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Struggling to get your team moving at the right pace? Wondering whether to dangle the carrot or crack the whip?
Here’s some helpful brain science for you: neuroscience suggests that when it comes to motivating action (like getting people to put in more hours or churn out top-notch reports), rewards are more effective than punishments.
As development lead, you've got a crucial role to play in coaxing out the best work from your team – not by cracking the whip, but by tastefully dangling that metaphorical carrot, which is always more inviting than sticks.
Let's dive in to discover how you can better manage your team's time and have everyone gleefully galloping toward productivity.
Tripping up on Time: Common Hurdles for Developer Teams
If you're scrambling to measure the success of your team by the hours they've punched in, it’s time to take a step back.
Instead, what if we view time as a relative measure of performance over – well – time? After all, aren't the improvements in efficiency and problem-solving abilities what truly matter?
Let's ditch the stopwatch and ask the real questions: Are our engineers becoming craftier developers by the day? Are they recognizing patterns and crafting solutions with increased agility?
Providing engineers with accurate data on their performance, coupled with ample time to assess it, is no less crucial. With this approach, we'll see better estimates, more accurate forecasts, and spot-on project planning. So, let’s shift our perspective and guide our team towards becoming their best selves – not just clock-watching workhorses.
Drowning in Stress? Time Management is Your Lifesaver
Mastering time management, which includes effective prioritization of tasks and efficient time tracking through mobile apps, significantly reduces stress.
Why? Because with organized time and the ability to easily make time entries through user-friendly interfaces comes less overwhelming and fewer panicky 'how-will-I-get-all-this-done' moments.
As a development lead, you hold the reins. Time tracking and personal care, including employee time management and cost management, should top your priority list for ensuring your team's success. Utilizing mobile apps for tracking time entries of your employees not only promotes efficiency but also enables you to have a better understanding of cost management within your projects.
Let's admit it, we're all combating a hefty workload – but the magical combo of time and cost management laced with personal care can act as our shield against excessive stress. By leveraging mobile apps for efficient time tracking and cost management, it lights up the path when the work threatens to bury us deep.
Now, let's get down to brass tacks. Have a look at these troublesome culprits that the American Institute of Stress pegs as common work stressors:
- Workload
- People complications
- The constant tug-of-war between work and life
- Job security
That's exactly why fostering a culture that not only encourages time tracking and personal care but nurtures it is absolutely essential. It becomes more than just a tick on the 'reduce-stress' box. This transformative shift promises increased job satisfaction for your team and an ahh-mazing boost in overall well-being.
Tight Leash Troubles: The Fine Line Between Guidance and Autonomy
In our quest for time tracking and personal care, we're hunting for that golden treasure: intrinsic motivation. Daniel Pink, a motivation guru, tells us it's made up of three ingredients: autonomy, mastery, and purpose.
Think of autonomy as your team's licence to steer their life and work. To hit the motivation jackpot, they need control over what they're doing, when they’re doing it, and whom they’re doing it with. Pink says this liberating autonomy stirs up innovative and creative thoughts, breaking free from the shackles of regulatory office rules.
So, let's rethink our control boundaries - bye-bye numerical targets, rigid office hours, and dress codes! This fresh lens of autonomy can usher in trust, stir creativity, and pave the way for innovation within your team.
As your team begins tracking their time collectively, a beautiful thing happens: the "bigger picture" becomes clearer. You'll view the project progress without needing to constantly check in and ask, "How’s everything going?". Efficient reports make their grand entry, meetings get streamlined, and – voila – purpose, the second component of Pink’s motivation theory, rises in the room.
Lastly, we have mastery, the third pillar supporting intrinsic motivation. Mastery reflects a desire to keep getting better. Inspired by it, your team will see limitless potential, striving to hone their skills through constant learning and practice. Sure, this part falls under HR’s purview, but it’s all part of making time tracking and personal care a winning strategy for the team.
Striking the perfect balance between guidance and autonomy might seem like a daunting task, but trust us, your team will be better for it.
Tips for Better Time Tracking and Personal Care
Ready to take things up a notch? With time tracking and personal care combined – your golden ticket to effective team management – you're navigating your team towards elevated job satisfaction and sparkling well-being. Now, let's unveil some priceless tips.
The Support Your Team Deserves
McKinsey's report tosses an intriguing spin on time management: it's no longer a lone wolf but a team player. Yep, folks who ace time management have robust support in divvying up and scheduling their time.
Think of a CEO receiving scheduling help from an administrative assistant: meetings with clients, regular follow-ups, and priority checks per company objectives. Sound good? As a manager, mirroring this support can refocus your team’s efforts and time.
Our priorities morph as time rolls by, but support remains key. In the survey, a whopping 85% of efficient time managers reported strong scheduling support against a mere 7% of not-so-efficient counterparts.
Revamping Your Approach to Time Management
Isn't it time we stepped off the beaten path and tried something fresh with time management? Let's take a tip from an enlightening Harvard Business Review article.
Different companies tested out giving their employees time off and saw how it impacted project progression and overall workflow. Their creative findings are as follows:
- Teams bogged down by non-stop hustle appreciated an evening free to recharge and engage in personal pursuits. These restful breaks eased stress significantly.
- In companies where teams were delivering tasks timely with minimal issues, time off served as a well-deserved pat on the back, acknowledging their diligent efforts.
- Lastly, for the teams swamped with constant meetings and distractions, some quality alone time away from the office hustle-bustle did wonders. It gave them precious space to catch up on tasks or cross the finish line.
Introducing surprise phenomena like an afternoon or weekday morning off can work wonders for your team's morale and cooperation. Plus, it offers a unique way for everyone, including you, to better manage their time.
Making Time Tracking Effortless With Tools Like Harvest
Imagine a world where time tracking goes beyond the hassle of traditional paper timesheets. With the effortless convenience of tools like Harvest, keeping track of your daily activities becomes a breeze. But that's not all.
Harness the power of this software tool to accomplish more than just clocking in and out. Incorporating goal setting into your time tracking routine, Harvest helps you prioritize and achieve your objectives seamlessly. By seamlessly merging time tracking and personal care, Harvest ensures that every moment counts in your journey toward success.
Click and Go: Superb Simplicity in Time Tracking
Imagine having the power to kickstart time tracking with just a humble button. That's what Harvest brings to your app.
The Harvest Button is an integration godsend, opening a timer in your app with a simple click. Want to include the whole Harvest timer in your UI? Harness the power of the Harvest Widget. With a few clicks, and your users are in full swing with their Harvest timer directly from your app.
Unleashing Precision with Labor Costs
Invoices stressing you out? Harvest effortlessly helps you whip up precise invoices using already tracked team time and expenses. Plus, with PayPal and Stripe integrations, your clients can pay up online with ease. Good news for QuickBooks Online or Xero users - your Harvest invoices and payments can automatically sync up for a breezier accounting process.
Powerhouse of Insights: Bringing in Reports & Analysis
Harvest is more than just time tracking. It's a mine of insightful visual reports that keep your projects on track and your team well-supported. Your budgets update as time gets tracked, so projects remain profitable. Additionally, you can keep an eye on internal costs and analyze past data to refine future project scope and estimates.
Seamless Sync: Ease of Integrations
Can time tracking get any easier? With Harvest, it does. This tool cozies up with your team's favorite apps for effortless time tracking. It's like having a virtual assistant in the heart of your team’s everyday tools.
Give Harvest a Try
Undoubtedly, one of the major advantages of the Harvest time tracking app is the availability of a free trial. This ensures prospective users, without requiring a credit card, have an ample opportunity to explore and evaluate the platform's offerings before making any financial commitment.
With Harvest, you can easily track time, even on the go, thanks to its user-friendly mobile apps. These apps allow you to seamlessly make time entries and manage timesheets in real-time, ensuring accurate and up-to-date tracking progress.
Consider this an invitation to better manage your team's time, prioritize personal care, and increase productivity. With the Harvest time tracking app, you'll find the benefits of its smooth and efficient process considerable. Take the initiative to shift towards improved time tracking and personal care by embracing Harvest today.
