Break Tracking

Track breaks separately from your work time for accurate time tracking and statistics.

Overview

Break tracking allows you to pause your work session without checking out completely. Break time is tracked separately and excluded from your total worked time.

Why use breaks?

  • Name
    Accurate statistics
    Description

    Break time doesn't count toward your worked time, giving you true productivity metrics.

  • Name
    Session continuity
    Description

    Keep your session active while taking lunch, attending meetings, or stepping away.

  • Name
    Transparency
    Description

    Your session summary shows both worked time and break time separately.

  • Name
    Flexibility
    Description

    Take multiple breaks during a single session - all tracked automatically.

How breaks work

Session timeline:
9:00 AM  ─────── Work ───────  12:00 PM
12:00 PM ─────── Break ───────  1:00 PM  (excluded from worked time)
1:00 PM  ─────── Work ───────  5:00 PM

Total session: 8 hours
Break time: 1 hour
Worked time: 7 hours ✓

Starting breaks

Start a break

Pause your work session:

/break start

Response:

☕ Break started at 12:00 PM
Your work timer is paused.

Use /break end to resume work.

Requirements

  • Name
    Must be checked in
    Description

    You can only start a break if you have an active work session.

  • Name
    Not already on break
    Description

    You can't start a break if you're already on one. End the current break first.

What happens when you start a break

  1. Break timestamp recorded: The current time is saved as break start
  2. Work timer pauses: Worked time stops accumulating
  3. Break timer starts: Break duration starts counting
  4. Status updates: Your status shows you're on break

Ending breaks

End a break

Resume working after a break:

/break end

Response:

✅ Break ended at 1:00 PM
Duration: 1 hour 0 minutes

Your work timer has resumed.

What happens when you end a break

  1. Break duration calculated: End time - start time = break duration
  2. Break time saved: The duration is added to total break time for this session
  3. Work timer resumes: Worked time starts accumulating again
  4. Status updates: Your status shows you're working again

Checking break status

View current break

See if you're currently on break:

/break status

If on break:

☕ Currently on break
Started: 12:00 PM (30 minutes ago)
Duration: 30 minutes

Use /break end to resume work.

If not on break:

ℹ️ Not on break
You're currently working.

Use /break start to take a break.

Status command also shows breaks

The /status command includes break information:

/status

⏱️ Currently checked in
Server: Work Server
Started: 9:00 AM (4 hours ago)
Duration: 4 hours 0 minutes
Break: 30 minutes (active) ←  Break status
Auto-close in: 8 hours

Break vs checkout

When should you use /break vs /checkout?

Use /break for:

  • Name
    Lunch breaks
    Description

    Taking a meal break but planning to return to work

  • Name
    Short breaks
    Description

    Coffee breaks, bathroom breaks, quick errands

  • Name
    Meetings
    Description

    Attending meetings that aren't part of tracked work

  • Name
    Context switches
    Description

    Temporarily switching to non-work activities

Use /checkout for:

  • Name
    End of day
    Description

    Completely finished working for the day

  • Name
    Long breaks
    Description

    Extended time away (multiple hours)

  • Name
    Switching projects
    Description

    Moving to a different Discord server/project

  • Name
    Done with task
    Description

    Completed the work you were tracking

Decision flowchart

Are you done working for the day?
├─ Yes → Use /checkout
└─ No → Will you return within a few hours?
    ├─ Yes → Use /break
    └─ No/Unsure → Use /checkout

Multiple breaks

You can take multiple breaks during a single session:

# Morning work
/checkin
# ... work 3 hours ...

# Coffee break
/break start
# ... 15 minutes ...
/break end
# ... work 3 hours ...

# Lunch break
/break start
# ... 1 hour ...
/break end
# ... work 2 hours ...

# End of day
/checkout

Session summary:

Total session: 9 hours 15 minutes
Break time: 1 hour 15 minutes (coffee + lunch)
Net worked: 8 hours 0 minutes

All break periods are automatically summed and excluded from worked time.

Best practices

For accurate tracking

Break tracking tips:

  1. Start breaks immediately - Don't wait, start the break as soon as you step away
  2. End breaks promptly - Resume work timer when you return
  3. Use breaks liberally - It's better to track breaks than have inflated work time
  4. Don't forget to end breaks - Unended breaks continue forever until you check out
  5. Check your status - Verify you're on break or working with /status

Common patterns

Standard workday:

9:00 AM  - /checkin
10:30 AM - /break start (coffee - 15 min)
10:45 AM - /break end
12:30 PM - /break start (lunch - 1 hour)
1:30 PM  - /break end
3:00 PM  - /break start (coffee - 15 min)
3:15 PM  - /break end
5:00 PM  - /checkout

Result: 8 hours session, 1.5 hours breaks, 6.5 hours worked

Focused session:

2:00 PM - /checkin
4:00 PM - /checkout

Result: 2 hours session, 0 breaks, 2 hours worked

Break time calculations

How worked time is calculated

Worked Time = Check-out Time - Check-in Time - Total Break Time

Examples

Example 1: Single break

  • Check-in: 9:00 AM
  • Break start: 12:00 PM
  • Break end: 1:00 PM
  • Check-out: 5:00 PM

Calculation:

  • Total time: 5:00 PM - 9:00 AM = 8 hours
  • Break time: 1:00 PM - 12:00 PM = 1 hour
  • Worked time: 8 - 1 = 7 hours

Example 2: Multiple breaks

  • Check-in: 9:00 AM
  • Break 1: 10:30 AM - 10:45 AM (15 min)
  • Break 2: 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM (60 min)
  • Break 3: 3:00 PM - 3:15 PM (15 min)
  • Check-out: 5:00 PM

Calculation:

  • Total time: 8 hours
  • Break time: 15 + 60 + 15 = 90 minutes (1.5 hours)
  • Worked time: 8 - 1.5 = 6.5 hours

Viewing break history

In session summary

When you check out, the summary shows your break time:

/checkout

✅ Checked out at 5:00 PM

📊 Session Summary
Check-in: 9:00 AM
Check-out: 5:00 PM
Total: 8 hours 0 minutes
Break time: 1 hour 30 minutes ← Total breaks
Net worked: 6 hours 30 minutes ← Actual work time

In session history

View breaks for past sessions:

/history limit:10

Each session shows break time if applicable.

Troubleshooting

Forgot to end a break

Problem: Started a break but forgot to end it.

What happens:

  • Break timer continues running
  • Work time isn't accumulating
  • When you check out, all time since break start is counted as break time

Solution:

  1. Before checkout: Run /break end to properly end the break
  2. After checkout: Can't fix retroactively - session is closed with inflated break time

Prevention: Set a timer or reminder when starting breaks.

Break not excluded from worked time

Problem: Break time seems to be included in worked time.

Check:

  1. Did you start the break? - Must use /break start
  2. Did you end the break? - Must use /break end
  3. View your history - Check if break time shows separately

If break time shows in the session summary but worked time seems wrong, contact support.

Can't start break

Error: "You're not checked in"

Solution: You must have an active session. Run /checkin first.

Error: "You're already on break"

Solution: End your current break with /break end before starting a new one.

Admin considerations

Auto-close and breaks

When a session is auto-closed:

  • Any active break is automatically ended
  • Break time is calculated up to the auto-close time
  • Worked time excludes all break periods

Manual session closure

When an admin manually closes a session with /admin-close-session:

  • Same behavior as auto-close
  • Active breaks are ended automatically
  • Break time is properly calculated

Next steps

Check-in System

View Statistics

Quick Start Guide

All Commands

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