Timer Uses at Home and Work
One of the wonderful swag gifts I gathered at the 2:1 Conference two weeks ago was a Bright Ideas Press timer/alarm. Most of you have probably read my post on the agony of the trip to get to this FANTASTIC CONFERENCE and many have asked about the rest of the story that I haven’t been able to put to paper yet.
But, I have been using my timer! One of the points driven home at the conference was managing our time. I got to thinking about all the alarms and timers that I use during the day.
#1 My phone goes off at 5:30am with the first alarm of the day..ugh
#2 Another alarm chimes at 8:00am to remind me to stop working online and make sure the girls are up and moving.
#3 Chimes go off on the hour on my phone to help me stay focused and to remind me to check the schedule. Usually to see how far off base we have drifted!
#4 Nap alarm is set for 4 year old that doesn’t want to sleep but will stay still and rest until the alarm goes off (I have a pre-alarm set 5 minutes before his alarm so I can run check on him. If he is asleep – I have been known to swipe the alarm and let him be shshsh!).
#5 Depending on the day – alarms sound a fifteen minute warning for departure to group activities such as youth group, gym class, driving lessons, church, etc.
#6 I telecommute four days a week and have an alarm sound 15 minutes before my scheduled log in time.
#7 Of course a time out alarm is set at least once a day!
#8 I tend to get distracted – so I carry the timer with me when something is in the oven. Yes, I set the one on the oven, but I often don’t hear it when in another room.
#9 Sadly, I also set the alarm on the dryer AND the washing machine to call out to me that the laundry needs to be “rebooted”. I carry the Bright Ideas timer with me in case I don’t hear the calls from the laundry room over the normal chaos!
#10 I actually have a timer set in the evening to remind me to chase the girls off to bed. They are night owls! They do not hear the alarms in their room which is why I have my alarm to remind them to move it on upstairs.
WOW… it sounds like we live in a bell tower! LOL… We also have a grandfather clock but it is silent right now (awaiting repairs) but it chirps every fifteen minutes!
My alarm just went off… time to go to bed… How do you use timers and alarms in your house?
Kimberly says
After reading this, I realized how much I could really benefit from using an alarm more often. I get so distracted at work and I find it’s hard to keep on track!
Karen Glatt says
Wow, I need to use a timer for things because I do forget and I usually keep a good schedule, I sometimes forget things. Thanks for your insight in helping me with Time at home!
oscar says
We use timers at work all of the time. We couldn’t do without them.
Jimmie says
Thanks for linking up. It does sound a bit like a bell tower. Ha ha! But timers are so great for keeping us accountable. I really want to spend my time wisely, and the little alarm helps me remember to do so. Another cool experiment is to time how long it takes to do the task I am dreading. It’s normally much shorter than I would have thought. And it makes me realize how silly it is to postpone it when I get so much satisfaction from a short period of effort.
Valarie Lee Gentry says
I never thought about using a timer at home or work! What a way to stay alert about your time and save time in the process! A time out timer is a great one for my daughter. I use talking and time outs to discipline! Thanks for the list!
Susan says
Useful info 🙂
laurie damrose says
I use a timer for my kids homework.
Sacha Schroeder says
Very call! I have never heard of one of these!
MD Kennedy says
Best way to use a timer: set it for 2 minutes each for brushing your teeth and showering. You’ll have cleaner, healthier teeth and use a LOT less water which saves money and the planet!
Jenn says
Time management with calendars, timers, and to-do lists are definitely a great way to manage time, meet deadlines, and free up time for later in the day. Since I work from home, it’s nice to actually take care of things early in the day, so that the evening is mine. 🙂
P.S. From one blogger to another: you might be able to increase your blog following if you re-able the ability for commenters to leave their own blog URL when leaving a comment. Just a thought.
Sherryl says
The comment luv is suppose to allow that..will check on it.
InezbyDesign says
Wow! Can you call you a “ding-a-ling”!! Sorry, I couldn’t resist. We have a few alarms in our home, but mainly for getting up to go to work. I have added one recently, and that is to be on time for a weekly evening conference call…which I would miss regularly until I started the alarms.
Mary Dailey says
Some really great uses for a timer and some made me laugh…..time-out!
Amanda Skeens says
this seems really useful
Maria Iemma says
I use a timer to help me clean. I give myself 15 minutes in each room and when the times goes off I move to the next room and so on. It helps me to keep the house in pretty good shape — not perfect, but perfect enough
Heather M. says
WOW! I would go nuts! LOL I only have a timer to get up (and most of the time I wake up before it goes off) and for cooking….