Introduction
I didn’t have much time today, so this will be a shorter article, but recently I had the opportunity to learn about a productivity method called Time Boxing, and it caught my interest. I’d like to jot down a few thoughts as a kind of memo.
What Is Time Boxing?
I usually manage my tasks using a concept called TaskChute, but I recently came across a method called Time Boxing, which—while similar in some ways (at least in my opinion)—is a bit different.
Time Boxing is a method where you decide in advance how much time you will spend on a task, and you strictly stick to that time limit.
For example, you might decide, “I’ll focus only on creating the presentation for Project A for 30 minutes,” and set a timer. When the time’s up, you stop, even if you haven’t finished. This helps prevent tasks from dragging on indefinitely and makes it easier to stay focused.
If you don’t consciously apply Time Boxing and have plenty of time available, you might think, “Even if I finish early, I’ll keep going to improve the quality,” or “I’m not sure how long this will take, so I’ll keep working until I’m satisfied.” As a result, something that could have been finished quickly might end up taking much longer.
Time is finite, but when there are no strict deadlines or when you have some breathing room, work tends to expand.
However, by fully applying the principles of Time Boxing and structuring your schedule strictly—focusing not on “how much to do” but on “how long to do it”—your perception of daily work can change significantly.
Difference from TaskChute
Some readers may not be familiar with TaskChute, which is a task management method that records all of your actions throughout the day in chronological order. Using that data, it helps you better predict and plan your next day.
Tasks that repeat daily are registered as “repeat tasks,” which automatically appear in your schedule, making it easier to maintain habits. One of its main purposes is to visualize how you actually spend your time by recording each task’s details, start time, and end time.
Both methods focus on managing tasks and schedules with an awareness of time, but their purposes differ slightly:
TaskChute: A system for recording all daily actions to analyze and improve workflow.
Time Boxing: A method for assigning fixed time slots to specific tasks to increase focus and efficiency.
In other words, as I see it, TaskChute is more about “visualizing how you use your time by tracking your daily activities and learning from the data,” while Time Boxing emphasizes “boosting work efficiency by predefining and limiting the execution time for a particular task.”
That said, how these methods are used or felt varies from person to person. I’ve been using TaskChute for years, but I’ve noticed that users apply it in many different ways. Some might use TaskChute in a Time Boxing-like manner, and vice versa.
Conclusion
At this point, I don’t plan to incorporate Time Boxing into my daily routine, but learning about this concept gave me several insights.
In the future, I might try adopting parts of it into my existing system, such as TaskChute.
I didn’t have much time today, so this post turned out more like a memo, but thank you for reading until the end.
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