Library/Leak 17

Location- or device-locked work

Work that can only be done at one specific computer or location, so windows where you could otherwise work (commuting, travelling, between meetings) go unused.

AutomateSimplifyWaitingC–D · a quarter to six months

How you know you have it

“What do you only do at your desk that you wish you could do from your phone or in the car?”

What kind of leak it is

A touch leak — it costs interruptions of you

How to measure it

available-but-unusable hours per week × 52

Annualized the same way everywhere: duration × frequency × people × 52.

Typical range — illustrative

the founder's own commute alone is roughly 6–8 hrs/week of potentially recoverable window

An order of magnitude to prime your eye, not a statistic and not a claim about anyone's result. The only number that matters is the one you measure.

The move — Simplify

Simplify or automate the interface (mobile-capable tools, voice input, async approval); where that's not possible, vest to someone at a fixed location.

Where it lands in a Time P&L

Waiting

How long a fix takes

C–D · a quarter to six months

What to do about it

Tools that fix this

T-06Information Flow Map
Trace where a piece of information is entered, copied, asked for and stored.
Subtract · Automate

And across everything

On paper

This category and the other nineteen on one page, to tick off against a normal week: The 20 Time Leaks.

Download blank worksheet View completed example

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