How to Work Hard Smart

Top Productivity Tips

for Teams and Their Leaders
Tracking time
with Timeular
is the easiest
way to track
your team's
productivity
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them manage their time effectively. We've
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 Table of contents

Chapter 1
Working hard vs. smart: What's the
difference?..................................................6

Chapter 2
Top productivity tips for team
leaders.........................................................8

Chapter 3
Top productivity tips for team
members....................................................14

Chapter 4
Productivity: If you can’t measure it, you
cannot improve it......................................20

How to work Chapter 5

How to encourage your team to track

hard smart time............................................................25

Conclusions..........................................47
What you'll find in this guide: "Embracing a smart
Working smarter empowers work approach is the
teams to achieve greater results key to unlocking the full
potential of your team."
in less time, simultaneously
lightening the workload and The Timeular Team

reducing overtime.

This eBook provides you with

actionable techniques to
transition from a mindset
focused solely on effort to one
that prioritizes efficiency and
effectiveness.

How to work smart

 Smart work

Working smart, not hard,

involves prioritizing tasks,
making strategic decisions,
and leveraging productivity
tools and techniques to
achieve maximum results
with minimal effort.

What is smart
work?
How to work smart
 Working hard vs.
smart: What's the
difference?

How to work smart Chapter 1

Working hard Working smart
Focuses on putting in a lot of time and effort Emphasizes efficiency and
collectively effectiveness

May lead to team exhaustion and burnout if Strives to maintain a healthy work-life
sustained for extended periods balance for team members

Measures success by the amount of work Measures success by the achieved

accomplished and hours spent outcomes

Continuous pursuit of tasks without Prioritizes tasks and strategically

evaluating their relevance or prioritization allocates resources

Can result in teams being overwhelmed with Focuses on high-impact tasks that align
excessive work with the team's objectives and goals

Relies heavily on individual contributions Promotes effective collaboration and

without leveraging teamwork division of tasks among team members

How to work smart Chapter 1 - 7

 Top productivity tips
for team leaders

How to work smart Chapter 2

Productivity tips for team leaders
Implement a time Make sure the
tracking solution in your communication is clear
team from the start
Track time for improved productivity, Clear communication minimizes
efficient workflows, and enhanced team misunderstandings, enhances collaboration,
efficiency. and aligns efforts towards common goals.

Introduce clear roles and

responsibilities
Ensure that each team member has clearly
defined roles and responsibilities, avoiding
confusion and duplication of efforts.

How to work smart Chapter 2 - 09

Looking for
the most
effortless time
tracking tool
for your team?
Track time automatically, with one click
Build time tracking habits with a physical
Tracker
Use a mobile app for iOS and Android
Try Timeular for free

30-day free trial. No credit card required.

 "Timeular is a great tool which makes it easy for the
entire team to use data"

Ricola HQ, Switzerland

How to work smart Chapter 2 - 11

Focus on efficient task Manage team workload
management
Consistently evaluate the workload of team
Set clear objectives, break down projects into members to achieve a balanced distribution
manageable tasks and utilize tools for of tasks and proactively prevent burnout.
efficient organization, prioritization and
progress tracking.
Automate processes
Set clear goals and Identify repetitive and time-consuming tasks
that can be automated using technology or
expectations software tools.
Establish clear objectives, milestones and
expectations for each project, ensuring
everyone in the team is working towards a
common purpose.

Delegate tasks
Share responsibilities and delegate tasks
effectively, leveraging the strengths and
expertise of team members.

How to work smart Chapter 2 - 12

Establish a clear Conduct regular check-ins
decision-making process
Facilitate regular team check-ins or stand-up
These clear processes enable the team to meetings to promote information sharing,
make timely and informed decisions, track progress and address any obstacles or
promoting productivity and achieving challenges encountered.
desired goals.

Foster work-life balance Establish clear

communication channels
Recognize the importance of downtime
and relaxation in maintaining long-term Clear communication minimizes
productivity and overall team misunderstandings, enhances collaboration
performance. and aligns efforts towards common goals.

Manage team workload

Consistently evaluate the workload of
team members to achieve a balanced
distribution of tasks and prevent burnout.

How to work smart Chapter 2 - 13

 Top productivity tips
for team members

How to work smart Chapter 3

Top techniques for teams to work smart

Engage in discussions with your team "Time management is

and encourage them to select the more than just hitting
techniques that best suit their deadlines. It's about
creating a system that
circumstances.
works for your team
There is a wide range of productivity techniques to and setting everyone
choose from. Take a look at the list to explore a up for success."
collection of highly effective methods that have
already assisted countless teams worldwide in The Timeular Team
working smarter.

How to work smart Chapter 3 - 15

 Top productivity tips for team
members
Track your time Embrace teamwork
By tracking your time, you can prioritize tasks Teamwork brings together individuals with different
effectively, stay focused and accomplish more in strengths to work towards a common goal. By
less time. Additionally, it helps you maintain a collaborating and communicating effectively, they
better work-life balance by allocating time for can solve problems faster and complete tasks more
personal activities and self-care. efficiently.

Create your routine Prioritize tasks

A routine eliminates decision fatigue, automates By using methods like the Eisenhower Matrix or ABC
activities and fosters focus. It helps to allocate analysis, you can identify and focus on high-priority
dedicated time blocks for tasks, ensuring that tasks that align with your goals and deadlines. This
important work receives attention. approach helps you ensure that important tasks are
addressed in a prompt manner.

How to work smart Chapter 3 - 16

Discover how
Timeular can
help you save
countless hours
"I can't recommend it highly enough if
you want to take control of your work
day."

Kasia Tang
Recruitment Consultant

Try Timeular for free

30-day free trial. No credit card required.

 Stop multitasking Try day theming
Task switching leads to wasted time and mental By dedicating each day to a particular type of work
energy as the brain constantly needs to readjust or focus area, you can minimize context switching
with each switch. This disrupts workflow, impairs and decision-making, allowing for better
concentration and diminishes work quality. concentration and efficiency.

Box your time Schedule your breaks

Timeboxing involves setting a fixed and realistic
Try the Pomodoro Technique, where you work for
timeline for tasks and leveraging the
25 minutes followed by a 5-minute break. Another
psychological power of deadlines. Timeboxing
method is the 90-minute work cycle, where you
helps fight procrastination, prevents multitasking
dedicate 90 minutes to focused work and then take
and enables better measurement of productivity.
a longer 20-30 minute break.

Batch similar tasks together Avoid distractions

Identify tasks with similar characteristics and To enhance productivity, address common distractions
allocate dedicated blocks of time to tackle them such as emails, meetings and constant requests. Turn
consecutively. Minimize time lost from transitioning off your phone, use techniques like Pomodoro and
between different types of work. track your time to identify time-wasting tasks.

How to work smart Chapter 3 - 18

 Solve problems right away Learn to say “no”
To overcome procrastination, create a Being assertive helps you make intentional
distraction-free workspace, establish a reward choices and manage your workload effectively.
system, break tasks into smaller steps and By politely declining nonessential tasks or
schedule regular breaks. requests, you can focus on important work and
avoid over-commitment.

Eat the frog Utilize collaboration tools

The "Eat the Frog" method leverages your peak
Harness popular collaboration software such as
energy and concentration in the morning to focus
project management tools like Asana or Trello,
on the most important work, leaving the rest of
communication apps like Slack or Microsoft
the day for less critical tasks.
Teams, and cloud storage solutions like Google
Drive or Dropbox.

Avoid unnecessary
Schedule your work around
meetings
Prepare and structure meetings in advance, peak hours
setting time limits to keep them concise. Ensure Identify your most energized periods, dedicating
that participants come prepared with relevant them to the most demanding tasks. Align your
talking points. Stay focused on the agenda and schedule with peak productivity times to enhance
avoid unrelated topics. concentration, resulting in better outcomes.

How to work smart Chapter 3- 19

 Productivity: if you
can’t measure it, you
cannot improve it

How to work smart Chapter 4

 Help your team understand
where their time goes

Without a clear understanding

of how your team spends their
time and where their energy
goes, it's challenging to
identify areas that need
optimization.

Measurement is
the cornerstone
of improvement
How to work smart Chapter 4 - 21
How to measure your team’s productivity?

1 Implement an effortless
and accurate time
2 Choose accurate metrics
and goals
tracking solution
Engage in a conversation with your
team to explore their understanding
You need a time tracking tool that is of working smart.
intuitive, user-friendly and
compatible with your team's Does it involve condensing the work
workflow. week to four days while maintaining
productivity? Or maximizing billable
Time tracking should be as hours? Perhaps it entails allocating
automated and effortless as possible more time for creative endeavors
in order for your team to like and use and personal growth.
it.
Collaborate to establish measurable
Consider tools that offer features like objectives and targets, identify
physical trackers, automated timers, unproductive activities and strive to
seamless integrations and mobile reclaim valuable time.
accessibility.
How to work smart Chapter 4 - 22
How to measure your team’s productivity?

3 Motivate team members

to track their time
4 Analyze time allocation

Review time tracking data to identify

patterns, trends and inefficiencies in
Make it crystal clear why time
task and project allocation. Use this
tracking is important and how it
analysis to optimize workflows,
helps boost productivity, efficiency
reallocate resources and provide
and project success.
support where needed.
Set clear expectations for how often,
how detailed and how accurate team
members should track their time. 5 Assess time-to-task ratio

Compare task time with expectations

to evaluate efficiency and accuracy.
Identify tasks taking longer than
expected to address obstacles and
improve efficiency through training
and resource allocation.

How to work smart Chapter 4 - 23

How to measure your team’s productivity?

5 Track project progress

6 Utilize reporting and
insights
Track project progress by comparing
actual task time with estimates. Use
Utilize time tracking solution's
this information to make data-driven
reporting and analytics for
decisions and ensure timely
productivity insights. Share reports
completion.
with the team to foster transparency,
accountability and continuous
improvement.

How to work smart Chapter 4 - 24

 How to encourage
your team to track
time

How to work smart Chapter 5

 When implementing the time tracking
practice within your team, emphasize
the significance it holds in achieving
both individual and team goals.

Make it a priority to build trust among

team members by reassuring them that
time tracking is not synonymous with
constant monitoring. Set clear
expectations regarding the frequency,
level of detail and accuracy of time
tracking.

Explain the How Timeular helps:

reasons for time

Employees will only track honestly if they
don’t feel monitored in real-time.
Therefore Timeular lets users decide what

tracking to track. Additionally, it has a 24 h delay

for time entries to appear on the
manager's side.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 26

 Find and adopt a time tracking tool that
seamlessly integrates with your team's
workflow, prioritizing features such as
user-friendliness, intuitive interface and
compatibility.

Ensure that your time tracking software

captures even the smallest tasks in less
than a minute per day, just like Timeular
does.

Make it as low
effort as How Timeular helps:
Timeular combines the simplest methods of

possible
time tracking: you can simply hit a shortcut on
your computer, flip an 8-sided dice, or
effortlessly drag and drop time entries on a
calendar interface. And voila! You're all set!

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 27

 "We've saved an impressive lot of time with
Timeular. Monthly time reviews that were
previously taking up half a day every month now
take 15 minutes. It's an immense time saver!"

Simon Echle, Managing Director of avocado

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 28

 Building a habit of tracking time can
become second nature for you and your
colleagues.

Consider using a physical tracker, such as

an 8-sided die placed on your desk, to
leverage muscle memory and effortlessly
develop time tracking habits.

Help your team

members build How Timeular helps:
The Timeular physical Tracker is an 8-sided die

a time tracking
that records time for different tasks. Customize
each side, then flip it to automatically track a
specific activity. It seamlessly connects to your

habit app through Bluetooth.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 29

 "People complain a lot less about time tracking now
because of the easy interface of Timeular. It's made
time tracking a lot less of an obstacle and much
more accessible"

Kaitlin Snow Seamons, Executive Creative Director

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 30

 Demonstrate your commitment to time
tracking by consistently tracking your
own time.

Share your positive experiences and the

benefits you have observed from accurate
time tracking. Encourage team leaders
and managers to be proactive in tracking
their time and discussing it openly.

Lead by Time tracking hint

Track just a few activities with the team at the

example
beginning—for example, reactive and proactive work.
Also, call for volunteers in each department and
estimate task duration to reach a specific goal. From
there, build a business case.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 31

 Acknowledge and appreciate team
members who consistently track their
time accurately.

Consider implementing rewards or

recognition programs to incentivize
adherence to time tracking practices.
Publicly celebrate achievements and
milestones related to time tracking.

Recognize and
reward
compliance
Time tracking hint
Forgetting to track is a common issue. Ensure
your team sets custom reminders or uses our
physical tracking die.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 32

 Schedule regular meetings or check-ins
to review time tracking data, address
concerns and identify areas for
improvement.

Encourage team members to provide

feedback and make necessary
adjustments to the time tracking process.

Regularly
review and
optimize
How to work smart Chapter 5 - 33
 "By adopting the right approach, time tracking can
contribute to a safer work environment that
promotes mental health and increases productivity
alike."

Timeular Team

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 34

A real-life
You are aiming to increase the productivity
of your team. Learn how Timeular can help

example of
you in 10 simple steps:

Align on a time tracking objective

team time Establish shared guidelines
Download Timeular

tracking with Configure your Shared Space

Track time

Timeular Analyze the data

Set goals

In this section, you'll see a

real-life example of how you
could start tracking time with
your team in Timeular. We'll
guide you step-by-step
through the process.
Step #1 Align on a time-tracking objective

Discuss with your team

members why you need to
track time together.
Sharing the why behind
time tracking will help you
reinforce trust.

Let's say that you're an agency

working on multiple projects and you
want to help your team work smarter
to decrease workload and cut
overtime. You need a clear picture of
how your team is spending time to
be able to spot time-wasting activities
and unproductive projects.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 36

Step #2 Establish shared guidelines

Create a shared document and Finally, anticipate and

troubleshoot potential obstacles:
agree on timeframes, tasks, what will happen if some
insights and troubleshooting teammates don’t track time
properly? Or what to do if
strategies with the team. someone doubts how to label a
task? Write down the answers.
Decide when your team should track time;
for example, 9.00 - 18.00. Agree on which
activities they should and should not track.

For instance, they will track client work,

meetings and emails but will not include
personal breaks, interruptions or internal
admin tasks. Convey when you all will look
at the insights and what you’ll pay attention
to (billable tracking, productivity trends or
length of tasks).

How to work smart

Step #3 Download Timeular

(1) Download Timeular web app at timeular.com/download. (2) Install and

start the software. (3) Log in with your email and the password or if you
don't have one: create a new account by following the "Sign Up" button.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 38

Step #4 Configure your Timeular folder

(4) Click on "Add folder" and create a folder for every project you have. If
your projects have similar names, add a client prefix to the folder title so
it’s easier to find. (5) For every folder, tick the ''Track billable time in this
folder". Read more about billable tracking here. (6) Select the appropriate
currency.
How to work smart Chapter 5 - 39
Step #5 Add activities to your folder

(7) Add activities to each project. For example, add coding, design, writing,
meetings, etc. (8) Configure the hourly rate of each activity.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 40

Step #6 Start inviting contributors

(9) Start adding contributors to the folder by entering their emails.

(10) Set roles as contributor or supervisor. Read more about Timeular roles
here.
(11) For now, skip the tag configuration as it will add too much complexity at
this stage. You're all set to track time with your team!
How to work smart Chapter 5 - 41
Step #7 Track time for two weeks

(12) Once you’ve collected enough data with your team (roughly two weeks
of tracking), it's time to analyse the time entries. Forgetting to track is a
common issue. Ensure your team sets custom reminders or uses our
physical tracking cube.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 42

Step #8 Analyze team's billable tracking data

(13) Head over to the tab ''Insights'' in Timeular. (14) Use custom filters to
segment the data per activity, contributor, or project. (15) Look at the
billable hour insights in Timeular and find differences between what you bill.

Timeular tutorial
Learn how to use insights and understand your time. Chapter 5 - 43
Step #9 Analyze your team's activities

(16) Assuming you're filtering activities, you may have realised that your
team worked more hours than planned on the website redesign, but you
should have billed the client more realistically.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 44

Step #10 Look at time entries per contributor

(17) Spot differences between workloads and types of activities. You may
discover that some of your top performers are too busy in meetings instead
of focusing on the projects that matter the most.

How to work smart Chapter 5 - 45

Take action based on time tracking
Time tracking alone won't change anything. You need to take
action based on the insights! To help you with the productivity
analysis, answer the following questions by looking at the data.

Which tasks or projects consume a

significant portion of the team's
time?

Are there projects with consistently

low productivity despite significant
time investment?

Do certain team members

consistently spend more time on
specific tasks or projects?

How to work smart

 Conclusions

How to work smart Conclusions - 47

 Implement the practical tips
and techniques shared in this
eBook to revolutionize your
team's work habits, elevate
productivity, and experience
the satisfaction of
accomplishing more with less
effort.

Working smart, not hard, is the

Smart work path to sustainable team's
success and personal
starts with time fulfillment.

tracking
How to work smart
Timeular
Timeular is the ultimate
solution for time-tracking
Get hyper-accurate insights, track
billable time precisely and spot
productivity trends. Keep your team's
flow intact and prevent imbalanced
workloads.

Track time with your team.

Easy to build a habit with the physical Tracker.
Stop chasing timesheets: in Timeular's insights
section, you can directly see your team's data.
Export time entries effortlessly.
Keep team's workflow flow intact.
Maximize profits by billing clients accurately.
Try Timeular for free

30-day free trial. No credit card required.