You’d be hard put to find an area of contemporary life that hasn’t been transformed by the Internet. With superfast broadband now available to 91% of premises in the UK, the influence of the Internet on our lives will certainly become even greater. Whilst the Internet continues to improve the speed and efficiency of our working lives, it can also swallow huge amounts of time, leading to unproductive. Here are seven apps that can help you make the most productive use of your time.
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FocusList
Available for all IOS devices, this app is simplicity itself and that is the beauty of it. There are plenty of apps out there that take so long to figure out that any time they might have saved you is completely negated. With Focuslist, you simply list your tasks, estimate a completion time and away you go. The app uses the Pomodoro technique of work sprints, twenty-five minutes of work and then a five- minute break. You can also review your stats so you can monitor your productivity.
Evernote
This one has been around a while which is an indicator of how useful it is. Evernote is a cloud-based tool which enables you to take notes on your computer or smartphone, synchronize across devices and work off line. It has a wide range of organising features including tagging, crosslinking, checklists and tables.
AMdroid Smart Alarm Clock
This app for Android devices has to be the most customisable alarm system ever, so you’re more likely to start the day off right and be the most efficient version of yourself. Wake up to your favourite song or the weather report. Restrict your alarm to specific locations. This app even knows when it’s a public holiday so it will never deprive you of a much needed lie in. Not only will it will wake you in whatever way you like, it will also advise you when to go to sleep and give you stats on your sleeping habits.
Dropbox
Launched in 2007 and popular with both domestic and business users, this is probably the best storage service on the market. The mobile app is easy to use and gives you the option to automatically back-up your photos and videos. It will also let you share your files and save them for off-line access.
MindMeister
A cloud-based mind-mapping tool which lets you capture and share ideas visually. Great for brainstorming ideas across teams or creating project plans.
Google Docs
This is an which doesn’t require dedicated software and allows you to work collaboratively. You can create and edit documents in your browser and then review them anywhere and on any device. The platform automatically saves your documents at regular intervals, so you don’t even need to press save.
Forest
The paradox of the Forest app is that it is designed to get you to spend less time on your phone and it does so by means of a game. You plant a virtual tree and if you stay off your phone for ten consecutive minutes, the fully-grown tree will be added to your forest. If you don’t leave your phone alone the tree will wither and die. Perhaps not quite as crazy as it sounds because it does make you aware of how much time you are spending doodling on your phone when you could be focussed on the task in hand.
