Time Blocking Template (Copy and Paste) and How to Use It

A time blocking template is a day plan split into fixed slots, and each slot has one job. For example, 9:00 to 10:30 is for the report and 10:45 to 11:15 is for email. Copy the template below and fill it in the evening before or first thing in the morning. Then run a countdown for each block so it ends when you planned.

What time blocking is

A time block is a fixed slot on your schedule with one purpose. A day built from blocks answers two questions a to-do list can't: when each task happens, and what you are not doing right now.

Time blocking is different from the Pomodoro Technique, but the two fit together. Pomodoro splits work into short, equal intervals with breaks. Time blocking decides which task owns each stretch of the day. You can run Pomodoro intervals inside a longer block. For that approach, see what the Pomodoro Technique is and how to use it.

Time blocking helps most when several kinds of work compete for your day, such as deep work, meetings, messages and small admin tasks. If your day is mostly reactive (support queues, on-call), keep the blocks loose and protect one or two focus slots.

Time blocking template

Copy this into a notes app, a text file or a markdown editor. The times are examples, so replace them with your own.

Time blocks for: ____ (day / date)

Top 3 outcomes today
1.
2.
3.

Fixed commitments (meetings, calls, pickups)
-

Blocks
- [ ] 08:30–09:00  Admin: email and messages (stop at 09:00)
- [ ] 09:00–10:30  Deep work: ____ (outcome: ____)
- [ ] 10:30–10:45  Break, away from the screen
- [ ] 10:45–12:00  Deep work or meetings: ____
- [ ] 12:00–13:00  Lunch
- [ ] 13:00–13:30  Buffer: overflow from the morning
- [ ] 13:30–15:00  Project work: ____
- [ ] 15:00–15:15  Break
- [ ] 15:15–16:15  Shallow work batch: calls, forms, replies
- [ ] 16:15–16:45  Buffer
- [ ] 16:45–17:00  Review and plan tomorrow

Parking lot (things that came up, handle in a buffer block)
-

End-of-day review
- Blocks kept as planned:
- What ran over, and why:
- Move to tomorrow:

If you prefer a spreadsheet or paper, use this layout. The last column is the one that matters most:

The actual time is how you learn what your real estimates are. After a week you'll see which kinds of work you keep underestimating.

If you only need a list of tasks without times, the daily to-do list template is simpler.

How to build your blocks

Plan the day in 10 minutes or less.

1. Write your top three outcomes. These should be results ("send the draft to Sam"), not activities ("work on the draft"). If you can't pick three, sort your tasks with the Eisenhower matrix first.
2. Place fixed commitments. Meetings, classes and school runs go in first because you can't move them. Add prep time before any meeting that needs it.
3. Put your hardest task in your best hours. Give the time of day when you think most clearly to outcome number one.
4. Size focus blocks between 45 and 90 minutes. Very short blocks leave little time once you've settled in, and very long ones are hard to stay inside. Adjust once your "actual" column shows what works for you.
5. Batch small tasks. Put email, messages, quick forms and calls into one or two shallow-work blocks so they stay out of your focus blocks.
6. Add buffers. Leave 15 to 30 minutes after long blocks and at least one buffer in the afternoon. Overruns and surprise requests go there.
7. Schedule breaks as blocks. Breaks that aren't on the plan tend to turn into checking your phone at your desk.
8. End with a review block. Tick off what you finished, note what ran over, and move leftovers to tomorrow's plan.

When a block runs over, don't push everything later by default. Make a deliberate choice: use the next buffer, shorten a lower-priority block, or move the task to tomorrow.

Running blocks with a timer

A plan only works if you notice when a block ends. A visible countdown does that better than glancing at the clock.

Built-in timers

You don't need a special app. On a Mac, the Clock app (built in since macOS Ventura) has timers, and our guide to setting a timer on Mac covers the built-in options. On Windows, the Clock app has timers and Focus Sessions, where you choose a session length and whether to include breaks. A phone timer also works, though picking up your phone in the middle of a block can pull you away from the work.

If you just need one timer per block, a built-in timer is enough.

Using Gubb's timer next to your plan

We made Gubb so the plan and the timer sit in the same small window. You write the day's blocks in a note and run the countdown over it.

1. Write your time blocks in a Gubb note. To make a checkbox you can tick, type [ ] and press Space at the start of a line. Leave out the leading - from the template above. Typing - and Space makes a bulleted list instead.
2. Move the pointer to the right edge of the note and click Timer.
3. Choose Countdown. While the timer is stopped, set min (0–999) and sec (0–59) to the length of the block, for example 90 minutes.
4. Click Start.
5. Click the − (Minimize) button in the timer's header. The timer becomes a small floating pill at the bottom of the window that shows the time left.
6. To keep the plan and the countdown in view while you work in other apps, click Pin window on top in the right-edge column.
   The timer keeps running while the dialog is closed or minimized. Some limits affect how you use it for time blocking:

• There is no sound when the countdown ends, so don't count on an alert. Keep the pill where you can see it. Pinning the window helps with that.
• Only one timer runs at a time. When the next block starts, click Reset and set its length.
• Close timer on the pill stops and resets the countdown. To get the full dialog back, use Maximize timer.
• Quitting Gubb stops the timer, and the timer isn't saved. To get the window out of the way, click the Gubb icon in the menu bar to hide it.
• The timer can drift slightly over long blocks. Write each block's end time in your plan as well.
• Pomodoro mode is the same as Countdown. It doesn't switch between work and breaks or count sessions. To run Pomodoro inside a block, start a 25-minute countdown (the default) and time the break yourself. To see how many intervals fit in a day, read how many Pomodoros a day.

Let break reminders cover the breaks you skip

The block people drop most often is the break. Gubb's break reminders run separately from the timer:

1. Click Settings in the right-edge column and choose Break Time.
2. Turn on Enable Break Timer. It is off by default.
3. Set Work Duration Before Break. The default is 60 minutes, and you can choose from 5 to 120 in steps of 5.
4. Click Save Break Settings.

When the work period ends, you get a notification. Then the Gubb window goes full screen and stays on top with a countdown. Most breaks are micro breaks (20 seconds by default). After every 3 micro breaks, you get a long break instead (5 minutes by default). You can click +1 Minute or Skip Break. To see why short breaks help, read what a micro break is and the 20-20-20 rule.

Check these before you rely on it:

• The break countdown runs on its own schedule while Gubb is open. It doesn't know about your blocks or the Timer, so a break can arrive in the middle of a block. Skip Break is always available.
• If you change the interval, it may not apply until you turn the break timer off and on again or restart Gubb.
• Only the main on/off switch is saved. The separate Enable Micro Breaks and Enable Long Breaks switches are not.
• After a break the window is no longer pinned on top. Click Pin window on top again to keep the countdown pill visible.
• Breaks cover only the Gubb window, not other displays, and they only happen while Gubb is open.

Gubb costs $59 as a one-time purchase (as of November 2026), and you can try the Mac download free for 7 days.

Common time blocking mistakes

• No buffers. If every minute is booked, the plan breaks at the first overrun. Keep at least one buffer block in the afternoon.
• Vague blocks. "Work on project" gives you no finish line. Write the outcome instead, such as "outline sections 1–3".
• Mixing shallow tasks into deep blocks. One quick reply can turn into twenty minutes. Write it in the parking lot and handle it in the shallow-work batch.
• Never recording actual time. Without the "actual" column, you keep planning with the same wrong estimates.
• Treating an overrun as failure. The plan is a draft. Moving a block on purpose still counts as time blocking. Dropping the plan at 11:00 does not.
• Dropping breaks to catch up. When the morning runs long, breaks are usually the first thing to go. Keep them as blocks in the plan, or let a reminder prompt you.

If you plan a week at a time, place your deep-work blocks on the weekly planner template first. Then fill in the daily template above each morning.