Time Tracking For Grad Students
(Or anyone wanting to track their time on a long-term project)
Help yourself get into the habit of working on your thesis or other large project for a few hours everyday. These stickers are designed to help you keep track of small portions of time over the course of the day. Even if you are very busy or have a chaotic schedule, every minute counts when you put some focused attention into your thesis or other project. Sit down for focused 15 minute intervals in order to get some meaningful work done, blocking out all other distractions or procrastinatorial whims. The average person probably only gets about four hours of solid, focused work done in an eight hour work-day (when you factor in meetings, people stopping by your desk to ask questions, phone calls, emails, etc.); so aim to complete four hours every day and watch your progress grow. 15 minute intervals of focused work throughout the day add up, and can be gleaned from in-between time in an otherwise busy schedule.
Similar to the Pomodoro technique, but I find 25 minutes to sometimes be too long to endure staring at the same word document that I have been for months. Fill in the spaces as you complete 15 minute sprints, which helps with personal accountability when cultivating habits or working towards goals. I like to imagine my 16 segments as a budget when planning out what needs to be done for the day, and assigning each task the necessary time.
The PDF for a sticker template to print your own time tracking stickers is available by clicking the button below:
Small labels to fit in your planner.
I use a small "pocket sized" weekly planner from moleskin to keep myself organized. The stickers are small and fit nicely in the spots for each day.
It's nice to have a visual record of how much you were able to accomplish over time, which helps to reinforce the good habit of consistency. It also keeps you honest about days that you planned on working and you procrastinated instead!
In this example, I am planning on writing Tuesday, Friday, and over the weekend.
If you work for 45 minutes uninterrupted, fill in 3 spaces. Later in the morning you might have an hour and a half to yourself and get lots done then so you fill in those spaces as well. Even if you only get 15 minutes of work done at a time, it counts and does add up. Sometimes it helps me to think of the work needing to get done that day as only 16 “sprints”, which makes it seem way more manageable.
Label Template
I like to use the labels from Avery that are intended to be return address stickers. The clear labels allow me to see any notes that I might have written into my planner, and the dates or other markings.
The labels are based off of the 5195 Avery template, and the product number for this sticker type is 7668.
It's easy and convenient to print these off at home or wherever you have access to printing.
60 Labels per sheet
Each label is 2/3" by 1 3/4"
In my experience with a small monochrome laser printer, it is best to print the sheets one at a time. The thickness of the sticker paper can cause paper jams when there is a stack of them in the feed tray. Your mileage may vary depending on your printer and its temperament. One sheet of labels lasts me a few months, so one at a time works. I hope these labels can help you with your time management.
