- A time budget is different
than your actual schedule or task reminders.
Think of it like a template of an ideal week
that helps you make scheduling decisions.
Most calendar apps allow you to create multiple calendars
and compare them side-by-side
or overlay on top of each other.
Create a new calendar called Time Budget.
Let's start by budgeting the ideal time
for your most valuable activities.
How much time should you spend in these MVAs?
Choose an amount of time that's reasonable for your job,
but stretch yourself.
I find devoting 40% of your total work time to your MVAs
is a great place to start.
For example, lets imagine I identified my two MVAs
as content creation and sales.
Maybe I find Fridays are typically less interruptive
and a great time to focus,
so I'll schedule hours on Friday.
40% of a 40 hour work week is 16 hours.
And since there are two MVAs,
I'll use half that time, eight hours,
plus a 30 minute lunch break.
This means, in an ideal week,
I'll spend almost all of Friday on content creation.
Next, I'll create a remaining budget of eight hours
for my second MVA, sales.
I find around and during lunchtime is best for this,
so I'll spend two hours
each of the remaining weekdays around lunch.
You may find it helpful to also budget time
for one or two of your least valuable activities, your LVAs.
This helps you limit the time you spend on those activities.
Your time budget becomes a helpful guide
to maximize the value of your work time.