Why Every Creative Business Owner Needs to Track Their Time
Time is not an infinite resource. Even for someone ambitious like yourself, with big dreams for your business and a to-do list that runs miles long…there are so many hours in the day.
I get it. Time tracking isn’t the most glamorous thing you can do as a creative CEO. But you wouldn’t run your multi-figure business without tracking your finances, yet you’re navigating your most precious resource blindfolded.
Time tracking isn’t about proving your productivity. It’s about chaos-proofing your schedule, identifying what can be delegated, and freeing up space so you can focus on the big picture (as in, the things that will help you grow and bring in more money).
CEO time tracking is a necessary part of your business…let’s look at why!
Your Time Is Worth More Than You Think
Your time is valuable. It’s time you start acting like it! Because if you don’t, it means you stay stuck in the same rut of never being able to get anything done that actually moves your business forward.
Let’s look at the math.
If you’re pulling in $500K annually and working about 2,500 hours per year, or 48 hours per week (which, let’s be honest, is probably a low estimate), your baseline is $200 per hour.
Once you see your true hourly value, everything shifts. That two-hour “strategy meeting” with no agenda that somehow turned into everyone sharing weekend updates? You just invested $400+ of executive time. Was building team culture worth it? Sure. But was that the most strategic way to do it? Probably not.
How about those administrative tasks you’re holding onto closed fist when you know they need to be passed off to someone else? You’re essentially paying $200 an hour to do it. That’s a lot, and it adds up, especially when you consider that the average hourly rate of a virtual assistant is roughly $30 per hour.
This isn’t about becoming a productivity machine or a budgeting pro. It’s about being intentional with the resource that determines whether your business becomes something sustainable or not.
Start Treating Time Like Currency
When you start budgeting your time like you budget your marketing spend, everything changes. You wouldn’t casually drop thousands on ads without tracking ROI — your time deserves the same approach.
This shift transforms how you operate your entire business. You’re more mindful about which meetings you accept (a welcomed relief), what you delegate out versus do yourself, and overall, which ideas are worthy of your time and creative energy.
This is why tracking your time is one of the most valuable things you can do as a CEO.
So…What’s Keeping You From Starting?
What’s keeping you stuck? This is impossible to know off the top of your head. Sure, you can have a general idea of what you feel may be keeping you stuck, but you won’t know for sure until you start tracking your time.
It will reveal patterns that’ll shock you. You’ll start seeing that maybe you aren’t spending as much time on those high-value tasks as you thought.
Creative CEOs who spend most of their time on strategic thinking, community building, product innovation, and team leadership usually drive better results than those stuck in operational quicksand, answering every email and micromanaging every project.
And time tracking is the tool that helps you see that ratio in your own business.
DISCLAIMER: You Do You
Even though most of your time should be spent on high-value tasks, it’s totally okay to keep some low-value tasks if they bring you genuine joy or keep you connected to your community.
Maybe you love personally responding to certain client messages because it fuels your creativity. Maybe reviewing user-generated content isn’t the “highest” use of your time, but seeing your community wins lights you up and inspires your next program.
The key is being intentional about these choices instead of just falling into them because “that’s how we’ve always done it.” Own your decisions as a leader. Just make sure you’re not letting operational chaos own you.
Make Time Tracking Work For Your Business
I’m not suggesting you become some time-tracking obsessive who logs every bathroom break or creative brainstorm session. No one enjoys doing that, not even online business managers (OBMs).
But you want to track your time enough to where you can see patterns that may be holding your business back. And you can track your time in categories, versus nitty gritty specifics, so you can see whether or not it’s going to those high or low value tasks.
Track major categories like:
- Creative work
- Strategic planning
- Client/community interaction
- Team management
- Administrative tasks.
Look for trends rather than minute-by-minute tracking that’ll make you want to quit before you start. Remember, we’re going for the big picture here, not policing the minute details.
Your Next Right Step
Your time is your creative business’s most valuable strategic asset. The question is…are you treating it that way? Or are you just hoping everything somehow works out while you’re drowning in the daily operational chaos?
If you’re ready to get started tracking your time, I’ve got your next read below. I show you a few of my favorite time tracking tools so you can skip the lengthy Google search and get started ASAP.