Productivity Tools
I spent this past weekend in Chicago, for a Hackathon event, and it was so much fun. Chicago is an amazing city and the weather was perfect while I was there.
I had to spend most of my weekend inside but I did manage to get out for a stroll here and there and I also had my first taste of real Chicago deep dish pizza. I actually thought it was quite good, even though I’m more of a thin crust fan. Now I’m back in Richmond attempting to catch up on things while running a little short on sleep. So let’s talk about productivity.
I might I have a weird obsession with productivity. I just think efficiency is so crucial for getting everything done. It’s not that I want to be busy all the time, it’s just that I want to get everything done as efficiently as possible so that I do have down time to just relax. Ya know?
So I thought I’d share a few of my favorite tools for making some of those everyday tasks a tiny bit easier.
Unroll.Me– If you’re not using this, stop what you’re doing and sign up. It aggregates all of your e-mail subscriptions into one daily e-mail. You can choose which one’s to add (so I still get the ones I really want in my inbox). It means that Loft, Gap, J Crew, and The Limited can tell me they’re having 50% off every single day… but I only get one e-mail about it. Seriously, it’s the best for cleaning up your inbox.
The Skimm– Speaking of e-mails, this is the one subscription that I send straight to my inbox. It’s basically a summary of all the news you really need to know. It’s just handy for knowing a little bit about current events without having to dig through a bunch of news sites.
Mint– You probably already know that Mint is an online budgeting tool but I use it as a real-time monitor to make sure that my bills get paid, I know which checks have been cashed, and that I haven’t totally over-spent at Target this month. The mobile app works really well, so I rarely check it on my desktop. It’s easier, since I don’t have to log into each mobile app for each account.
Do you use any special tools to get things done?
I love Chicago. I have been a couple of times, but would love to go back. Even just for the pizza.
I need to use these, as I definitely need to get more organised.
aww, sweet chicago – my college town and i miss it all the time 🙂 except.. i never did warm up to the deep dish? gimme some brick-oven or thin crust over the lasagna-like-pizza any day 🙂 and as for the skim? my morning read makes sure i’m at least *kinda* up-to-date on current affairs…
Whenever I think of efficiency I think of you. Especially with how quickly you were able to plan your wedding.
Hahaha yeah that was a pretty quick turn around. I hope your wedding planning is going smoothly!
Yay, love productivity geekery. RememberTheMilk remains the biggest thing for me. Just a super simple, straightforward list app that allows you to share to-do lists in realtime with others, as well as set recurring reminders. A lot of the fancier / slicker apps out there do not do those things, unfortunately. Also, though not strictly a productivity thing, I love Feedly. Because the internet should come to me, and not the other way around. It allows me to crunch through a ton of important stuff I want to read without all the distractions of actually visiting those web sites.
Ohh I’ll have to get Alex to sign up for RememberTheMilk with me 😉
I’m so jealous of your Chicago pizza adventures! I never got to try any when I was there.
I love Chicago! And yes, the deep dish pizza there is to die for!
I share your obsession for productivity hacks. I have never heard of unroll app, but I am seriously about to go sign up! That is awesome! Thanks for sharing, and I hope you are having a great week.
What a coincidence! I just posted about my fav productivity app today, too! I use Evernote to create to do lists, schedule reminders for myself, and keep track of random thoughts of inspiration.
I am checking out Mint now! Currently I just use my bank website which isn’t totally awesome. Thanks for sharing!
Evernote seems AWESOME! I wish we were able to use it on our work computers, because that would be amazing!
Love productivity tools! One of my favorite apps for grocery shopping is Any List. As I type in my items, it organizes them by section of the grocery store (i.e. produce, meat, etc.) to make things easier when I’m actually at the store.
I also rely on Google calendar a lot for appointments and managing bills.
Oh cool! That sounds so handy!
You know what tool would really help my productivity? A babysitter. 😉
Oh no, this could be dangerous for me! I love to organize and plan, but I am trying to move away from that right now as I have little control over my life, and I am letting things happen…….you may be teaching me some dangerous tricks!