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Turkey App Just in Time for Thanksgiving!

Nov 23, 2010 » by Jody

I was worried about the Holidays coming up and how we were all going to achieve work/life balance during the bustle of the next two months. Was someone going to drop work/life balance in our Christmas stockings? Or, maybe we’d win the lottery and wouldn’t have to work. That’s possible!

But then I saw Tav Shande announced the release of his new app called CrunchTime for the iPhone and iPod touch. It’s simple. Just insert your work/life balance goals, track your work hours so that you can see how much you’re really working (remember when we talked about workplace math?), achieve some of your goals and get (insert drum roll) an Achievement Badge!

What are we?  5 years old?

And, wait. It gets even better. You can even add friends and colleagues to see who’s working overtime (Oh, such hard workers they are!), and export your own work hour data into a PDF file – something to show your friends so they can listen to you bemoan how many hours you work. Better yet, show your boss and get some extra brownie points.

Did I just have a nightmare?

The problem isn’t that we’re working too many hours. The problem is we’re counting them in the first place! And, spending time counting time just adds to the time. And when we spend time tracking time, then you aren’t doing work and the work piles up, which makes you more stressed out. And then you need more time…

Wow.

On Wednesday November 23rd, employees everywhere are going to be biting their nails while they sit staring at their email in hopes the boss will let them leave early. Waiting and watching for that special email means they won’t be doing much work – if any at all.

Some of them might be lucky enough to use vacation time to shop on Friday. But others won’t get their vacation slips to the boss in time and they’ll have to go into the office and do time.

Sorry, Tav Shande – no phone app is going to cure that problem.

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  • John

    I’d just like to wish all my fellow ROWE supporters in the US a very happy Thanksgiving. My top tip this Thanksgiving is to spend as long as you possibly can cooking your Thanksgiving dinner. If you can keep that turkey and those potatoes in the oven for a considerably longer time than any of your friends, then you should be guaranteed a brilliant result. 2-3 days cooking should be about enough to make it the perfect meal. After all, we all know that the more time you spend doing something the better it will be. Enjoy!

    • Cali

      John – you’ve let the cat out of the bag! Now everyone will know how to get that perfect Thanksgiving meal. And that means we’ll have to start out-timing each other…the new standard for a good meal is now 4-5 days. And that means we’re out of luck this year since Thanksgiving is only two days away. Rats.

      • PersephoneK

        Well, I’ve already been cooking my turkey for 4 days, so I have you beat. I win! ;) Oops… I just fudged a timecard.

  • PersephoneK

    Great post, Jody! This is funny to me, since your description of time tracking is a conversation I’ve been having with my new management a lot lately. I’m told I can work whatever hours I want and that time doesn’t matter, but then I’m told to track my time to solve a workload issue and to “block off time” to learn things, etc etc… Its amazing how easy it is even for a somewhat non-traditional organization that claims to not care about time still measures inputs instead of outputs. In fact, I’m starting to believe this is the worst case-scenario: To advocate for not tracking time, yet measuring inputs.

    • Cali

      We always say that ROWE makes people walk their talk. You can’t just say “Work whenever you want – we don’t care how much time you’re putting in”…you actually need to have your actions support your words. And our belief is that until you’re Results-Only, you won’t ever be forced to back up your words. And you’re right, Persephone – it’s almost worse to be in a situation where the right talk is there, but not the walk! At least when you’re in an organization that’s outwardly paternalistic you know never to even expect the walk. Ugh – both situations are so awful!

      • PersephoneK

        Cali, you are so right that ROWE is the only way to back up the flexibility game. I only wish it hadn’t taken me leaving my previous career to learn this lesson. I’m trying to remember my own motto which is “No excuses. No regrets.” But its been a bit tricky as of late.

        Happy Thanksgiving to you both and to the ROWE team!

  • Joni

    Jody,

    Reading your article, you come across very bitter and really in need of your Thanksgiving break. Even worse you come across as trying to oversell whatever your product is.

    I purchased the app to see what is was about after reading this and it’s not a bad thing at all. Why would you add your boss or manager onto your friends list so he can see if you’re working- there is also an offline mode…etc.

    And yes everyone still has a little 5 year old in them, I happen to still smile if someone gives me a sticker or recognize an accomplishment with a badge.

    It really seems as if you’re slamming this app without even trying it. Which is quite the turn off.

    - Joni.

    • Cali

      Joni – glad you’re enjoying the app! It’s just that there are many folks here that have been through way too much in their work and lives to succumb to hoping an app will help them at all with gaining control over their lives. They want the real deal – complete control over their time – not an app that might pacify them for awhile. In this video that portrays a life with the app and without it, I must admit I shook my head as the woman looked at her phone, realized the time she’d be wasting in the office, and up and left. If only it were that easy. It may come across as bitter, but after working tirelessly to shift work culture after work culture to focus on results only, we know when to stop kidding ourselves – and most people who read this blog do, too.

      But each person to their own – some will enjoy the app and others will chalk it up to one more thing that’s not what we really need or want. And as my mother always says – this is what makes us different. And that’s all good :)

    • CC

      Hi Joni – glad you are liking the app, but to Cali’s point, what I think she is trying to say is that we should be measuring RESULTS, not time spent “working.” I agree she uses a sarcastic tone, but its all in good fun! And as I sit at my desk, waiting for my pointless 1/2 day to come to an end, so I can begin frantically getting ready for the holiday, I appreciate Cali articulating exactly how it feels to feel imprisoned by your job.

  • C. A. Hurst

    An Achievement Badge?! How special! When do I get the Super-Special, “I spent the most time warming a chair”, Decoder Ring?

    • Cali

      I believe you just gave Tav Shande his next idea! The Decoder Ring would go over really well as a Valentine’s gift, don’t you think? Especially when you’re spending time warming your chair instead of making it to the dinner date you planned with your significant other. Oh, yes, I think the Decoder Ring will take care of everything…and perhaps you can get an Achievement Badge on top of it…wow!

      • C. A. Hurst

        Hey Cali,

        If Tav really got on it I bet he could have the Decoder Ring out for a Christmas stocking stuffer. Almost as good as a lump of coal. :-)