Burnett and Evans Good Time Energy Audit

Analyze your daily work and activities using the Good Time Energy Audit framework from Bill Burnett and Dave Evans to discover what energizes or drains you.

4 time blocks, 40 minutes in total.

Time blocks

Review Recent Activity Logs: 10 min
Gather your calendar entries and work notes from the past week
Plot Energy and Engagement Scales: 10 min
Grade each activity on how engaged and energized you felt
Apply the AEIOU Reflection Framework: 10 min
Examine activities, environments, interactions, objects, and users
Identify Flow States and Action Items: 10 min
Pinpoint peak immersion moments and plan small schedule changes

About this routine

The Good Time Energy Audit comes from the book Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans. Stanford design educators created this exercise to help people track their daily energy levels and engagement. Instead of guessing what makes a good workday, you log real activities and evaluate whether they fill your battery or drain it.

The session centers on four steps spread over 40 minutes. First, you gather recent calendar data and activity notes. Next, you plot each task on energy and engagement scales. You then apply the AEIOU framework to examine your environment, interactions, and objects. Finally, you highlight flow moments to guide future decisions.

Why this routine works

Identifies daily tasks that increase or deplete your personal energy
Uses the AEIOU framework to pinpoint productive work environments
Highlights natural flow states to help redesign your weekly schedule

FAQ

What is the Good Time Energy Audit?

It is an exercise from the book Designing Your Life that tracks engagement and energy levels across daily activities to help design a better workflow.

How long does the Good Time Energy Audit take?

This structured review session takes 40 minutes to complete.

What does AEIOU stand for in the energy audit?

AEIOU stands for Activities, Environments, Interactions, Objects, and Users, which are five lenses used to analyze energy dynamics.

Sources

Designing Your Life, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans