We all have goals and things we want to achieve in life — or in our work or studies or even just a project. Sometimes, it can seem impossible to get everything done without going crazy in the process. Productivity is key to reaching our goals, but there's a fine line between being productive and going overboard.
In this time and age, the tools that we use can be a powerful source of distraction, which can lead us to stray away from our objectives or goals for the day. It can be tough to focus when you're surrounded by constant distractions. Email, social media, and phone notifications can all make it hard to stay on task.
Fortunately, there are ways to improve your productivity, and that’s exactly what this blog post will discuss. We will talk about different tools and different productivity techniques that can help you stay on track and finish your tasks.
Whether you’re working online as a freelancer or recently shifted to a work-from-home style because of the recent pandemic, you definitely need to think of ways to improve your productivity. While working from home feels like a dream, it can also have its downsides – the biggest of which is feeling too relaxed!
Why should you care about being productive? In its simplest form, productivity is about getting things done efficiently. It's about using your time, energy, and resources in the best possible way to achieve your goals. This may appear challenging, but increasing your productivity has plenty of benefits.
Being productive can lead to greater satisfaction in your personal and professional life. When you're able to accomplish your goals, it can give you a sense of pride and achievement. For instance, being productive can get you there if you are aiming for a promotion at your work. And when you're able to do more with less effort, it can leave you feeling empowered and motivated.
Finally, increasing your productivity can simply make life more enjoyable. When you have plenty of time, you can spend it doing things you love rather than waste it on unnecessary or unimportant tasks.
Before we dive into productivity techniques, you must first improve your physical workstation.
A well-equipped workstation is important for many reasons. First, it helps to ensure that you have the right tools for the job, which is especially important if you're working with delicate materials or on a complex project.
Second, a well-equipped workstation can help improve your efficiency. By having everything you need close at hand, you'll be able to work more quickly and avoid wasted time.
Finally, a well-equipped workstation can help to create a professional appearance. Neatly organized tools and materials send a message that you're serious about your work and help you achieve results.
A few essential tools in your workstation can help you improve your productivity: a good planner, a set of comfortable headphones, and ergonomically-developed items can help you be prepared for anything.
Let’s discuss how each item can help you.
Planning is an important key to productivity. A good planner can help you keep track of your tasks and deadlines. This way, you can ensure that you are always working on the most important things.
Planners come in many forms, so find one that fits your needs. For example, buy a planner with goal-tracking features if you need to track your progress toward goals.
If you need to remember deadlines, buy a planner with a robust calendar function. And if you just need a simple way to keep track of your to-do list, buy a basic notebook or day planner.
Be sure to use it regularly, no matter what type of planner you choose. Make it a habit to write down plans, as this practice can help you remember the plans you laid out.
A set of comfortable headphones can help you block distractions and focus on your work. Whether working in a noisy office or at home with kids running around, headphones can be a lifesaver.
If possible, invest in noise-canceling headphones so that you can tune out the world and focus on your task at hand.
When selecting headphones, comfort is key. You will be using them for an extended time, so make sure they are comfortable to wear and do not give you any discomfort or pain.
A well-stocked desk can help you stay organized and efficient. Make sure to have all the necessary supplies, so you do not have to waste time searching for them when the need arises.
This includes pens, staplers, paperclips, chargers, and anything else you use regularly. In addition, having a few snacks and drinks on hand can help you stay fueled throughout the day. Keep healthy snacks like nuts or fruits within reach so you can grab them when you need a quick energy boost.
And finally, make sure to declutter your desk regularly so that it does not become too cluttered and difficult to work in.
Anyone who has ever suffered from back pain or carpal tunnel syndrome knows that ergonomics are important. By definition, ergonomics is the study of how people interact with their environment.
In the workplace, this includes everything from the layout of the office to the chairs and keyboards we use. Many companies are now investing in ergonomic furniture and equipment in order to boost productivity and reduce employee absenteeism due to injury. Even at home, you should do the same.
There are a few key things to look for when choosing ergonomic chairs and keyboards. Firstly, they should be adjustable to fit a range of body sizes. Secondly, they should offer good lumbar support and allow you to keep your feet flat on the floor. Thirdly, they should have a soft, comfortable surface to avoid putting pressure on your wrists. And finally, they should be stylish enough to complement your home office décor!
So if you’re looking to boost your productivity (and your health), consider investing in some ergonomic furniture for your workspace. Your body will thank you for it!
Being productive is not a habit that can be learned overnight. Fortunately, there are tried and tested methods that you can try that will not only boost your productivity but make your life easier by reducing stress.
Let’s learn what these are:
There's no shortage of productivity techniques out there. But sometimes, the best way to get things done is to keep it simple. That's where the "Getting Things Done" technique comes in. This effective method can help you get organized and achieve your goals without feeling overwhelmed.
What do you want to achieve? Once you know what you're working towards, you can start breaking down the steps needed to get there. Make a list of everything you need to do, and then prioritize the items on your list. Focus on the most important tasks first, and delegate or delete anything that isn't essential.
Start working on your most important tasks, and don't stop until they're complete. If you find yourself getting distracted, make sure to take a break and come back refreshed and ready to focus.
This will help you stay on track and make adjustments as needed. If you find that you're not making as much progress as you'd like, don't be afraid to modify your approach. Experiment until you find what works best for you. With a little trial and error, you'll be well on your way to Getting Things Done!
Those who want to take a more proactive approach to their work, there's the Action Method. This method is all about taking decisive action on your goals. That means identifying what you need to do in order to achieve your objectives, and then taking concrete steps to make it happen.
This method is especially useful for people who tend to procrastinate or get stuck in planning mode; by forcing you to take action, it helps you move closer to your goal.
First, you capture all of the tasks and ideas floating around in your head into a central location. This could be a notebook, a whiteboard, or even just a pile on your desk.
Next, you clarify what each item on your list means and what needs to be done to complete it.
Once you have a clear understanding of each task, you can begin to organize them into priority order.
Finally, you start taking action and ticking items off your list!
The beauty of the Action Method is its simplicity. There are no complicated rules or systems to learn; you can start using it right away. And because it helps you get all of your tasks and ideas out of your head and into a written format, it can help reduce stress and increase clarity.
The SMART goals productivity technique is a simple yet effective way to set and achieve your goals. SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely. This is one of the most popular techniques and is applied in various means.
In order to set a SMART goal, you need to first identify what you want to achieve. For example, let's say your goal is to lose weight. In order to make this a SMART goal, you would need to specify:
By following the SMART goals productivity technique, you can increase your chances of achieving your desired outcome. Give it a try next time you're setting a goal!
If you are always procrastinating, another way of increasing your productivity is employing the Pomodoro technique.
The Pomodoro Technique is a time management strategy for improved productivity. The basic principle is simple: work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break.
Repeat this cycle 4 times, then take a longer break, about 15 to 30 minutes. This technique can be used for any work, school, or household chores task.
The key to making the Pomodoro Technique work is eliminating distractions during the 25 minutes of focused work. That means no checking your email, browsing social media, or taking personal calls.
Once you've completed a full cycle of focused work and breaks, you'll be amazed at how much you've accomplished in such a short period.
"The Eat the Frog" is a productivity technique that can help you get more done in less time.
The idea is simple: start with the most important task, and then work your way down to the less important tasks.
This approach can help you to focus on the most important items on your to-do list, and it can also help to prevent procrastination. The "frog" in this analogy is the most important task, and eating it first can help you to get more done overall.
So, if you're looking for a way to boost your productivity, consider "eating the frog" first thing in the morning. You may be surprised at how much you can accomplish in a day!
Now that we’re acquainted with productivity techniques, let us talk about the various digital tools that improve your productivity. Since we are living in the digital age, we should learn to utilize these tools that can make our work easier.
It seems like a new online productivity tool is popping up every day. But with so many options, it can be tough to know which ones are worth your time.
We’ve narrowed the list down to 12 tools that you can use right now, some of which you can combine to make them more effective.
Whether you are in charge of a small project or a huge team, Trello is an online tool that can help you stay organized and boost productivity. With its Kanban-style boards, you can see what needs to be done, who's working on what, and how everything is progressing.
Here are some of its features:
You can create boards for various projects, and each board can have its own set of lists. Within each list, you can add cards for individual tasks.
You can add due dates, attachments, and labels to each card. Furthermore, you can assign specific members to each card, and each member will receive notifications when the status of the card changes.
In addition to being an effective project management tool, Trello is also highly customizable. You can change the background of your boards, and you can choose from a variety of different themes.
You can also install power-ups that add additional functionality to your boards. For example, you can install the Calendar power-up to view all of your tasks in a calendar format. Or you can install the Google Drive power-up to attach files from Google Drive to your cards.
With its flexible interface and powerful features, Trello can help you organize your tasks and keep track of progress. Plus, it's free for personal use, so you can get started without spending any money.
But if you want to use more advanced features, you should consider signing up for either the Standard ($5 per month) or Premium Pricing Plan ($10 per month). While the free plan allows you to create up to ten boards, the paid plan allows unlimited boards, advanced checklists, custom fields, and more storage.
Evernote is a cross-platform productivity tool designed for note-taking, organizing, and archiving. It's available on Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and the web. Evernote's main function is to create and sync notes across devices, but it also offers features like task management, web clipping, and file attachment.
This online productivity tool's unique selling point is its ability to recognize text in images, making it ideal for digitizing handwritten notes and whiteboard brainstorming sessions.
The app also integrates with several third-party apps and services, making it a versatile tool for students and professionals.
In addition, Evernote has free and premium subscription plans. The free plan offers basic features like note synchronization and note-taking. The premium plan adds features like PDF annotation, offline access, customer support, and increased storage.
Evernote premium costs $7.99 per month for a personal account or $9.99 per month for a professional one.
If you need a productivity tool to help you organize your thoughts and ideas, Evernote is worth considering.
Easy team collaboration tools are a must if you want to improve productivity, and that’s where Instacap comes in handy.
Instacap is an online collaboration tool that lets you gather your team members' comments on your project — whether it be website design, advertising design, presentations, documentation, images, and more.
You can do the following with Instacap:
The best thing about this online tool is that you don't need to set up a meeting with your teammates, as you can all work on the same project asynchronously. Just upload an image or a screenshot of your project and share it with your team. They will each have an opportunity to comment on it on their own time and in an easy manner.
Instacap comes with a free and paid plan. You can get a lot of things in the free plan, such as hassle-free Chrome extension, full page captures, PDF annotation, 90-day storage, and more. The paid plan is worth $24.99 and allows private captures, no time limit on storage, priority support, and much more. Try the free plan here!
There's no question that Dropbox has changed the way we work. Allowing us to store files in the cloud and access them from anywhere has made it easier than ever to collaborate with teammates, bosses, and clients. But did you know that Dropbox can also be used to boost your productivity?
Here are three ways online tools can help you get more out of Dropbox:
Dropbox can be used to automatically back up your files, so you never have to worry about losing important data again. Simply install the Dropbox desktop app and select the folders you want to sync. Then, set up a schedule for when you want the backups to run, and let the app do its thing.
Sending large files as attachments can be a pain, but you can share them easily and securely with Dropbox. Simply create a shared folder, add the files you want to share, and invite your collaborators. They'll be able to access the files from their own Dropbox account, so there's no need to worry about email attachments bouncing back.
With so many files being stored in the cloud, it's easy for things to get lost in the shuffle. But by using online tools like Evernote and Trello, you can keep your projects organized and ensure that nothing falls through the cracks. Both apps integrate with Dropbox so that you can access your project files from anywhere.
If you're like most people, you probably find yourself relying on Google more and more each day. Whether you're looking for directions, trying to find the best restaurant in town, or just looking for a quick answer to a question, chances are good that you'll turn to Google first. But did you know that Google can also be a powerful tool for boosting your productivity?
Google One is a suite of online tools, including an email account, a word processor, a spreadsheet application, and a presentation program. Best of all, it's free to use!
You can access Google One from any computer or mobile device with an internet connection, which means you can work on your documents anywhere. And because Google One automatically saves your changes as you work, you don't have to worry about losing your work if your computer crashes.
Google One also makes it easy to share your documents with others. You can give people viewing or editing access with just a few clicks. This way, you can easily solicit comments on the work that you have done. And because Google One stores all your documents online, you don't have to worry about email attachments or losing files on your hard drive.
The free version has a storage limit of 15 GB per account, but this can be expanded. The lowest price level is $1.99 per month for 100GB of storage.
Slack is an online communication tool that can be used for business or personal purposes. It allows users to create channels for specific topics and direct messages for private conversations.
The best part about Slack is that it integrates with other online tools, making it a versatile platform for increasing productivity. For example, users can integrate Slack with Google Drive, Dropbox, and Trello.
This allows team members to quickly share files and collaborate on projects. In addition, the integration with Google Calendar can help users keep track of deadlines and upcoming events.
Slack has four different price plans that you can choose from: Free Plan, Pro ($7.25 USD per month), Business ($12.50 USD per month), and Enterprise Grid (contact their sales team for more information).
Toggl is a simple yet effective way to track your time and get more done in less time. Toggl is easy to use and has a clean, intuitive interface. You can start tracking your time with Toggl in just a few seconds. And it's free to use! What's not to love?
Here's how Toggl works: you start by creating a project, then you add tasks to that project. You can set a timer for each task and start tracking your time. Toggl will then provide detailed reports of how much time you've spent on each task. This information can be extremely valuable in helping you to identify areas where you need to improve your productivity.
Toggl offers two pricing plans: Starter plan ($9) and Premium plan ($18). With Starter Plan, you can enjoy unlimited team timelines, easily plan and monitor your project's workflow. Visualize your workload and keep everyone up-to-date with in-app and email notifications.
Integrate Toggl Track to manage time tracking for your team, and shareable timelines make it easy to collaborate with colleagues. Plus, with 100MB storage per file, you'll have plenty of space to store all your project files.
Finally, the Toggl Premium Plan is perfect for collaborating with clients. It includes everything in the Team plan, plus time off, invites workspace guest users, project data exports, and single sign-on (SSO). Priority support is also included.
Krisp is a tool that helps you focus on your work and get more done by blocking distractions like background noise and notifications from your computer and phone.
Krisp works with all major browsers and operating systems. It is also compatible with many popular productivity apps, so you can use it to stay focused while you work.
There are many reasons why you might want to use Krisp. Perhaps you work in a noisy home office and need a way to block out the chatter of your kids or the barking of your pets. Or maybe you have trouble focusing when notifications pop up on your screen. Whatever the reason, Krisp can help you be more productive and do more.
If you’re looking for a way to boost your productivity, Krisp is worth checking out. It’s easy to use and works with all major browsers and operating systems. It has a free option that allows you to use the app for 60 minutes a day.
If you need it for more hours, it has a Pro plan worth $8 per month and can be used on two devices. Higher-tiered plans are more for businesses and bigger groups.
Zapier is an online tool that helps you improve productivity by automating the tedious tasks you have to do daily.
It's very simple to use — you just need to sign up for a free account and then connect your Zapier account to the apps you use. After that, you can start creating 'zaps' which are small programs that automate tasks.
For example, you could create a zap that automatically adds new contacts from your email list to your CRM or one that saves all of the files you attach to your Dropbox account.
Zapier is extremely useful if you're looking to save time on repetitive tasks, and it's affordable, too — there's a free plan for users who only need to create a few zaps, and paid plans for users who need more features and zaps.
Zapier has five pricing plans that you can use: the Free plan for basic automation, Starter ($19.99 per month) for simple automation needs, Professional ($49 per month) full version, Team ($399 per month) full version for teams, and Company ($799 per month) for organization with big automation needs.
Canva is a user-friendly graphic design tool anyone can use to create beautiful designs. With over a million templates, illustrations, and photos, you can easily find the perfect design for your project.
Canva is not just for creating pretty designs; it’s also a powerful productivity tool. With it, you can easily create professional-looking visuals for your business. For example, you can use Canva to create presentations, infographics, flyers, and social media images all in a jiffy using its templates.
You can also use it to design business cards, logos, and other branding materials. And if you need help getting started, thousands of tutorials and how-to videos are available online.
Whether you’re a seasoned designer or a complete novice, Canva is a great tool for improving productivity. With its user-friendly interface and a vast selection of templates, illustrations, and photos, you can quickly create high-quality visuals without spending hours on design. So if you’re looking for a way to save time and create beautiful designs, Canva is worth checking out.
Canva has three pricing plans that you can take advantage: Free, Pro ($119 annually), and Teams ($149.90 annually). The Free plan has limited templates, drag-and-drop features, watermarked photos, and up to 5GB of storage.
The Pro or personal account, on the other hand, offers millions of stock graphics, videos, and photos. It also has unlimited templates, and drag-and-drop features, 24/7 customer support, and up to 1TB of storage. Finally, the Teams (up to 5 people), can enjoy everything from the Pro plan, plus dedicated folders for the team’s projects, insights, and reports.
Airtable is a versatile cloud-based online tool that can help you boost your productivity. Whether you need to track project deadlines, manage customer data, or collaborate with team members, Airtable has you covered.
This tool is best used for optimizing workflows. You can break down tasks in a modular structure and line them up, so you know what you need to do first.
With its user-friendly interface and customizable fields, Airtable makes it easy to create custom views of your data. And its built-in reporting and real-time alerts ensure you never miss a beat. Best of all, Airtable integrates with various popular apps, making it the perfect tool for strengthening your productivity workflow.
Airtable has four pricing plans: Free, Plus ($10), Pro ($20), and Enterprise. The free plan is good enough for your personal use.
ProofHub is an online project management tool that offers a variety of features, including task management, team collaboration, file sharing, and client communication.
In addition, ProofHub also has a built-in chat tool, making it easy to stay in touch with team members and clients. The interface is clean and user-friendly, and the pricing is very competitive.
ProofHub offers two pricing plans: Essential ($45 per month) and Ultimate Control ($89 per month). For the Essential plan, you can enjoy up to 40 projects, unlimited users, and 40GB of storage. In Ultimate Control, you can enjoy unlimited projects, unlimited users, and 100GB of storage.
If you've ever tried to stick to a productivity plan, you know that it can be hard to stay on track. One of the most popular methods for boosting productivity is the Pomodoro Technique, which we have already discussed above.
However, it can be difficult to keep track of time while you're focused on your work. That's where PomoFocus.io comes in.
This free online Pomodoro Timer is a simple tool that can help you stay on track and get more done. With just a few clicks, you can start your timer and get to work. And when your break is over, the timer will let you know when it's time to get back to work.
Whether you're a seasoned productivity pro or just getting started, PomoFocus.io is a helpful tool that can make it easier to reach your goals.
Productivity is essential for achieving success in any field — or even in every aspect of one’s life! Whether you're a student trying to get good grades, an employee aiming for a promotion, or a business owner striving to increase profits, improving your productivity can make a big difference.
Online productivity tools like Instacap can be a great way to boost your productivity levels. By providing features such as asynchronous communication, task management, goal setting, and time tracking, these tools can help you stay organized and focused on your goals. In addition, many online productivity tools offer reminders and alerts to help you stay on track.
By taking advantage of these resources and applying productivity techniques to your work habit, you can start seeing improvements in your productivity levels. You may even achieve results faster, allowing you to have more time to relax! What are you waiting for, try them out today!
