Okay, real talk: the time blocking method is the only reason I’m not currently curled up in the fetal position under my desk eating dry cereal straight from the box at 2 p.m. on a Tuesday.
I’m sitting here right now in my apartment in Bushwick, it’s 9:17 a.m., there’s a half-eaten bagel getting stale on the windowsill, my cat is yelling at me because I forgot to refill his fountain again, and—miraculously—my inbox is under 50 unread for the first time since 2023. That’s the power of time blocking, baby.
How I Discovered the Time Blocking Method (Spoiler: Rock Bottom)
Last December I missed three deadlines in one week. Three. My editor sent the gentlest “hey are you okay?” email known to man and I literally started crying in the middle of a bodega because the cat food line was too long. That’s when I remembered some TikTok about Cal Newport and “time blocking method” that I’d saved and never actually tried because—who has time for that, right?
Wrong. Turns out when you have zero time, that’s exactly when you need it.
My Dumb Simple Time Blocking Method That Actually Works
Here’s what I do. No fancy apps (at first). Just Google Calendar and an unhealthy amount of washi tape.
Step 1: The Night-Before Brain Dump
Every night while I’m doomscrolling in bed anyway, I open Google Calendar and block tomorrow in 30–90 minute chunks. Literally everything:
10:45–11:00 → walk around the block before I lose my mind
7:00–7:30 → stare at wall + coffee (yes I block this)
7:30–9:00 → deep work (client articles)
9:00–9:15 → answer emails like a functioning adult
9:15–10:45 → deep work round 2
Step 2: Theme Your Days Because My Brain is a Toddler
Mondays and Wednesdays = client writing Tuesdays = admin + pitching (the stuff I hate) Thursdays = creative projects + therapy Fridays = half-day because burnout is real
This was a game-changer. No more deciding every morning what kind of work I “feel” like doing. The day already decided for me.
Step 3: The 90-Minute Rule (Because My Attention Span is Trash)
I can focus for about 90 minutes max before I want to yeet myself out the window. So all my deep work blocks are 90 minutes or less, followed by 15–30 minutes of pure chaos (TikTok, stretching, texting my group chat about how I’m “definitely dying this time”).
The Time Blocking Mistakes I Made So You Don’t Have To
- Thought I could do 4-hour deep work blocks (lol no)
- Forgot to block lunch and ate cereal at 4 p.m. for three weeks straight
- Scheduled “admin” from 2–4 p.m. which is when my brain turns to mashed potatoes
- Used realistic estimates instead of “how long this will actually take when I’m distracted by existential dread” estimates
Now I double all my time estimates and it’s… still not enough sometimes but we’re getting there.
My Current Time Blocking Method Template (Steal It)
Morning ritual (7:00–8:00) Deep work block 1 (8:00–9:30) Short break + movement (9:30–9:45) Deep work block 2 (9:45–11:15) Email + admin (11:15–12:00) Lunch + doomscroll (12:00–1:30 because I’m not a robot) Deep work block 3 (1:30–3:00) Wrap-up + tomorrow planning (3:00–3:30) Freedom (3:30 onward—unless I screwed up earlier then it’s panic hours)
The Honest Results After 10 Months
- I’ve missed exactly one deadline (down from three per week)
- My therapist says I seem “less like a raccoon living in a dumpster fire”
- I actually cook real meals sometimes??
- My cat has stopped biting me as much (correlation ≠ causation but I’ll take it)
Look, the time blocking method isn’t sexy. My calendar looks like a kindergartener attacked it with highlighters.
