Do you want to improve your overall productivity?
Whether you’re a freelancer who wants to earn more in the same amount of time or someone working on a regular job where performance nets a good chance of salary increase, there are plenty of things that could keep you from reaching your full potential.
While placing sticky notes on your monitor can help, it would be a lot better if you have other ways to boost your productivity.
This list of apps can help set you on the right track.
1. BAND
Group communication apps are great for improving the efficiency of the way you can connect with people at work.
The BAND group communication app, for example, offers a streamlined chat room experience, group calls, meeting schedulers, and even message boards that allow you to reach out to people you need to coordinate with for work. This is especially useful if you often work on collaborative projects.
Because BAND is supported on multiple platforms (iOS, Windows, and Android), you can expect to have access to the app all the time as long as you have a smartphone and internet access. This means fewer downtimes and fast updates round the clock.
2. Momentum
One of the biggest reasons why people tend to lose focus during work is because of how easy it is to create a new tab and spend time viewing websites not related to your work.
You could work fast and save time as much as you want, but if you keep wandering back to your social media account, you’ll still end up wasting precious time. The Momentum browser app is a browser extension specially designed to address this issue.
This browser extension replaces the new tab page with a tab that asks you what you should be working on at the moment. Every time you open a new tab, Momentum notifies you via popup, reminding you to stay on track.
This makes you less likely to spend time on distractions, thus helping you keep your productivity’s momentum.
Read also: Top 5 iOS Apps for Digital Nomads
3. Harvest
If you think you have a good balance of working and slacking off but somehow you’re still not being as productive as you’d expect, it’s time to check if that balance is the real thing.
If Momentum reminds you of what needs to be done, Harvest tells you what you have been doing and how much time you spend on each task.
This way, you’ll be able to tell if you still need to dial back on your breaks and spend more time being productive.
Another good thing about Harvest is that it also allows you to set personal limits to all activities.
For example, you can set an allotted time for breaks, and the app will let you track how long you’re taking each break. While it won’t instantly switch you back to your work-related tabs, it helps a lot in keeping you aware of how you’re spending your time.
4. Evernote
Many people consider Evernote as a must-have productivity app.
Because of how you can create memos and documents and how the app safely stores them in the cloud, you will never have a situation when you lose your important to-do lists.
Moreover, you will always have a backup copy of whatever work-related documents you’re working on. This means you don’t have to worry about accidentally deleting an important file or if you need to replace your current file with an older version.
Thanks to cross-platform support, it’s also possible to manage your work files even while you’re on the go. As long as the app is installed on your device, accessing anything stored in the cloud is a piece of cake.
Need to send a file to your manager for evaluation and you’re nowhere near your work PC? Retrieve it using your smartphone and send it from wherever you are.
We’re just skimming the top of the iceberg when it comes to productivity apps.
There are countless schedulers, file managers, trackers, and other apps that can help you improve your productivity rate. These four apps are a good start and should take you a few steps closer to being the productive powerhouse that you always wanted to be.