Timeboxing
October 19th, 2004 by Steve Pavlina
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Timeboxing is a simple time management technique I use often. I first learned about it in software development terms. Let’s say you have a fixed deadline for a new product you need to release, such as an annual upgrade to software for calculating income taxes. You must have a new version ready by a certain date. So you’ll probably use timeboxing for your development cycle, meaning that you do the best job you can within the time available. What new features you can implement are totally determined by the time frame. Slipping the schedule is simply not an option, so if you get behind, you must cut features.
In terms of managing your own tasks, timeboxing can be a helpful technique. I primarily use it in two different ways.
First, let’s say you want to get something done, but there’s a risk it could end up taking far more time than it’s worth because it’s the kind of task where you might exhibit perfectionist tendencies. So you give yourself a specific amount of time, which you won’t go over, and you simpy do the best job you can within that time.
As an example I use timeboxing when doing my Christmas shopping each year. I usually allocate a total of 2 hours to the task, which for me involves buying gifts for 8 people (my wife handles the rest). I decide in advance what kind of gift I should get each person on my list, and then I order as much as I can online and then head off to the local mall, where I zoom from one store to the next picking up gifts as I go. I also usually take advantage of my flexible schedule, doing the shopping on a weekday morning when the stores aren’t busy and I don’t have to wait in line. So I’m in and out with everyone’s gifts in under two hours.
(I know some people love holiday shopping, and taking multiple trips to browse is fine if it’s something you enjoy. But if you’re shopping-challenged like me, and you’re no more likely to get gifts that are any better if you invest an extra 10 hours in the task, then it may be best to simply resign yourself to doing the best job you can within the time you have available.)
The second way I use timeboxing is when I have a task or project that I wish to complete, but I don’t really know where to begin, or it seems like it’s going to be a long time before I can finish a meaningful chunk. Or maybe it’s something I find really tedious and would have a tendency to procrastinate on. Then I use timeboxing to simply commit to working on the task for a given period of time to make a dent in it. I normally use a period in the range of 30-120 minutes. I release any concern about reaching a particular milestone within that time — I simply commit to putting in the time, regardless of how far I get. An example where I use this approach would be when I’m writing a new article. Finishing a complete article will usually take me 3-8 hours. Sometimes I can complete an article in a single stretch, but most of the time I’ll stretch it over multiple sessions. So I use timeboxing to just put a dent in the article and get started, committing myself to writing for 1-2 hours without worrying about how far I get. Then I just repeat the process until the work is complete.
A side effect of this last method is that I’ll often end up working much longer than I originally intended. If I commit to working on a tedious task for just 30 minutes, it’s easy to get started because I’ve given myself permission to stop after only 30 minutes. But once I’ve overcome that inertia and am now focused on the task, 90 minutes may pass before I even feel the desire to stop.
Timeboxing’s ability to circumvent perfectionism and avoid procrastination makes it a useful time management technique. I even used it for this blog entry, and now that my wife has returned home with dinner and a movie rental, it’s time to say goodbye…. 
October 19th, 2004 at 7:10 pm
I have had success with both forms of timeboxing, especially the second form. Sometimes I commit to working on something for just 15 minutes that I don’t really want to work on. At the end of 15 minutes, I’m often becoming more interested in the task and I may keep working on it.
October 21st, 2004 at 8:25 am
wow this definitely works. it actually motivated me enough to do a proper schedule for my current game, and jeez… there is a lot to do.
October 21st, 2004 at 11:04 am
“Time boxing” is one of those hard-to-google items. Prime-time boxing comes up more of then than not.
What’s interesting is that this description seems a bit different from what you can find elsewhere. The idea here is “Get something/anything done within a period of time” whereas the other descriptions I’ve found make it seem like time boxing says “Get specific things done in this time.”
Then again, it could be because those descriptions are for time boxing over longer periods of time. The idea is probably “release software within 6 months with two month milestones, no matter what features are ready by then” as opposed to this article which seems more like “here’s your deadline. Do something with your time!”
February 7th, 2005 at 9:00 am
It just works! Thanks!
March 15th, 2005 at 6:26 am
Having just read this article (and the related one), I realised that I’d actually been using Timeboxing myself in my own way.
For the last few years I had been studying at university. Come the crunch time of exam revision, it wa clear that I needed to do some work for an exam that may have been a week or two later. Always safer to start early – yet hard to convince myself to do. I hated studying. Heck, I still do.
So I went to the shop, and bought myself a nice big bottle of chocolate milk (I’m just a big kid). I stuck it in the fridge, and promised myself I could have it if I work for an hour. I did this a lot. If I didn’t work for the hour, I couldn’t have the milk (and if I did have it, it tasted of pure guilt). If I did the work, whatever the achievement, I got the milk and it felt good.
It becomes a part of my work ethic now. If I reward myself in small doses at regular intervals, I get a lot more done.
March 15th, 2005 at 9:37 am
Fry Carola
I think, Steve’s answer would be:
Have your purpose as your chocolate milk.
April 13th, 2005 at 7:30 pm
This is wonderful!
All I needed to get started on the 3 essays I have due next week was a hint on planning, motivation and overcoming procrastination (I got here via your procrastination article)…I’ve got you bookmarked – thank you!
Beck
April 22nd, 2005 at 10:19 pm
On several occasions i have said to myself “i’ve got to start seeking professional help…” and today, i finally came about to search the net for causes of procrastination and how to resolve it. i came across the article you wrote and i found it very interesting. i always thought that if i could find a secluded place, i could concentrate more on my work. i still havent found a way to overcome procrastination but after reading your article it had helped me alot.
i have found myself some motivation and will follow your advice
Thank you very much
May 9th, 2005 at 2:44 am
Great articles. I’ve been looking for a solution to this “affliction” of mine for quite some time. This looks like a great way to start
Thanks
June 3rd, 2005 at 11:44 pm
I am going to try this!
August 26th, 2005 at 7:48 am
Thanks Steve!!!
i found your article is very uplifting and your piece of writing style is very different from others!!! Good ones!
i’ve shared ur website with my siblings and my friends. It’s really nice of you to share your experience and knowlegde with us!!!
Procrastination… i cant find any good books about it yet… but your writing are in such an organized way and clearly brought out the points. it’s pretty easy to understand especially for those who has sufferred from it! Once again, thanks!