I tracked every single task for 30 days.

🗣️ Things I mention in this video:

Hi there 👋 If you're new to my videos my name is Matt D'Avella. I'm a documentary filmmaker, entrepreneur and YouTuber. I've made a couple documentaries for Netflix. I also teach courses on everything from filmmaking to habit change. If you like to nerd out about self-development as much as I do, you can subscribe for weekly videos.

🔗 LINKS

[mattdavella]

I think I've got a couple more 30 day challenges in me. Then we're on to something new...

[prinniapuff]

Something to bear in mind about the 40 hour work week is that people who go to a 9-5 job 5 days a week aren't necessarily working nonstop the entire 40 hours that they're clocked in. I think you have room to give yourself at least a little bit of grace about meeting that number.

[felipebridges]

As a really small content creator I'm really glad to finally see how much effort you put on a single video.
9 hours writing + 19 hours filming + 26 hours editing. 54 hours!
I will bear in mind this number next time I complain about the outcome of my videos 😅

[rongitmukherjee]

10:00 Favorite part of the video, the frame looks so good with b-roll on the left, handwriting-like text to the right and statistics in the middle getting updated dynamically. Aesthetic on point.

[nadiayasminharris]

Great video. I just have one bugbear: ‘helping out with Frankie’, ‘helping Nat around the house’. We all need to be mindful about the language we use. You are looking after your son and doing chores around your house because they need to be done. Language like this can come across as misogynistic and I know that’s not you nor your intention. It’s society’s way of framing women as homemakers and caregivers and language like this just fuels the status quo. Love your videos Mat, your ideas are unique and engaging. I just wanted to share the above because I hope it’ll help.

[LeahRachelB]

these are special moments with Frankie that you’ll never get back, so I’m glad you spent more time with him than work! think of it as you being on paternity leave 😊 thanks so much for this video! really eye opening and encourages me to be more mindful of where I’m spending time!

[tamsin.webb]

This is such an eye opening video! As a Mum to two teenage daughters I can attest that while you are in the early childhood years, the days can seem repetitive and yet it seems in the blink of an eye they grow up too fast. Congratulations on your hard work to get yourself to a position where you can enjoy this time with your family.

[Thehumansmilyface]

I started doing this about 2 months before watching this video because I deal with severe ADHD and suck at time management and have tried so many different things to help with that, but I will say this one actually works GREATLY! So happy you made a video on this. YES YES AND YES!!

[elektronomade]

As someone who already tracked 36.518 hours and basically every single minute of the last 4 years with toggl, I really loved the video Matt! Here are my key learnings:
1) Single Tasking. The app only allows you to track one thing at a time. This also helps you with personal rules, e.g. there is no phone allowed when I'm eating lunch/dinner.
2) Task switching: The app shows you how often you switch between tasks. I try to have one tracking-entry per task per day to avoid getting distracted by other things/tasks all the time.

3) Feeling ok with unproductive things. Example: I have a dog and I want to spend a minimum of 60 minutes with him outside. If I'm tracking the time and I haven't reached my daily goal yet, I'm doing 100% the right thing at the moment. Even if there are important work related tasks or deadlines at the same time, I don't feel overwhelmed or stressed anymore. I'm exactly where I need to be at this moment.
4) Deadlines: I had a busy period in my startup that required a lot of attention from my side. So I set a goal of 10 hour focused work every single day. Guess what: If you don't want to starve and go to the toilet, the latest point to start working is 12pm - no matter what. People are "stealing" time from the next day by working through the night. But that doesn't make you more productive in the longterm. This feeling of limited time we have in our lives is actually pretty motivating. Now I'm using weekly time goals for my projects. There's this special moment every week when you realize: If I don't start right now, it's impossible to reach by the end of the week. And you can't ignore it otherwise you're directly lying to yourself.

Time is a magical thing.

[jamesbrackiniv]

Have been following your work for years Matt, would be an honor to have you on my podcast, I promise it will be one of the best interviews you've done.

[tbbruno]

It’s awesome to be able to see that big picture of how you’re spending your time.

One thing that I was curious about is how hour balance would compare to Nat’s balance, specially how you’re splitting house chores, child care and personal time between the two of you. I think that’s something couple usually can work on better, it would be great to see a video on that.

[michaelfitzgerald]

I like this one Matt!

I’ve learned something similar over the years as a teacher and often use a countdown timer to keep track of when my planned amount of time has actually elapsed.

Congrats on the new baby.

[SpaceAntiquity]

Hi Matt. Just wanted to say how much I appreciate you. You have inspired me to make content and work on myself and got me to where I am in life right now. Really thankful for the videos you have made in the past and will make in the future.

[bryceneuberger]

Matt! I used toggl years ago! Been loving your stuff for years! I am a youth pastor and I've been using your videos to motivate me and organize me!

I switched to minimalist wardrobe
I schedule every 30 minutes of my day
I do 100 pushups a day (that came from buzzfeed but still).
I also journal and use todoist for my daily tasks

But i will never embrace the flinch of cold showers lol.

[Motivation-tyyd]

I am so happy to see this video today morning. Thanks for suggesting the right toll for tracking. I was trying to track my time gor the past 3 years on and off using various tools and gave up hope of ever doing it right. Seeing your video made me so happy, like someone is guiding me. You made my day. Sending you a truck load of blessings for your future. May god give you the best. Thanks for sharing and helping people see the reality as opposed to other content creators.

[smirbelbirbel]

Thank you for emphasising how amazing it actually is that you can afford to spend more time with your family than with your work. Got your priorities straight. ❤ I think a lot of us millennials look back at our childhoods and while we appreciate our dads working a lot to keep up our lifestyle, a lot of us realise that we would've gladly sacrificed some of it to have them around.

[j.d.]

Brian Tracy has a good rule for this. He says that however long you think something will take to do or how much, it will cost 3x it. I've found this to be pretty accurate for most things.

[lucamoroianu]

Loved your video Matt! I think adding screen time to the list of categories would be super useful (at least to me), especially since screen time compounds so easily across devices (work, communicating, play) I know for myself, a specific category to entertainment screen time would help me manage my time better.

[simonvutov]

Hey Mat! I’ve also been using toggl for a few years now, tracking things like video games, time spent working, ect. Love your videos!!

[isaacmcburney]

This was really interesting, and I will definitely apply this to my life. Also, had to watch the Netflix documentary you did about minimalism. It was really good!