How can I avoid double-counting overlapping time entries?

Separate elapsed presence from allocated activity, and decide which one feeds the daily total. Overlap is fine in the calendar; double-counting is a reporting choice, not something the clock can resolve by itself.

*Diagram · presence block vs nested meeting label*

Two clocks

Your example: a 2-hour project block and a 1-hour meeting inside it.

• If the daily total means hours worked: count the presence block once (2h), and treat the meeting as a label/breakdown, not an extra +1h.
• If the daily total means billable by activity: count activities, but then do not also add the parent presence block.
• Avoid: summing every row’s duration when rows nest.

Modeling options in Busabase

1. Parent time entry + child allocations (recommended)

• Parent: 09:00–11:00, type=Presence, duration=2.
• Child: 10:00–11:00, type=Meeting, linked to parent; duration used for breakdown views only.

1. Single presence row + multi-select / tags for activities (no second duration).
2. Explicit countsTowardTotal checkbox — only rows with it checked enter the day sum.

How to verify

1. Enter the 2h project block and 1h nested meeting.
2. Day total view must show 2, not 3, if you chose presence-based totals.
3. Meeting breakdown view can still show 1h for “time in meetings.”
4. Two non-overlapping entries (2h + 1h sequential) should total 3.

Boundaries

• Overlapping billable projects both claiming the same hour needs a business rule (split, primary wins, or forbid overlap)—encode it in validation or review, not only in charts.
• Imported calendar events often overlap; run a cleanup view: same person, overlapping intervals, countsTowardTotal = true.
• Agents logging time should be told which model you use so they do not create a second full-duration row for a meeting already inside a block.

If you say whether the day total is for payroll, billing, or capacity, we can pick one default rule and stick to it.