Do you want to maximize your work hours and get more done in less time? There are many apps and gadgets that you can use to increase your output and improve your productivity. Here are a few handy apps and technology that you can start using today!
Email checker
Logging into your email account every few minutes is sure to kill your productivity. Use an email checker instead. Some of the most popular models are extensions or add-ons for your Internet browser. They alert you about any new messages, and they usually show the first line or two in a pop-up window.
Most email checkers allow you to decide how often they report the number of unread messages sitting in your inbox. If you’ve got a lot to do outside of emailing contacts, stagger your email alerts an hour or so apart. That will help you buckle down and get tasks done without interruption.
Time tracker
If you sit down and calculate how much time you spend working on a project, the results could surprise you. You can find plenty of free time trackers – available both as extensions for some browsers or apps for your phone – that keep record of how long you’re working on something. If you want something very simple, try the Task Timer extension for Google Chrome. Time Clock and Time Recording Pro are good time-tracking options for your Smartphone.
The main advantage to these programs is that they make tracking billable hours simple. They can also increase productivity because they force you to be aware of time, which prevents you from wasting it, and they also lend themselves well to breaking projects down into smaller portions. You can allocate a time frame for each task of your day and then track your progress.
Time management and analytics
If you feel like you spend more time on time-wasting activities than productive ones, there are programs available to confirm your suspicions. RescueTime, for example, tracks how you spend your time, and then reports that data, helping to pinpoint any inefficiencies. You can then use this information to self-manage your time better. The website describes it all: “RescueTime is a web-based time management and analytics tool for knowledge workers who want to be more efficient and productive.”
Website blocker
Do some websites seem to drain hours out of your day? Social networking sites, in particular, tend to be guilty of killing office productivity. If you’re running a personal-analytics program, it becomes all the more obvious. During work hours, it’s best just to block these time-wasting websites if you can’t seem to stay away on your own.
On Chrome, the extension StayFocusd allows you to set time limits for particular sites, and then blocks you once you’ve spent more than your allocated time. Leech block is a similar alternative for Firefox users. Freedom is another app designed to block the web for both PC and Mac users. It’s a little more extreme, though – it shuts you out of the Internet completely for a predetermined period of time.
Multi-platform note-taker
Disorganization kills productivity. If you’re the type of person who has a million notes scattered everywhere, a multi-platform note-taker could change your life for the better. Evernote is one of the most popular of these programs. You can synch pictures, websites, notes, and scanned documents to your account, keeping everything in order. Access it on any computer or mobile phone. You can also share content with colleagues.
Technology comes with plenty of distractions, but it can also increase your productivity at work when used well. Using productivity tools helps you track and manage your time, stay organized, and block other technological gadgets that threaten to slow you down.
This guest post is contributed by Jordan Traeger, for Aimcrm.com.
Jordan is a freelance writer and marketing expert, who help businesses and individuals with their marketing. He firmly believes if you implement a strategic targeted market plan, you will definitely see more sales.