Many years ago, I saw a tweet going around that said something like, “You have the same number of hours in a day as Beyoncé.” On the one hand, that was annoying, because while it’s true, I don’t have the same number of resources. But hey, everyone has the same number of hours in a day, period. But perhaps more importantly, we all have the same number of hours in a week. That’s the basis for the 168 Method, which calls for you to broaden your thinking about how much time you really have to get everything done and act accordingly.

This idea comes from Laura Vanderkam, author of 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think. (Straightforward!) The whole premise of the book is that when you look at your time over longer periods of time, like a week, you realize that you have enough of it and that you can get things done pretty easily. When you compare an average day, you might find that you don’t have enough time to do everything you need to do, so you either make excuses or make sacrifices, neither of which help you get it all done.

When you start to look at your time in a broader way, you can feel less drained by the daily grind and breathe a little easier knowing that you actually have a lot of hours at your disposal.

Your first task here is to track your time, and I mean aggressively. You can use time tracking software, a calendar or scheduling software, a planner, or a plain old spreadsheet, but you have to be diligent and honest. For at least a week, write down everything you did and the time you spent on it, for the full 24 hours of each of the seven days. That includes sleeping, lounging, working, showering, commuting—everything. Be detailed, too. Don’t just write down “work” from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. List the tasks you worked on and for how long, the breaks you took and what you did, and any extra work you did outside of those hours.