It is not hard for executives to spend a lot of time on unimportant tasks if they don’t track where their time is going. One simple way to find out where time is going is by keeping a time journal to record exactly how your time is being allocated. Once you have enough data, you can analyze how your time is being allocated, and figure out what tasks are consuming excess amounts of your valuable time.
Tracy Carter writes on suite101.com that “You should maintain a time journal for one week if you have a somewhat routine schedule and for two weeks if your schedule is less predictable such as the schedule of a courier, performer, freelancer, or independent contractor.”
Once you have this data, it makes it easier to allocate time toward tasks that will maximize your productivity in reaching your high level goals. You can also eliminate tasks that are chronic time wasters such as watching television. It is good to question whether activities that you are in the habit of following are worth doing.
Time Tracker is a good application to track how much time you spend on tasks.
