Run tasks in parallel
Dinner is not one event, it is four. The chicken needs 45 minutes, the potatoes 30, the asparagus 8. Set a dedicated timer for each and you can prep without checking the clock. The question you are offloading is not "how long has it been" but "when do I start the next thing".
Block time in layers
Instead of one two-hour block called "work", break it down. One timer for the primary task at 50 minutes, another for a hydration break every 30, a third for the hard stop before your next meeting. That gives the day a rhythm a single alarm cannot.
Interval training
Workouts usually need two clocks: the rest interval and the total session. Run 60-second rests on one timer and a 20-minute session cap on another. Seeing both counts down keeps the intensity honest without losing the big picture.
Sprints for tedious work
For clearing an inbox or cleaning a room, set three 10-minute timers and commit to one sub-task per timer. Several clocks ticking at once makes the passing time tangible, which is often enough to start.
Standard clock apps make you overwrite the timer you already have. That friction is why most people never use timers for the small stuff.
Why one timer is not enough
Digging through menus to add a second countdown stops you from using timers for small, helpful things. A real multi-timer removes that step: one tap to start, one screen to see everything.