For managers: How to talk about taking RescueTime's time management training

RescueTime’s time management training works best when everyone on your team takes it together and applies the lessons as a team!

It’s a good idea to talk about it with your team before sending invites.

Here are a few tips to help guide that conversation.

1. Start by setting the stage

Key point: The workday has gotten a bit chaotic. But it's not your fault.

Time management can be a delicate subject to bring up. No one wants to feel like they’re working hard but still not doing “enough.”

Start by setting the stage with your team and explaining why you chose to take the course.

For us, we believe everyone comes to work with the best intentions but that it’s easier than ever to get derailed by calls, meetings, emails, multitasking, and all sorts of overlooked or unseen factors. This leads to longer days, more stress, and feeling like you have to take work home with you.

It’s no one’s fault. But we need to work together to take back control of our time.

2. Explain your goals

Key point: RescueTime helps you take control of your time so you can leave the day feeling accomplished (not stressed).

The course is designed to help your team maximize their time each day so they can leave work feeling like they did what they set out to do.

We’ll accomplish this through a combination of in-depth training videos, hands-on exercises, and powerful time management software that will help them understand where their time goes and put the lessons into practice.

3. Set expectations (and create a schedule together)

Key point: The course will take approximately one hour a week to complete.

To get the most of the course, ask your team to find a time in their own schedule that works best each week and commit to it. If you’re taking the course along with them (which we suggest), let them know when you’ll be going through the lessons.

4. Apply the lessons as a team

The best thing you can do when learning any new skill is to put it into practice.

Here are a few ways to engage your team as they go through the course:

Intro & Week 1 questions

How did you come up with your “ideal day” for the time audit?
Were you surprised by the data you saw? What stood out to you?
Which of the cognitive biases mentioned do you most identify with? Why?

Week 2 questions

When are your peak hours? Is there anything in your current schedule that's getting in the way of them?
How can we work together as a team to protect our best times and still stay connected?
How can I help you have more time for deep work?

Week 3 questions

What are some of the best habits you think you’ve developed?
Is there anything in your morning or wind-down routine that you think other people on the team should try?
What are some of the things we all do that could help us single-task more as a team?

Week 4 questions

What are some of the external distractions that we face as a team?
What techniques should we use as a team to reduce our communication time?
Are there any ways we can change our work environment to be less distracting?