[thelist] Filling up timesheets - good or bad?

[Michael Collins]

At 3:14 PM +0000 1/11/01, Ruth Arnold wrote:
>Being self-employed, I find timesheets invaluable. It enables you to invoice
[snip]
>It's also helpful when establishing your hourly rate as it brings home just
>how many of your working hours aren't actually billable.
[snip]

I am also self-employed but can never get myself to write down how 
every 15 minute block of time was spent. I always find myself 
estimating at the end of the day roughly how much I have spent on a 
project. I know how long I have been at it and which projects I have 
worked on (which is usually only one or two at a given time) and from 
there can assign hours toward each project.

The question that gets me is how to bill for all of the little things 
that one must do in order to be working on the project in the first 
place. I am being paid by an hourly rate but of course there is no 
other compensation other than the client. So do others try to cover 
themselves or simply work "shorter" days? In other words, if I put in 
8 solid hours toward a project *without* taking out time for email to 
Evolt, eating (at least away from the computer), playing a game, 
sitting down to watch my favorite soap opera (East Enders), or so on. 
But, do take out time to answer a quick question on the telephone, go 
to the John, or other such things that cannot be avoided. Do I still 
get to bill all of the 8 hours to the client? Or does one subtract 
out all of the little interruptions which in reality may add up to 
1/2 to 1 hour or so? I am favor of covering myself for the entire 
days work and usually do so.

Michael
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