How to Conduct Time Audits in Project Management

You don’t need more hours. You need better systems. Time isn’t the problem, attention is. These 6 time management strategies have helped me regain control, reduce burnout, and actually finish what matters. Here’s how to use them (plus how to start 👇): 1) Conduct a Time Audit Most people don’t need more time, they need more clarity on where it’s going. How to start: Track how you spend each hour for 2–3 days Group tasks into categories (work, admin, distraction, etc.) Spot time leaks and areas to optimize 2) Focus on One Thing at a Time Multitasking feels productive, but it lowers your output and increases errors. How to start: Choose one task and set a timer (e.g., 25 or 50 minutes) Turn off notifications and close unused tabs Don’t switch until the timer ends 3) Give Yourself a Reward Motivation increases when there’s a small win at the finish line. How to start: Set a reward tied to task completion (coffee break, walk, snack) Keep it small but satisfying Don’t skip the reward even for easy tasks 4) Use Apps to Block Distractions Your brain craves stimulation. Removing temptation boosts focus without willpower. How to start: Try apps like Freedom, Cold Turkey, or Forest Block distracting sites during work windows Set boundaries for phone use during deep work 5) Time Block Your Calendar What gets scheduled gets done. Time blocks turn intention into execution. How to start: Plan your day the night before Block 60–90 min chunks for deep work Include buffer time and breaks to avoid burnout 6) Set Clear Daily Priorities If everything is important, nothing is. Prioritization saves hours of indecision. How to start: Identify your top 1–3 priorities each morning Tackle them before checking email or messages Review your list at day’s end to track progress You don’t need to master all 6. Start with one. Build from there. ✨ Small shifts create major clarity.

I did a time audit yesterday 🕒 Every 15 minutes, I wrote down what I was doing — no matter how small or messy. Not just to track productivity… But to evaluate my energy and calculate the real value of the tasks I was doing. Here’s what I learned: 🕒I put in ~9.5 hours of work, but nearly 40% of my time went to tasks that didn’t truly move the needle 🕒 My highest-value work — strategy, growth, and driving results — only took up a small slice of the day 🕒 I was spending too much time on internal coordination, back-and-forth in Slack, and task switching — things that should be systemized or delegated The kicker? A lot of that stuff didn’t just cost me time — it drained my energy and momentum. This exercise was inspired by the Buy Back Your Time framework — and damn, it delivered. If you’ve been feeling like a bottleneck, or just stuck in the weeds, try it: ✅ Track every 15 minutes for a day or two ✅ Rate your energy and assign a dollar value to the task ✅ See what’s draining you — and what needs to go If it doesn’t give me energy or generate ROI — it gets delegated, automated, or deleted. That’s the new rule.

If we’re not careful, we can easily lose track of not just hours but for sure days and even entire weeks. A phone call here, a fire there and before we finally catch our breath, time seems to have slipped away. One of my favorite activities to get some visibility and ultimately find more time is a time tracking exercise. Here’s exactly what to do: Step 1: Track Your Time I recommend tracking your time for a minimum of two weeks. The increments you use can be ones that are most meaningful to you and your tasks. I recommend tracking time in no shorter than 15 minutes increments, especially when you’re first starting out with this system. In terms of tools, you can use whatever is most readily available to you and what you feel comfortable with. I’m a huge fan of pen or pencil and paper on this one but you can just as easily implement a SAAS tool like Tyme. Step 2: Analyze Your Time This is where you get to learn about and make decisions on the tasks you love to do and the tasks that drain you of energy. Here are the 3 questions you should be asking: What tasks do I love doing? What tasks are time wasters? What tasks do I hate doing? You want to take all the data you have gathered at this point and look for patterns while you’re asking yourself those 3 questions. Create a list of items that you hate doing and that are time wasters for you. These will be the easiest and fastest to start delegating. Step 3: Eliminate, Delegate, and Automate People laugh when I tell them to stop doing the “time wasters,” especially if they’re in middle management. It’s my way of “testing” if requests are necessary and utilized or just a function of “that’s what we’ve always done.” When it comes to delegation, I often hear from leaders that it’s easier to do it themselves versus following up on individual tasks and projects. But that’s where tracking tasks comes in. The goal here is to create a feedback loop so that you as the leader know that a particular task has been completed. This will be different for each of the tasks you delegate but ask yourself, what type of cue would I like to see to know this has been completed? This step removes the need for constant follow-up and creates a signal to you that something has been completed. How about giving this a try this week? #operationalexcellence #changemanagement #continuousimprovement