Time blocking means assigning your tasks to specific time slots in your calendar before the day starts. Without anything blocked, your morning will default to whatever feels most urgent — not whatever is most important. Time blocking solves this before it happens.
Four ways to create a time block
Drag a task from the left sidebar onto a time slot in the calendar
Click an empty slot on the calendar to create a new task directly at that time
Select any task in the inbox or Today panel and press S to open a time picker and schedule it immediately as a time block
Press Option Space anywhere to open Quick Capture — the task goes to your inbox and you schedule it from there
How to time block
In the Calendar view, drag a task from the side panel onto the calendar on the right. Drop it onto the time you want to start. Aftertone creates a block with a default duration. Drag the bottom edge of the block to make it longer or shorter.
How long to block for each task
Be honest about how long a task actually takes. Most people underestimate. If you think something will take 30 minutes, block 45.
Which tasks to block first
Put your most important work in the time of day when you do your best thinking — for most people, the first two to three hours of the morning. Do not fill that time with email or low-effort tasks. Block it for the work that matters most before anything else lands in your calendar.
How blocks appear in Google Calendar
Every time block you create in Aftertone appears in your Google Calendar automatically. Other people can see that you are busy during those times, which makes it easier to protect the blocks. You do not need to do anything extra for this once your calendar is connected.
Resizing and moving blocks
To resize a block, drag the bottom edge up or down. To move a block, click and drag the entire block to a new time slot. Both actions update Google Calendar in real time.
For precise duration control, drag the bottom edge of the block or set the exact duration from the task detail panel.
When a task runs over or plans change
In the Focus view, use /to open the actions menu. This allows you to complete various actions including extending by a fixed time, setting it to auto-extend (until you complete the task), add breaks, and a lot more.
How full to make your calendar
Do not fill every hour. Aim for 75 to 80 percent and leave the rest as buffer — that is where overruns land and where unexpected work goes without breaking the day.
👉 Try it now — Block your most important task for tomorrow in your best working hours. Leave a 15-minute gap either side of it. That is your first protected session.