We’re so excited to launch our updated OfficeTime for the iPad, iPhone, iPod plus Mac and PC  

We’ve got dozens of improvements in all versions (like even better exporting by email on your iPhone) and are really excited to get this in your hands.

WHAT’S OFFICETIME?

It’s a time & expense tracker for the iPad, iPhone, iPod, Mac & PC.  People tell us it’s easy, flexible and makes them money.

• Find out more…
• Try it for free on your iPad or iPhone.
• Try it for free on your Mac or PC.

OKAY, NOW THE CONTEST!

How do I enter to win a New iPad 3?

(Our legal guys tell us to mention this contest is not sponsored or associated with Apple but you already knew that.)

“Where does the time go?” How often do you find yourself asking that question? If you’re like us, the answer is every single day. No matter how hard we work, time just races by, leaving the inbox always full and the “to do” list with more added than crossed off each day.  We know that those who TRACK their time are more efficient than those who don’t, but we wanted to know what the impetus is for professionals and business owners to track their time and their tasks.

Here are the results. 

46% of respondents indicate they track their time because it helps them to become more productive.

42% said it helps them to provide their clients with better invoicing while improving their own revenue.

For those tracking time to improve productivity, 42% aimed to identify how their time is being used, while 31% indicated they wanted to know where their time was being wasted.  Interesting, right?

“This survey reflects what we’ve known from users of our OfficeTime time tracking software – that time is worth tracking,” said Stephen Dodd, director of OfficeTime.net. “By accurately tracking time each day, business owners and professionals not only can bill for more time and increase their revenues, but they can simply work more efficiently by making better use of their time.”

The bottom line is that productivity and increased revenue are absolutely 100% essential if we’re going to be successful in today’s up-and-down economy.  The more we produce, and the more effective we are at billing for that effort, the more likely we are to survive – and hopefully thrive in whatever we do.

To get the no-cost version of our App, go to http://bit.ly/OfficeTimeFree (and pass it on to others).

Time. The real commodity.
Signed, Mary Agnes Antonopoulos

PS:  Unlike web-based time-tracking applications, OfficeTime does not require a monthly subscription fee.

All we need are a few simple data points.

Name of business:

Years in business:

How many employees:

Areas of specialization:

How important is time management in the day-to-day running of your business AND your life?

What did you use to track your billable time prior to implementing OfficeTime?

How did you discover OfficeTime and what made you decide to begin using it?

Are you the only user, or do others in your firm use it too?

How well does it work for you in terms of providing the reports you need to accurately bill your clients?

Do you use the iOS version, the desktop version, or both?

What are the app’s biggest strengths?

In what way has it helped to improve the accuracy of your billings?

We look forward to hearing from you all – our tribe – and to featuring you in our article and here on our blog too!  

Warmly, The OfficeTime Team

A writer for the Wall Street Journal has asked us for some input, and we would love to be featured.  We have to give our data back to him in the next 24 hours though.  (Talk about a deadline, right???)  All responses welcome, even after that we’ll use them in our own blog.

THANK YOU for your help with this!

Time. The real commodity.

Joining us this week for our interview on the importance of time management is Gerardo Martinez. Gerardo is a graphic designer and illustrator who has three separate jobs, and lots of little jobs inside of those jobs. As a father-to-be, time management is extremely important to Gerardo, who wants to make sure he has time for his new baby. Gerardo explains to us how the OfficeTime app and time management skills has helped him juggle his sometimes hectic life.

Tell us about your company, Gerardo, and the services you provide. 

Well put simply, I’m a freelance graphic designer/ illustrator, a one man base company. I also give one-on-one training lessons to people who want to master their skills with the use of computers and graphic design software.

During the morning hours I’m in charge of the graphics department for a screen printing company located on the central coast ofCaliforniaas well.

The services I provide through my own company are graphic design related. It’s mostly the creation of iconography, logotypes, custom illustration, marketing, ad development, stationary, business presentation and now I’m expanding into the web design platform.

How important is time management in the day-to-day running of your business AND your life?

Having to divide my time between three different jobs in my professional life, (gerardodesign.com, the silkscreen shop and the one-on-one tutoring) time management is crucial, a number one priority. Thanks to the Office Time app, I now have the ability to enjoy more of my free time rather than getting home and having to plan and re-plan my entire schedule based on the events of that day and the upcoming days. This is truly a blessing for any busy person in a situation like mine, where trying to coordinate the tasks and responsibilities between three jobs is like another job in itself. Now that I have this wonderful time management tool, I’m better able to focus on the task at hand rather than worrying about scheduling, coordinating, and organizing everything seperately.

Talk to me specifically about OfficeTime. What’s been your biggest takeaway of using it?

My biggest takeaway of using Office Time as one of my day-to-day work tools is that it encompasses, covers, and unifies all of my time management needs in just one app. It’s powerful and very organized yet simple to use.

Before Office Time, I had to spend a lot of my own personal time transcribing all of the information for my hours, costs, and invoices from different apps and synchronize them all in another final app to load onto my iMac. Now with the ease of your app on my iPad and iMac, all that information gets recorded into just one app. I don’t even notice the automatic synchronization between my gadgets because all of the built in features allow it to do so smoothly and easily. The time of my work sessions, billable and not billable time, categories, and their individual costs are all there in a very neatly organized, clean, user- friendly, and well designed interface. As a graphic designer, I was really impressed with Office Time’s simple design and how that translated well into an easy and pleasant customer experience

So what new and awesome things have you been able to create in your business, since you’ve freed up so much time with the OfficeTime time tracking tool? (That’s sort of half joking — what new things are exciting in your life and company is the real uptake.)

Now that I get to have some more free time I started working on a couple of projects that I had in mind for a while but that I’ve never had the time for. I’m working on creating some baby toys and sculpting puppets as a hobby for my soon-to arrive baby to play with. With a little one on the way, my time will be even more valuable and I want to make sure that I get to spend as much of it as possible with them. After all, this is why we push ourselves a little further every day, to be better people for ourselves and our surrounding community.

Absolutely and that’s one of the reasons why OfficeTime was created, to help ourselves and others. For Gerardo, Office Time allows him to keep track of and manage his time throughout his busy days. By tracking and managing his time he’s able to make more time for himself and the ones he loves, a truly priceless value.  If you would like to see some of Gerardos artwork and designs visit his website at gerardodesign.com

Tune in next week for another great blog on how time management = success.

Time. The real commodity.

OfficeTime.net

#2. Implement the Two-Minute Rule – The two-minute rule is a concept that we borrowed from David Allen, the author of Getting Things Done. Here it is in a nutshell: If you’re fairly confident that an email will take less than two minutes to take care of, then do it – even if it’s not a high priority. If it’s a quick read and a fast response, then saving it for later actually takes more time – and more mental space. In the immortal words of Nike, just do it!

#3. Only Check it Four Times a Day – Yes, another idea we definitely took from someone else… or maybe they took it from us?  Either way, choosing to check email only at certain specific times during the day is just good business. We like first thing in the morning, 11am, right after lunch, and again at 4pm.  Don’t check just before lunch or right before you end your day, or you’ll end up hungry and late every time!

The bottom line is that we at OfficeTime definitely understand those who bill for their time, and we know what a time suck email can be.  While there are a LOT of solutions out there, many are just too time consuming or difficult to implement.  Like our time tracker, we like solutions that are SIMPLE.  These are three that we tested, love and try to use.

Remember, time tracking means owning your time, and it means billing a LOT more than you would otherwise. To get the no-cost version of our App, go to http://bit.ly/OfficeTimeFree (and pass it on to others).

Time. The real commodity.

Yours Truly, Stephen Dodd
Creator of OfficeTime.net

#2. Plan Your Day.  Spend a few minutes every morning to plan your day. This will easily prevent complications and stress. Look at your deadlines and take stock of what MUST be done to hit them, vs. what can be delayed until the deadline is met successfully. A planned day is way more efficient than making it up as you go along and spending lost time on things that could wait until later (or better yet, be delegated to someone else on your team).

#3. Be Realistic.  If you see that your deadline is approaching and you’re not realistically going to hit it without going bonkers, ask yourself honestly, Can it be moved?  If NOT, then cancel everything possible between here and there, shut off the phone and STOP email completely.  You can do it – and the world won’t stop revolving if you unplug for a while.

Yours Truly, Stephen Dodd
Creator of OfficeTime.net

#2. Go to bed earlier.  Yes, we’re going with the bedtime theme this week, but giving it up and getting some rest before you find yourself snoring on the couch at midnight could mean a solid night’s sleep from 10pm until 5am, and leave you raring to go!

#3. Defend Your Time. We say often here that time is the real commodity. You can always make more money, but you simply can’t grow time. And to make it more shocking, you really never truly know how much you have left. Defend your time and say no to things that are not important to you. It will make what you DO focus on much more meaningful and probably more successful too.

And remember, time tracking means owning your time.  If means knowing what you spend your time on (and what you don’t).  To get the no-cost version of our App, go to http://bit.ly/OfficeTimeFree (and pass it on to others).

Time. The real commodity.
OfficeTime.net

Break it into bite-size steps!

Break your idea into smaller pieces that can be implemented in phases. Less threatening ideas are more possible ideas.  There are VERY few professional things we take on in life that take less than a few hours of our time.  One of the most effective ways to move forward EVERY time you touch the project, is simply to set an alarm clock for 20 minutes.  Instead of sitting there, wheels spinning, brain churning, distractions looming…you will KNOW that you only have 20 minutes within which to accomplish something.  Watch how successful this can be once put into action!

What’s YOUR best Time Management Tip? Let us know – or share your own best time management tips – and get featured in our blog!

Time. The real commodity.

Stephen Dodd, Founder of OfficeTime.net

PS: Get our App at NO cost!  Just click here!  Pass it on!)

THANK YOU for your help with this!

Stephen Dodd
Founder of http://OfficeTime.Net

Time. The real commodity.