How busy are we, exactly?

The author and time management expert Laura Vanderkam decided to answer that question for herself. She tracked her time for an entire year (8,784 hours in a leap year), and in doing so learned her life was a bit less hectic than she thought. Ms. Vanderkam, a working mother of four young children, recently wrote in The Times about her experience.

The article, “The Busy Person’s Lies,” was widely viewed and shared and generated hundreds of comments. But it also left some of us with questions for Ms. Vanderkam, whose latest book is “I Know How She Does It: How Successful Women Make the Most of their Time.” I recently spoke with Ms. Vanderkam to find out exactly how she did it, the best apps for tracking time and why some people have been critical of her time-tracking advice. Here’s an edited version of our conversation. To read more from KJ DELL’ANTONIA, click here.