Table of Contents
Time Blocking
tl;dr; if something is really important to you, plan it in your calendar.
It is nice to have a to-do list in your to-do app, your Bullet Journal or on your Kanban board, but you have to allocate time for the execution of these tasks in your schedule.
Example: If you have a task called “Plan feedback sessions” you should make an entry in your calendar and dedicate some amount of time to it, let’s say half an hour.
The problem with most peoples calendars is the following: They are primarily empty!
Quick Wins
Block time for recurring events like
- lunch break
- reflection / personal retro
- focus time
Schedule important tasks where you have to stay focused longer than say 5 Minutes.
Don’t schedule every email you want to write, plan a block organizational stuff.
Time Boxing
Sometimes you have tasks you move from day to day e.g. learning for exams, calling new clients, doing your taxes. Especially when you are procrastinating, time boxing could be your friend.
The idea is simple:
Start with a fixed amount of time even if it is unlikely that you can finish the task in one go!
When you start with your first session you get a foot in the door and you can make further progress in upcoming sessions.
The Pomodoro Technique
One specific concept you can use for time boxing is the Pomodoro Technique
tl;dr; 25 Minutes uninterrupted concentrated work follwed by a 5 minute break.
You can use your phones timer or a website like
I’m a fan of Luxafor’s products. I’ve made a little product review and explained the pomodoro technique in more detail as well:
Follow ups
Many people start but do not follow up. If some items from a meeting are still unclear schedule a follow up immediately.
Color code
For me a good day is balanced between focus time and personal interaction. To get a feeling I like to give every event in my calendar a specific color.
Colors I use:
Green – Organizational stuff, many different things, no sharp focus needed, I may be interrupted
Yellow – Meetings in general
Purple – 1on1, Feedback Sessions, Dealing with important things, no interruption
Red – Focus time, Coding, writing important long emails, writing reports, planning tasks, no interruption
Orange – Everything related to apprenticeship
Bottom line
Be the master of you schedule and do not let others be in charge of the course of your day.
