In his autobiography, Benjamin Franklin talked in detail about his daily schedule. He divided his day into specific periods, each dedicated to particular tasks or activities. In his schedule, there were designated times for work, meals, reading, and reflection.
This approach laid the groundwork for a future time management technique called time blocking.
In his book "Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World," Newport popularized the concept of time blocking as a way to maximize productivity and achieve deep focus. He wrote:
"A 40 hour time-blocked work week, I estimate, produces the same amount of output as a 60+ hour work week pursued without structure."
But what exactly is time blocking, and how can you implement it in your own life? Let's explore that in this blog.
What is Time Blocking?
Time blocking is a way to plan your day where you divide your time into blocks and assign specific tasks to each block. For example, from 9 to 11, you block time to write code. From 11 to 12, you answer emails, and from 12 to 1 you go for lunch. Instead of just keeping this routine in your head, you put it in your calendar.
To understand it better, think about how most people's work calendars look:
This calendar has meetings scattered throughout the day, with the spaces in between left blank. These empty spaces are assumed to be "free time" for work or for anyone to schedule meetings.
In contract, here's what a time blocked calendar looks like:
In this approach, the blank spaces are filled in.
In a time blocked calendar, every part of your workday has a designated purpose. You're not just reacting to what comes up or hoping to fit tasks into the gaps between meetings. Instead, you're proactively deciding how to use each hour of your day.
This doesn't mean your schedule is inflexible — you can still adjust as needed. But by starting with a plan for your entire day, you gain more control over how you spend your time and what you prioritize.
Why is Time Blocking Effective?
It helps us stay focused
When we allocate specific time blocks to tasks, we create a mental commitment to focus solely on that activity. This dedicated attention allows us to enter a state of flow more easily, where we're fully immersed in the task at hand.
Our brains are not designed for constant task-switching, which can be cognitively draining and reduce overall productivity. By giving ourselves permission to focus on one thing at a time, we tap into our brain's natural ability to concentrate deeply. This focused attention not only improves the quality of our work but also increases our efficiency. We're less likely to be distracted by emails, notifications, or other tasks when we've mentally committed to working on a specific task during a set time block.
It provides a realistic view of our time constraints
Time is often perceived as an abstract concept, flowing endlessly and always available. Yet, in reality, it's our most finite resource. Time blocking serves as a powerful lens, bringing into sharp focus the true nature of time.
This clarity acts as a catalyst for intentional living. By visualizing our day in blocks, we begin to see time as a tangible asset to be invested wisely, rather than an infinite resource to be carelessly spent. It prompts us to question the true value of our activities and align our actions more closely with our priorities and long-term goals.
This realistic view of our time constraints creates a mindset of quality over quantity. When we see that we only have a certain number of blocks in a day, we're more likely to focus on high-impact tasks and eliminate or delegate less important ones.
This approach also cultivates a healthier relationship with productivity. Instead of chasing the myth of "doing it all," we learn to embrace our limitations and make peace with the idea that we can't do everything, but we can do the most important things well. It's a shift from a scarcity mindset of never having enough time to an abundance mindset of making the most of the time we have.
It reduces decision fatigue
Every time we have to decide what to work on next, we're using up valuable mental energy. Time blocking eliminates many of these small decisions throughout the day. When we've already determined what we'll be working on and when, we free up cognitive resources that can be better used for actual task completion.
Time blocking only conserves mental energy but also decreases the likelihood of procrastination. We're less likely to put off important tasks when they're already scheduled into our day. Having a predetermined schedule can help overcome the initial resistance we often feel when starting challenging tasks. By removing the need to constantly decide what to do next, time blocking creates a smoother workflow, allowing us to transition more easily between tasks and maintain productivity throughout the day.
Time Blocking vs Time Boxing
With time blocking, you decide in advance how you'll spend each hour of your day. But with time boxing, you set a fixed amount of time for a task and stop when that time is up, regardless of whether you've finished. For instance, you might give yourself 30 minutes to brainstorm ideas or 1 hour to work on a report and you stick to that time limit.
Time blocking answers "When will I do this?"
While time boxing answers "How long will I spend on this?"
Time boxing can indeed be applied to a single task, making it a flexible technique you can use anytime you want to limit the time spent on a specific activity. On the other hand, time blocking is typically a strategy for organizing your entire day or week.
Use time blocking when:
- You want to create a daily or weekly schedule
- You need to balance different types of work
- You want to ensure you're allocating enough time to priorities
Use time boxing when:
- You tend to perfectionism or overthinking
- You're tackling overwhelming tasks
- You're trying to limit time spent on less important tasks
"My Work is Unpredictable. Will Time Blocking Work for me?"
If your work involves urgent requests from team members, impromptu meetings with stakeholders, unexpected customer issues requiring immediate attention, etc. time blocking can feel rigid and not suitable for you. But there's a workaround if you still want to get the most out of time blocking.
You can schedule a block of time with no assigned task. These are pockets of flexibility within your structured day, allowing you to respond to the unexpected without derailing your entire schedule.
They act as buffer zones, absorbing the overflow from tasks that run longer than anticipated. They provide space for addressing urgent matters that invariably arise. And perhaps most importantly, they offer breathing room for spontaneous creativity and problem-solving — those moments of insight that often occur when our minds are not rigidly focused on a specific task.
This method of time blocking with built-in flexibility helps reduce the stress that comes from constantly feeling behind or overwhelmed. It provides a pressure release valve, allowing us to tackle unexpected tasks without the guilt of deviating from our plan.
It's a paradoxical approach - by planning for unplanned time, you create a more resilient and adaptable schedule.
It's also important to remember that time-blocking isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. What works for one person may not work for another, and what's effective in one type of job might be counterproductive in another. Some people may find that time-blocking certain parts of their day while leaving others more flexible works best for them.
Common Pitfalls with Time Blocking
Time-blocking, while powerful, is not without its challenges. Being aware of these potential pitfalls can help you navigate the technique more effectively and avoid common frustrations.
Two of the most common pitfalls practitioners face are overestimating task completion times and over-scheduling their days. These challenges, though seemingly opposite, often stem from the same root: our eagerness to maximize productivity.
The tendency to overestimate what we can accomplish in a given time block is deeply rooted in human psychology. Known as the planning fallacy, this cognitive bias leads us to consistently underestimate the time required for future tasks, even when we have past experiences to the contrary.This optimism can result in a cascade of delays, with each task pushing back the next, ultimately leading to increased stress and decreased productivity.
One of the most significant pitfalls is overestimating what can be accomplished in a given time block. We often fall prey to the planning fallacy, believing tasks will take less time than they actually do. This can lead to a domino effect of delays and increased stress as we struggle to catch up. To combat this, add a buffer time of 25% to your tasks. For instance, if you think a task will take an hour, block out 75 minutes. This built-in cushion accounts for unexpected complications and interruptions, providing a more realistic timeframe.
Then there is the challenge of over-scheduling. In our enthusiasm to maximize productivity, we might fill every available minute with tasks, leaving no room for breaks, unexpected events, or simply time to think and reflect. This approach can quickly lead to burnout and decreased overall productivity.
To overcome time, try the 80/20 rule when time-blocking. Aim to schedule only about 80% of your workday, leaving 20% open for flexibility. This unscheduled time isn't wasted – it's a strategic reserve that allows you to adapt to the unpredictable nature of most workdays.
How to Time Block Using Sunsama in 3 Simple Steps
Create Guardrails for Your Day
Work has a sneaky way of filling up all the time you give it. Without clear boundaries, you might find yourself working late into the night or starting earlier and earlier each day. So you need to set a time for when you 'll start your workday and when you'll end it. These are your guardrails within which you'll schedule your work.
This approach is helpful because when we know we have a finite amount of time, we're forced to prioritize ruthlessly, focusing on what truly matters rather than getting lost in the weeds of busy work. By establishing firm boundaries — or guardrails — for our workday, we're also making a powerful statement about our values and priorities. We're saying that our time outside of work is just as important as the time we spend being productive.
When you use Sunsama, you can set the time for when you want to plan your day. Sunsama will prompt you to plan your day at this time, automatically.
We also have a daily shutdown ritual that is designed to help you end your workday on time, celebrate and share your progress, and avoid burnout. During your daily planning, you'll be prompted daily to choose your shutdown time. Or you can set a specific time in your settings.
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Build Your Task List
Sunsama's daily planning ritual guides you to build out your task list.
You will see a prompt to import certain calendar events into your task list. You can also configure your settings to automatically import calendar events for you. You may also add more tasks to your task list from your integrated tools (Trello, Notion, ClickUp, etc.), your backlog, or just add new tasks.
Tip: Set your "when do you plan your day" setting to morning time whenever you start working, so you'll automatically enter daily planning upon opening Sunsama every day.
Arrange your tasks in the order you wish to work on them starting with the high-impact, low-effort ones.
Drag tasks from your list to your calendar
In Sunsama, you can grab any task and drag and drop it onto the calendar view at a time where you want to work on it. You can also auto-schedule a task by hovering over it and typing X, or by right clicking on it and clicking "Add to calendar".
Before you add a task to your calendar, it's a good idea to set a time estimate or planned time on the task. That way, the corresponding calendar event will be of the correct duration.
Claim your 14-day free trial to create calm and productive workdays. No credit card is required and if you decide to continue using the app, there's no long-term commitment. But we're confident that your days will be calm and focused if you use Sunsama to plan your day.
