Today’s Best of 2009 Blog Challenge prompt is…

Web tool. It came into your work flow this year and now you couldn’t live without it. It has simplified or improved your online experience.

OK. If you know me well, you know how much I love pie charts.  So when I discovered Freckle, I fell in love.

What am I tracking?

Here’s a list of a projects I’ve been tracking over the last month or so…

• grant writing
• pet sounds – charts
• john southworth
• teaching prep
• julie fader
• cleaning
• tuxedo
• ben gunning

Projects like “john southworth” and “julie fader” mean time spent learning or practicing their tunes for a gig.  “Cleaning” is the one non-work related project that I regularly track.  I just like to know how much time I spend cleaning the house!

At the beginning of any endeavor to track something important (i.e. time, spending, eating habits) it’s a good idea to spend one whole week tracking everything.

Need to get a reality check on your spending?  Track every penny you spend for one week.

Need to get a reality check on your eating habits?  Track everything you eat for one week.

Same goes for your time. When I signed up for Freckle in September, I spent exactly one week tracking everything I did.  It looked like this…

(click on image for some clarity)

This web tool has changed the way I work.

Even though I’m a Pisces dreamer and my “work” is really play (I play music for a living, in case you’re wondering), I have a super geeky side that loves structure and…pie charts.

(you can watch a video tour of Freckle here)