There’s an app for just about everything you could possibly imagine, from livestock simulators to tracking the best times to use the bathroom during a movie. Luckily, among the sea of strange apps there are some super useful ones that can streamline your daily tasks, helping you take down that pesky to-do list.
Here are a few of our favourites.
Share the Load
Planning your tasks and keeping them organized is a great way to start, but it doesn’t have to end there. Here’s a few apps that will help ease the burden once you get to work.
Project management is vital to tackling larger tasks. Basecamp helps make project management seamless and intuitive, and makes collaboration easier than ever. It’ll keep everything organized for you, and keep everything you need for a project in one place. Working through Basecamp means less time in meetings, and less time answering the same questions over and over. Basically, it gives you and your team a centralized location to work from, for tasks of any size.
This one is for the whiteboard aficionados out there. Trello is project management for visual learners. Collaborators contribute by adding, editing, and moving cards around a virtual space. You can create multiple boards, lists, and notes, and sync them with your online accounts. It’s a fantastic way to visualize what needs to be done, and the new perspective can shed a whole new light on task prioritization.
This one might not exactly be news to you, but that doesn’t make it any less vital a part of your productivity toolbox. Dropbox is the storage solution that should be backing up your other task management apps. You can upload and share massive files, and you can access them from anywhere. It makes collaboration a breeze, but just as importantly, it means you’ll never be without that all-important file that you desperately need.
Time Flies
Photo by Loic Djim on Unsplash
We’ve covered how to plan for your task list, and apps to help you execute it. However, it’s still up to you to make sure you’re making the best use of your time. Here are a few apps to keep you on track.
It’s not always easy to see the forest for the trees. RescueTime gives you detailed reports of how you spent your day, and where you spent your time. You can set goals for yourself, and even get a “productivity score” to see how well you did. Sure, it might be a little after the fact, but it’ll help you keep yourself accountable.
It’s hard to knock out everything on your to-do list if you’re chained to your desk. That’s where Microsoft Office 365 comes in. It does everything a task list app does, as well as giving you access to your files and all of your favourite Office software, wherever you are. Which means you can still work efficiently, while keeping your priorities in check. And with the integrated OneNote and Outlook Calendar, it’ll help you keep yourself organized and on-task. It’s multitasking at its finest.
If you just can’t help yourself when it comes to social media and internet distractions, Focus is for you. It will straight-up block sites like Facebook and Reddit. You can set timers to allow yourself a little break here and there, but it will help keep you on task and productive. It will even pop up a little motivational quote when it has to block a site because temptation has struck.
Just because you’ve dedicated yourself to taking down your to-do list doesn’t mean you have to miss out. With Pocket, you can save websites, articles, videos, pretty much anything you can imagine right to your phone to view later. You don’t even need an internet connection to view them later. That way, you can set it all aside first, then reward yourself after you’ve successfully put your tasks behind you.
Bonus Round
One last one, for the gamers out there.
If you’d rather be fighting evil than tackling your tasks, Habitica is an app that has a bit of both. By gamifying your to-do list, it makes knocking out your projects a bit more fun. Fight monsters, level up, earn in-game rewards, all by accomplishing the goals and tasks you’ve set for yourself. Go forth and battle evil, one spreadsheet at a time.
Now you have the tools to match your talent. Enjoy!
