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Time-blocking IV – my planning routine

Time-blocking my way through postdoc life IV – my routine to plan my academic life 

This is a post about my planning routine. I promised to write about it and share my time-blocking experience in the first part of my time-blocking series. In part II, I explained some basics and how to plan your time, considering your needs (like sleep, food, free time) and making time for the important stuff in your career (mainly research and writing). Part III was about major interruptions that kill your routine. I got a new job last year and moved back to my home country, but still, to another city. Those distractions and interruptions crash everything because your private life needs a reset next to your work.

So, how do I plan?

First, I use different planning tools: I plan digitally and in an analogue form. I use different colours and symbols for appointments and tasks to ensure visual distinction. Moreover, I am a fan of routines, and I need the orientation on some fixed dates and appointments during my week (like our work jour fixe on Friday, my teaching hours during the semester, or my weekly gym time, as well as date nights or coffee with friends).

1. Digital planning

I have a Google Calendar that I use for time-blocking, which holds my entire life together. I have different sections – the most important ones are my work calendar (all about my job) and my private life calendar (all the essential things that concern my family and me; this one is also shared with my partner, it makes things easier). I also plan time chunks for my side projects (non-academic and academic alike), and for things like cleaning, shopping for groceries, running errands of all sorts, quality time things like my running schedule, coffee dates with friends, etc.

And despite my trying to find a good alternative to Google that meets all my needs and preferences, I always end up going back to my Google calendar… But, if you happen to know a good alternative, just let me know. 🙂  

2. Handwritten plans and To-do lists

I have used a handwritten calendar since school – well, actually, a sort of bullet journal (I am also a big fan of this tool). I used the same notebook type for this calendar for years. (I am a little into stationery and notebooks…) My notebook is always about A5 in size. I prefer blank pages, no lines, dots, or anything else, except for my journal, where I write about my days and feelings. This is in no way attached to my calendar.

For my handwritten calendar, I had the following routine: At the beginning and about every 6 months, I make a kind of “Future Log”, as it is also done in Bullet Journalling (in case you don’t know what a Bullet Journal is, click here). At the beginning of each month, there is a monthly overview, followed by weekly layouts. Here, you can see all the days of the week on one side; on the other, there is space for notes (brain dump and to-do lists). I use different colours for my time chunks, which (mostly) align with the colours in my Google Calendar. So, purple is always work-related, orange is for my side projects, green is my free time, and burgundy is for my private calendar.
I enjoyed my planning time, especially when I created the outline for the months ahead—I did this every 3 to 4 months. It was a creative step for me.

But routines can change because change is meant to happen occasionally.
Since November 2023, I have been using a customised calendar, and I love it. I bought a new one in November 2024, with most of the same features I used in my first version. I am no day-to-day planner; I need my monthly and weekly overview and ongoing to-do list. So, a weekly calendar and a nearly blank page are perfect for me. I am tracking my training plan (well, okay, it’s more like “i feel like running” or “I don’t feel like running”, not an actual plan) and an overview of my working hours. (Yes, I keep track of my working hours. One step against the culture of overwork!)

3. Toggl Track App

I use my Toggl App for time tracking –  I use Toggl track in the free version, which is convenient for me. I also have different projects and hashtags (e.g., I want to know how much time I spend on academic writing, while the hashtags show me how much time I spend on each of my writing projects), divided by my usual colour scheme (more or less). I track my working hours – in Academia, you may be surprised – because I am no fan of over-working, AND I have a lot of other side projects and things to do in my free time. Furthermore, this workaholism thing in Academia, the glorified overworking and the “busy bee” myth are bad things for your mental health (if interested, read one of Sarah’s posts about Destroying the “Innate Workaholism” Myth).
It is terrible because human beings need breaks to function. And as difficult as it is to withstand all the perfectionism (as I am a perfectionist), the overwhelming to-do lists and the pressure young scholars must endure, I am doing my best not to get mad. I am not willing to overwork and burn out. (I am a huge fan of Cathy Mazak’s podcast and her blog on Academia and academic writing – and she has a lot to say about mental health issues and how not to go mad in this world of Academia.)
So, I love tracking my hours; I will always do it, and, of course, I am working overtime (deadlines, etc.), but then I will use it as compensatory time. And I have my holiday leave entitlement. And I use it. Even as an archaeologist, working on excavations during summer break. Easy? Not really. But it is worth it and essential for my mental health and well-being.

Non-negotiables

Eat, sleep, protect your mental health, work, repeat!

My working day and the tasks I need to do have changed a lot – I am basically doing the same job (at least, in the description), but different institutions mean different ways of doing things. The ambience, the environment, and the people are different. So, the feeling of working here is different. I am still not that adjusted to this new life, after more than 5 months “back home”.

So, our non-negotiables. Well, they are apparent. Severus-Snape-obvious (yes, HP nerd and proud Gryffindor here), so to speak.

  1. Eat. I am going to say this only once: You. Need. To. Eat. Well. Have your breaks for eating. Eat a good breakfast. Eat a good lunch. Eat a good dinner. And by “good”, I mean as healthy as you can! It may happen to you that you have to skip a meal, but this happens, let’s say, maybe once a month. You may forget to eat because you are so engaged (yes, again, I can be pretty obsessed with my research).
  2. Sleep. Without sleep, you cannot think and put cool facts together, which is basically all that is required in knowledge work. Sleep keeps you sane, healthy, and able to do things.
  3. Protect your mental health. I said so, but there is a lot to this point. You need time to calm down, to decompress, to breathe. Whatever you need for yourself to function, do it! Defend it!
  4. Work. Work smart, with breaks, with a routine, … find your system! When I arrive at work, the first things I do are put away my jacket, start my computer and open my window to let some fresh air in. Then I am off to the kitchen to make myself a good cup of coffee. I am commuting to work, and this will be my first cup of coffee, and it is a non-negotiable for me. It is my “thing” to get into working mode. Back at my desk, I start with some writing. I never check my emails first… I try to work at least 20 to 30 minutes on a current research thing or do some teaching prep before I open my email account. By doing so, I have a good feeling about having already completed a small, important research task.
  5. Repeat. Once you have found out the things working for you, how to keep up a good routine, how to plan and how to work smart, just keep on going. If you need to change something, change it. 

Stay flexible…

This is the most important and the most difficult thing to do when working in Academia – at least, for me. I have my routines and tricks to get into working mode and into the right mood to do some amazing research. But – things change. Not every day is a good day, but just show up and go on. Progress is progress, even the smallest thing. 

Currently, my life has taken quite a U-turn, so to speak. I am now a mother, working in Academia – and as a perfectionist, archaeologist and someone who really loves to plan ahead, let me tell you: this little fellow just changes everything. So, this is me now, trying a new way of flexibility, while caring for a baby – a job no one prepared me for. So, I am still learning, and I am on my way to finding out how to do the things I love (archaeology, research, reading about old stuff, etc.), while also doing very new things with my partner, with my world suddenly circling around a little human with the cutest smile ever. So, flexibility also means having the will to learn new things on the go, letting go of the “perfect” way to do things, and finding new strategies to publish, research, and teach in Academia. 

Thanks for reading and let me know about your working strategies and planning routines!

All the best, Astrid


OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
Astrid Schmölzer (May 7, 2026). Time-blocking IV – my planning routine. Epigrammetry. Retrieved May 17, 2026 from https://doi.org/10.58079/13bc2


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