Thinking Time Matters: How to Practice, Track & Bill It Right

Think about it (apologies)… Everything starts with a thought. As such, dedicated time for analysis, idea connection, and next step planning is essential to any successful workflow. Simply put, thinking time is fundamental and certainly not optional. You should view it as a disciplined practice that yields quantifiable benefits, like:

• Improved decision-making via thoughtful contemplation
• Decreased mistakes by foreseeing dangers and mitigating any assumptions 
• Better results that raise your work quality and – by extension – your overall productivity

Since “thinking time” is a core element of knowledge work, it stands to reason that it should be billed accordingly. Yet in practice, this often isn’t the case. Many professionals still debate whether reflection and analysis deserve a place on invoices, even though the advantages are irrefutable.

Pointing to more than a few real-world examples, we’ll endeavor to provide you with some thinking time best practices, including how best to track it effectively before billing for it with clarity and confidence.

Key takeaways

• Planning a strategy, conducting research, and preparing for client work are all knowledge-based tasks that depend on thinking time.
  
• Thinking time protects quality as it allows professionals to catch mistakes early, improve accuracy, and make sure deliverables meet higher standards before they are delivered to clients.
• Reflection increases productivity. Taking time to evaluate or mentally draft improves results and minimizes the scourge of having to rework something (not very productive in terms of time well spent).
• Workflows uncover moments of hidden thought; examples of embedded reflection include concept mapping, problem-solving, and material review.
• In order to demonstrate the direct value of thinking time, freelancers should bill transparently and refer to it as "analysis" or "strategy."
• The best ways to maximize impact are to plan it carefully, reduce interruptions, and record insights so that reflection becomes delivery.

What is thinking time?

Thinking time is an intentional break in a workflow used for analysis, idea connections, and future planning. It matters because knowledge work involves reflection and decision-making in addition to execution.

Among the many advantages, we have: 

1. Sharper tactics
2. Fewer mistakes
3. Better overall results 

As for how thinking time manifests itself in daily tasks? It could be a consultant mapping options prior to a client call, a designer mentally sketching out concepts before making a hard copy draft or engaging software, or a manager reviewing data prior to setting and communicating priorities.

For these pivotal, underpinning moments to be acknowledged and valued adequately, thinking time should be treated as actual, billable work.

Real-life examples of thinking time

While I touched off some briefly above, let’s look at broader examples of thinking time. After all, thinking time isn’t abstract; it repeatedly crops up in everyday operations across a variety of industries where a purposeful pause in proceedings is necessary.

Let's outline a few of the everyday, seemingly incidental examples of how it can appear in your workflow:

Strategy planning

Prior to execution, managers and executives need to take a step back to align objectives, foresee risks, and establish priorities with a sense of perspective. 

Research

To ensure that decisions are supported by evidence, analysts and consultants spend time collecting and analyzing data.

Analysis

To determine a subsequent best course of action, data specialists must spend time analyzing their findings, trends, or case specifics.

Mental drafting

Before committing to paper or software, writers, attorneys, and designers mentally draft arguments or create outlines.

Concept mapping

To make complex issues more comprehensible, educators, product teams, and researchers alike take time to visualize and therefore clarify connections between ideas.

Problem-solving

When aren’t we problem solving?! To be more specific, however, problem-solving in the realm of “thinking time” can manifest as developers or engineers taking a moment to consider their options and solve problems efficiently.

Client prep work

This form of preparation sees consultants, lawyers, and advisors practicing talking points, anticipating questions, and organizing delivery for maximum impact.

Thinking time best practices

For knowledge workers, thinking time is most productive when you approach it as a purposeful activity as opposed to more of a passive pause. In other words, to maximize its value, you should treat thinking time as intentional, not some incidental thing.

With that in mind, some easy to implement best practices can include:

• Scheduling thinking time deliberately: Much like quiet time allocation, you should block your calendar time specifically for reflection/thinking time – just like you would do for meetings.
  
• Define the purpose: You should clarify whether the focus of your assigned thinking time is for strategy planning, research, analysis, or client prep and don’t deviate from that for the duration.
  
• Limit distractions: Next, create an environment that supports this level of concentration – so, as always, silence those bings, notifications, close tabs, and step away from reactive tasks.
  
• Use tools for structure: Concept mapping, mental drafting, or reviewing material can guide thought processes and prevent drift.
  
• Document outcomes: Capture insights in notes or outlines to ensure thinking translates into actionable steps.‍
• Correlate your insights with delivery: Pair your gleaned reflections with your delivery so your productivity reflects both depth and speed.

How to bill for thinking time 

Most of the time, thinking time is billable. Nevertheless, as it leaves no trace – no file, no timer, no visible output – it tends to be forgotten. As a result, it’s easily left by the wayside and doesn’t appear on invoices, even though you’ve spent quite a lot of time on it.

Below are five practical ways to capture and bill for thinking time:

1. Label it transparently: Use terms like “strategy,” “analysis,” or “concept development” when referencing your thinking time on invoices.
2. Tie it to deliverables: Show how reflection shaped the outcome (e.g., fewer revisions, sharper client prep).
3. Estimate upfront: Build thinking time into project proposals so clients expect it.
4. Track context, not minutes: Note the task or decision you were working through rather than logging exact time.
5. Document insights: Keep brief notes or outlines that demonstrate the value of the thinking process.

So, once again, understanding how best to track thinking time effectively is the first step towards billing for it. And, to clarify, manual/timer‑based tracking probably won’t suffice for adequate tracking in this instance.

Why? 

Because it breaks flow, interrupts your deep thinking (which is super counterproductive), is inaccurate by nature – and that’s assuming you remember to set your manual tracker to begin with. Can you guess where I’m going with this?

How Memtime can help

This is where Memtime can help you accurately start billing for your thinking time. For starters, it automatically captures your thinking time when it happens in digital desktop tools – be it browsing, researching, analyzing documents, or switching between files:

Let’s chart the ways:

• Memtime provides incredibly accurate insight into where thinking time actually occurs during the workday because it tracks all the desktop-based work.
  
• It records "Offline Time" for times when thinking takes place away from the computer, such as when writing on paper, using a whiteboard, going for a walk, etc. Later on, users can create time entries out of it, so it still becomes billable.
  
• In essence, Memtime prevents billable leakage by making cognitive work visible.
  
• As such, it’s ideal for independent contractors, consultants, developers, designers, agencies, and anybody else selling knowledge or tactics.

If you want to start making money from your thinking time, make use of our 14-day free trial to start collating those hours today. Indeed, it’s really that simple.

How does thinking time differ from downtime? 

While downtime is restorative, thinking time is intentional and linked to work outcomes. While one promotes wellbeing, the other boosts productivity.

What activities qualify as thinking time? 

Strategy planning, research, analysis, concept mapping, mental drafting, problem-solving, material review, and client preparation are a few examples.

Why is manual tracking ineffective for thinking time? 

Manual timers are unreliable for billing because they break concentration, rely on memory, and frequently overlook unstructured reflection.

How does thinking time influence creativity?

Thinking time enables professionals to make connections between seemingly unrelated ideas, come up with novel solutions, and tackle issues from different perspectives.

Is thinking time valuable even for short tasks?

The short answer is "Yes". Before sending an email, writing a proposal, or presenting data, even short pauses can improve overall effectiveness, reduce misunderstandings, and sharpen clarity.

How can technology support billing for thinking time? 

In order to prevent billable leakage and make cognitive work visible, tools such as Memtime automatically record both digital and offline thinking activities.

Who benefits most from tracking thinking time? 

Independent contractors, consultants, developers, designers, and agencies benefit the most, because tracking thinking time helps them understand their workflows and bill fairly for their intellectual work.