Sept. 2024 Billable Hour Check-In

🎤 Check, check. 1, 2, 3. Is this thing on?

📅 It is the first business day of the month, so you know what that means:

💵⌚ my monthly billable hour check in.

📝 Reminder: My all-in hours requirement is 2400--that is a mix of billable and non-billable, or investment time (DM me for prior posts defining investment time).

🎩 I am a bit ahead of my 200/month requirement. And, I've started to think about this in a different way--a budget and a target.

🥈 My budget goal is 180 hours. This is what I need to hit to stay on track to hit 2400 by 12/31/24.

🥇 My target goal is 200. This is my stretch goal. The number that, if I hit it, I'll continue to stay ahead (building in some hopeful off time in December, for the holidays).

📅 Looking at my calendar for September, I see 19 full billing days and 1 half-billing day--19.5 days all in.

🧮 180 / 19.5 = 9.3 hours on full days and 4.7 on half days. It'll take anywhere from exactly 9.3 (or 4.7) hours in the office to hit this, or 1-2 hours more, depending on what is going on each day and how many interruptions there are.

🧮 200 / 19.5 = 10.3 on full days and 5.2 on half days. Before some of y'all freak out, this is exactly why it is a stretch goal. To bill this much, I'd need to be in the office exactly 10.3 (or 5.2) hours or 1-2 hours more, depending on the day and the interruptions.

🧭 Or, I'll make up time on the weekends.

🧭 Or, I'll move time to next month's goal.

⚖️ When I exceed the day's goal, I take time off the next day, the rest of the week, or the rest of the month.

⚖️ When I miss the day's goal, I'll add time to the next day, the rest of the week, or the rest of the month.

📢📣 Yes, this isn't for everyone. Yes, there are problems with the billable hour model. But, guess what? It is the world I live and work in. And, even on matters with alternative billing arrangements, I still have to track (or bill) my time. So, this is how I make it work for me.

📈 This method helps me know where I stand so that I can turn it on and go get more work when/if I'm behind. Or, I can as guilt-free as possible take a break when things are tidied up and nothing is time-sensitive.

🍂 Here's to a productive September.

❤️🔥✌️