Kevin Ian Schmidt

So, I have talked about some of the apps I use, now it seems like time to talk about how I use them and how they help my productivity and time management.

At first glance it may seem like I am using redundant apps, but each has different strengths and weaknesses, so I use them each differently. This works to speed up my productivity and better manage my time management, it may not work for you, if not then just grab the best app to help you.

OneNote: I use this as my notebook, I plan and prep my meetings, store my meeting notes, record my meetings, share my projects with coworkers, and am slowly going paperless with quick notes.

Google Keep: I use this to store my photos. If I am doing an audit and find something wrong or a great example, I photograph it and run it through Skitch to make notes, highlight area, post arrows, whatever is needed later for my post-audit presentation.

Evernote: I use this as my catchall. I kick an email over here if I need to save it for later review, I screen grab articles for later or to research for presentations, and for just about anything else I need to make sure I remember.

Using each as a different function, allows me to keep them clean and organized.

Business Calendar(Business Calendar 2 now): I use Business Calendar 2 pro, since it links up to Google account and calendar. It keeps all my meetings, presentations, and tasks in one easy convenient place. The level of customization makes my calendar easily viewed, and the homescreen widget allows me to easily see my upcoming commitments.

Business Tasks: I love this app, it is easy to use, it allows for quick task adding, it has great subtask organization, and is all around just a powerhouse task list manager. This app syncs to my Google account and tasks as just an extra benefit. The fact that it posts on my calendar allows for me to see my tasks and complete them quickly.

Having my calendar sync with my task list makes for a quick simple view. With a highly customizable calendar, you can not just keep your work commitments organized, but also easily track your personal commitments, like Dr visits or important family functions. Life is easier and more productive with some organization. This quick access allows for great time management, and an organized calendar is the base of a proper plan.

Mailbox: I use Mailbox for my Gmail account, it allows me to easily swipe my way down to mailbox zero. I can snooze emails until later, then they repost into my inbox when I can spend the appropriate amount of time on it. I can easily swipe them over into the appropriate list.

Boxer: I use Boxer for my exchange email account. Boxer is nice because I can kick emails over to Evernote, put them as part of a task list to be read later, or even send a quick “thanks, I got the email” reply as easy as a simple swipe.

Either app would handle both my accounts, but I prefer different apps for different accounts, so I can easily keep track of my emails and deal with them appropriately.

Dropbox: I use Dropbox as my cloud office. I print from Dropbox to my home printer, I share files with co-workers, I use it to launch my computer for remote access

Google Drive: I use Google Drive as my need it now storage. If I need a document for a presentation or for a meeting, I drop it into Google Drive, so I can access it easily from my tablet, phone or computer. I make folders and subfolders to organize my week in advance, and easily add/remove files as things change.

Onedrive: I use Onedrive to store all my Microsoft documents, for access from any computer, phone, tablet or to email out.

Amazon Cloud Drive: I have Amazon Prime, so I use Amazon Cloud Drive to backup my photos. I can upload photos I take, photos others send me, or photos I have run through Skitch for cloud backup. I can access them from anywhere, I can pull them to my phone, tablet or computer as needed.

By keeping my cloud storage organized separately I never have to fumble during a presentation or meeting for the right file, I never have to search hundreds of folders for various files, I know where each file is stored and can quickly access it.

Google Sheets: I use this to process my Excel spreadsheets on my phone and tablet. It seamlessly pulls them from Google Drive as needed.

Google Slides: This program is great for working on PowerPoint presentations from my phone and tablet. It seamlessly syncs to Google Drive for document retrieval as needed.

Google Docs: I work on my phone and tablet with Word documents using this app, with it pulling my documents from Google Drive as needed.

The apps also work directly out of Google Drive if you are working from your computer. The syncing is seamless, it works great across platforms and devices, making these an invaluable tool in your arsenal.

Chrome Remote Desktop: I only have this loaded onto my tablet and computer. I don’t often need a remote desktop viewer, but when I do need it it is handy to have access easily. I most often use this when I am giving a PowerPoint presentation so I can roam the room freely while still looking at the notes for each slide and control the pace of the presentation.

These are the apps I use on my phone, tablet and/or computer to aid my productivity and time management. I have provided links to all of them if you would like to check them out.