I sometimes get this question and I just love answering it.
“I can use an app, hourglass or an egg-timer. Why would I use Timeqube?”
Well, if you see your timer as something that tells everyone, when they should leave the meeting room because time is up, then you won’t realize what benefits you’re possibly missing out on with Timeqube.
Timeqube is, what we believe, a Hourglass 3.0 and compared to older (sometimes centuries older!) solutions it does some extra job that can possibly save you thousands of dollars a year.
Hourglass 1.0 – Show me when time’s up
A device with one single preset (e.g. 60 minutes), where sand pours down from one compartment to another through a narrow opening.
Pros: Measures time
Cons: Constant movement of sand causes pressure and anxiety, only 1 preset, hardly visible without closer look, no cues when finished (“is it really over?”)
Bottom line: Hourglass (or Sandglass) can help you measure remaining time so you know when to end the meeting. Someone needs to observe it closely though to let others know time’s up.
Hourglass 2.0 – Fire an alarm when time’s up
feat. Egg Timers, Smartphone timing apps, hardware timer devices, alarm-enabled wall clocks
Pros: Freedom to pick time, can
Cons: Often mechanical ticking sound, invasive alarm, people hate them in meetings
Bottom line: These timers are more automated and versatile with more timing programs available. They signal when it’s time to end the meeting.
Hourglass 3.0 – Remind me of passing time stress free
Pros: No-sound, non-obtrusive, non invasive, based on brain science lets participants, speakers and presentation audiences cross control remaining time without added effort, uses peripheral vision, plants a gentle realisation of passing time without stressing out
Cons: Only 6 presets available, won’t tell you exact remaining time
Bottom line : Hourglass 3.0 eliminates timer related stress while keeping time visually tangible for all participants throughout the entire meeting. It also lets speakers and audiences cross-control remaining time with ease.
Here’s the most important difference between first and second generation of hourglasses when compared to Timeqube:
A 1.0 – 2.0 hourglass does not affect how participants behave in the meeting or see time. Its role is solely to signal when meeting should be over.
Timeqube uses colored light to plant time awarness in participants so they are more productive and end the meeting ahead of time.
And it works, because this is how brain operates. No timer application will replace that effect as the very purpose of the application is entirely different. At Timeqube we dig much deeper into human behavioural patterns.
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