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If you’re a freelancer, tracking your time accurately is crucial to maintaining your integrity and trust with your clients, and getting paid the correct amount for the work you’ve done. It can be difficult to sift through all of the apps available out there, so we’ve put together this handy list of apps to track your time. Most apps come with a free trial, so you’ll be able to try them out before you buy.

1. Toggl

Toggl is a popular time tracking app that is affordable, easy to use, and best of all, has an intuitive interface for an easy learning curve. You can easily train employees on how to use the program in just a few minutes, taking the first step towards greater accuracy and time tracking.

Toggl allows you to break down your hours by clients or projects, so you can see exactly what’s costing (or making) you the most money. With this level of insight, you’ll be able to identify problem areas and address them quickly to improve your company’s overall hourly efficiency.

Toggl is available on just about every platform, so you can continue to manage your team’s time even when you’re on the go. The app is available for both Android and iOS devices. Starting at just $9 per month per user, it’s also one of the most affordable options for small and large businesses alike. Enterprise options are also available for those who need custom options.

2. HiveDesk

One of the great features about HiveDesk is its unique ability to take screenshots from your team member’s computers/devices automatically. This will help you stay updated on the progress of their projects, and also hold them accountable for their portion of the workload. Accountability leads to more productivity, and that’s exactly what HiveDesk has to offer.

With project, time, and activity tracking, you’ll never miss out on what’s going on with your team again. Updates will be constantly fed into the software, and your invoices will be much more accurate when it comes time to settle up. Don’t take a chance on something as important as time tracking; use HiveDesk for incredible results and a company you can trust.

HiveDesk starts at $15 per month for up to three users and an admin and includes storage space for your screenshots. With five different plans available, you’ll be able to find the one that works best with your needs and your budget.

3. TimeCamp

This useful time tracking app is actually free to use, so it’s perfect for those freelancers with a strict expense budget. You can give it a test run with a free trial, and if you like it, you can either continue to use it for free or upgrade to a paid plan.

TimeCamp has automatic time tracking, so each task will be tracked accurately. You can also divide larger projects into smaller tasks and track those times separately from one another, and log the project timeline as a whole once you’ve finished.

TimeCamp offers plans for around $5 per month per user when billed annually, or $7 per user per month if you choose monthly billing. There are also pro and enterprise options for those teams that need extra features and support.

4. HourStack

HourStack features an easy to use drag and drop interface for a more visual approach to tracking and managing your time. Each task is represented by a time block, which you can move around to different days and times with the click of your mouse or drag of the finger.

This is a great option for those teams or individuals who struggle to meet deadlines. Everything will be laid out in front of you, allowing for better planning and allocation of time and resources. Meeting deadlines is crucial to maintaining a good reputation and relationship with clients and managers.

HourStack is only $5.60 per month, with both professional and enterprise options for those who are looking for a bit more for their dollar. With so many features and a different approach to time tracking, it’s easy to see why HourStack is a favorite among freelancers.

5. HubStaff

Another free to use option for those on a budget is HubStaff. This useful software comes with time tracking, GPS tracking for travel, online timesheets, and productivity monitoring for maximum efficiency.

HubStaff makes time tracking easy by taking a simple approach. An intuitive interface makes learning the software simple, and powerful tools keep everything accurate and well-organized. If you’re looking to time-track on a budget while still getting some great features, try out HubStaff.

HubStaff starts at $5/month for their paid services and supports one user. You can opt for up to the $20/month package, which grants you access to all of the impressive features this software has to offer. You’ll get GPS tracking, online spreadsheets, the whole nine yards. Best of all, the company also offers 24/7 support, so any problems you may run into will be addressed quickly and professionally.

Conclusion

Time tracking apps have changed the freelancing game, making time management simpler, invoicing more accurate, and productivity higher. Try one of these amazing apps today and start taking control of your time for an affordable price. With so many options to choose from, you’ll want to consider these five before anything else; they’re simply the best at what they do!

 

Are you happy at work or just managing the grind until the end of work day?

Happiness is a major prerequisite for productivity. When you are happy at work, you:

• Experience creativity
• Engage better with what you do
• Make workplace friends easily

Unfortunately, there are times when you are in a slump, and don’t feel in the right frame of mind to work. This is a common situation, and happens to most people, even those working in the best of jobs.

The following smart suggestions can help you improve your workplace happiness quotient, so that you can have a better time at work, and become more productive.

Before looking at how you can be happy at work, it is important to point out that most times, happiness at work is tied to your work circumstances. Incentives such as good working environment, steady pay, health insurance, and retirement benefits are some of the factors that can engender workplace happiness and productivity.

Figure out your motivation

A lot of people are unhappy at work because they have not been able to discover what makes their job meaningful. When you work in a role you are not passionate about, it is difficult to be happy in that role. It is therefore important that you discover your definition for success and fulfillment, and see how it applies to your current job role.

Once you can find fulfillment in your job, you will be happy doing it, and this may mean a change in job role, or a complete career change.

Conduct a self audit

Different part of your work process may be responsible for draining your positive energy, and this can result in dissatisfaction and unhappiness in your work. You have to identify these energy drains and take steps to stop them.

For the next few days, make a list of all the things you do at work, and note how each one affects your frame of mind. Your list should contain both your intention and unintentional activities.

At the end of a week, check your list to find out the activities that drain your energy or tasks you mentally. Then ask yourself if there is anything you can do to balance the debit side of your audit. For example, if you have a lot of mentally tasking assignments, you can increase your number of breaks, so that you have more time to refresh.

Avoid working 24 hours

When you spend too much time at work, it becomes monotonous and can drain your energy and make you unhappy.

Unless absolutely needed, avoid the temptation to work the full 24 hours in a day. When you spend too much time doing the same thing with little or no downtime for yourself, you are courting workplace burnout.

If you work in an organization where constant overtime is the norm, you should seriously consider a change of job.

Make more friends

The people you surround yourself at work with will determine how happy you are during office hours. In fact, a Harvard study found that people who report great emotional connection with their colleagues tend to be happy and more productive, and the organization maintains a high level of employee retention.

This goes to show the strong evidence between close friendship at work, happiness, performance, and career success.

Therefore, if you want to be happier at work, get close to your co-workers, encourage collaboration, and be part of a successful network.

Reward yourself

Everyone knows that reward is incentive for work. However, you don’t have to wait for your boss or supervisor to reward you for work done. Creating a reward system for yourself will put you in the right frame of mind to get work done.

For example, you can say “I will only join my friends for happy hour after work if I finish this report on time”.

When you are motivated, you become happy, and when you are happy, you find it easy to do the things that need to be done.

 

Owning a business can be daunting. There are so many decisions to make and much work to be done. Then there is the pressure to avoid mistakes, as they could mean the success or failure of the business. This pressure has proven too big for many entrepreneurs as shown by a damning statistics shows that 8 in 10 small businesses fail. Often times, this is because of avoidable and sometimes ‘small’ mistakes by the business owner. To avoid bolstering the ranks of failed business owners, here are some common mistakes you should avoid making.

• Lack of a Solid Business Plan

This is the backbone of any business. When it is fragile, the business will likely collapse. Many small business owner goes into a business without a business plan. What most have at best is an executive summary of a business plan – a vision or set objective/goal in mind, a little more than an average knowledge of the business and a pocketful of money. That is not a solid business plan. A business plan is the blueprint of your business. It goes beyond just showing what you want to achieve. It covers everything – analysis of your market, customers and competitors, description of your management team and structure, description of your products and/services, your marketing and sales strategy, your finances, your growth and sales projection and means to measure/evaluate from time to time etc.

True, one cannot possibly cover every scenario in a business plan, but that’s the beauty of a business plan! It makes provision to review current business activities and situations and re-strategize if need be! A solid business plan, not a hazy summary, is necessary.

• Lack of Uniqueness

Nothing, they say, is new under the sun. No matter how mesmerizing your idea may appear to be, chances are someone is already in the business. So, how do you stand out? Add value to whatever form of your idea you already have. Be different from the rest; create a niche within your niche. Steve Jobs is regarded as an innovator, not because he was the inventor of phone but because he created a niche in that industry. Do something similarly creative in your business. This may involve that you take some risks, but that is the point! No one ever stood out by acting like every other person. Of course, you do well protect your business from any loss, but the Bottom-line – Add value to your products or services.

• Not using the Internet

The world has gone digital and failure to go along means you – and your business – will be left behind. An online presence is a must! Your social media use must be exciting, not just some weekly photo updates. Engage your target audience. Remember, always have a specific marketplace and target audience. Reach out to these ones, and as your business grows, your target audience grows. One warning though, the internet never forgets, so do not get carried away and compromise professionalism or quality.

• Underspending

Of course, you are on a budget and need to work with it, still, remember that you have to spend money to make more money. You may be limiting your business potential for success when you refuse to spend. Areas like marketing, technology, necessary equipment and training are areas you may want to spend on to get increased returns

• Doing it all Alone

That you run a small business does not mean you have to do it all alone or micromanage your employees. Delegate duties and give a level of autonomy to those assigned to it. Doing that will help you build a loyal workforce and avoid you burning out. Of course, you need to have the right staff in place.