grocery shopping? Most of us never really began the chore until the time necessary to complete the task was near. We as children put across a very strong point by maximizing our playtime as well as completing the work. What people consider procrastination is actually efficient utilization of time.
Time-boxing is actually a proactive approach to this psychological phenomenon of motivating deadlines.
Parkinson’s Law states that work expands to fill the time allotted for its completion. On the other hand, the Temporal motivation theory suggests that the perceived utility of a task increases exponentially as a deadline nears. In simpler terms, this adds up to the fact that having a cut-off time or a clear deadline on a task can relatively increase the intensity of focus and mindfulness of the value we bring to the task.
A time box can be as short as fifteen minutes or can be as long as a few months, depending on the work at hand. It is in the end an iterative time management approach with discovery, deadlines as well as deliverables.
Let us help you by summarizing all those books you read on increasing productivity and timeboxing hacks in this article itself by teaching you how to work smarter.
The scenic route toward increased productivity
Researchers have found that only about 2.5% of people are able to multitask effectively, which means that dividing our attention by trying to do several things impacts our ability to finish even a simple task. This is exactly why time-boxing following the concept of mono-tasking or funneling all your attention to one task for the time block is essential.
Try these few steps to design the schedule that actually assists you in ticking stuff off your to-do list.
Discover
The first step to timebox correctly is to actually track how you spend your time. You should focus on getting your data and understand what is your strength and what exactly are your distractions.
Define
Next in line comes defining your priorities. Once your list is developed, it is important to understand what the important tasks of each day are and how you’d tackle them. This also helps you to determine the urgency of a particular task.
Develop
The final step is obviously to develop your blueprint and block off your tasks in time chunks.
These definitely are three simple steps to kick-start your time boxing journey, however, there are a few things to remember while you’re at it.
· Don’t dread the difficult tasks or as Brian Tracy would say “Eat the frog”. Procrastination comes naturally, especially for the hard tasks but if you are wise enough, you should take care of them first.
· Instead of working on clock time, work when you’re most productive. Block out time in your calendar for your important work when you feel most energized.
· Don’t be all over the place, create theme days. Instead of attempting to do many different tasks in one day, try to batch certain similar tasks for a particular day. This would create a flow, reduce unproductive multitasking and ensure you have all the tools you need for a particular day.
· Have you heard of Murphy’s Law, it explains that what can happen, will happen. This is why it is important to create blocks of time for unplanned things. Set boundaries but also be prepared for unpredictable things, try to be more flexible.
· And finally, this pointer is a really important one and everyone should personally live by it. Learn to include things that really matter in your timebox too. The beauty of timeboxing is that it can be used for any part of your day. Timebox all you want; Netflix, playing video games, a walk with the family, lunch breaks, self-care time for meditation, or even for just absolutely nothing. We are humans, not machines, and sometimes blocking every hour of the day just for work can be counterproductive. Timeboxing leisure can help us get recharged and look forward to working better.
There’s so much on the platter!
Timeboxing just has so much to offer. You can have soft timeboxes where you dedicate a certain amount of time for a task but it is open-ended, which means you give yourself the freedom to complete the task even if it takes beyond the dedicated time.
On the contrary, hard time boxes are close-ended, more authoritative timeboxes that don’t let you work on a task once your given time box is over.
Timeboxing can be utilized for your personal schedule as well as your team. Strategic blocks look at focused key tasks, buffer blocks look at regular interruptions and breakout blocks are timeboxes that give us relaxation time to be sane; altogether these form the perfect recipe for productivity.
Timeboxing is a simple time management tool that helps you focus even on mundane tasks as well as encourages you to efficiently do deep work. It helps you reclaim your time and use your time more intentionally. You can choose your own unit of time while choosing to time-box but remember that it is an iterative process. It is not meant to be brutal. It is was often believed to be only used by project managers in the Agile Scrum framework, however, today with the latest technology, anyone can master it.
Peter Gollwitzer, a psychologist has shown us that if someone is serious about something, they are more likely to follow through with an action trigger. Let Teamcal.Ai do that job for you. There are too many time management techniques and project management tools out there but none like Teamcal. Change your tone from having to do something to waiting to do something. Whether you’re on the go, on a plane ride, or jogging on a treadmill; Teamcal makes timeboxing extremely easy for you.
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