An Activity Log (also known as an Activity Diary or a Job Activity Log) is a written record of how you spend your time.

An Activity Elements:

  • Date/time
  • Activity description
  • How I feel
  • Duration
  • Value (high, medium, low, none)

How to use the Next Activity

Step 1 Recording

Every time you change activities, note down what the activity is, the time of the change, and how you feel (alert, flat, tired, energetic)

Step 2 Evaluate your activity value

At a convenient time, go back through your activity logs, write down the duration of each activity, and whether it was high, medium, low, or no value task. (Evaluate this based how far it contributed to archiving your job goals, and predefined, defining, undefined work)

Step 3 Learning from the activity log

  • How much time did you spend doing low-value jobs?
  • Which parts of the day you are energetic and flat?

Applying one of the following actions to various activities to boosts your productivity

  • Eliminate or delegate jobs that don’t help you meet your objectives
  • Schedule your most challenging task for the times of day when your energy levels are highest.
  • Reduce the amount of time you spend on legitimate personal activities (breaks)

Don’t confuse Activity Logs with Timesheets – these are used for reporting on your use of time, and for tracking the time you spend on a task or job.