We live in a digital age of frequent distractions, with the number of mobile devices, social media websites and gadgets competing for our attention steadily increasing.
It can be easy to get lost in a sea of open browser tabs, emails, tweets, text messages and wearables. But some of the world’s more tech-savvy individuals, who are generally more plugged in and connected than most, somehow manage to take it all in stride.
How do they do it? By augmenting their lives with a few tools and life hacks that seem to make all the difference. Here are eight of the most popular apps we could find that are used by the multitasking elite.
1. RescueTime: Managing your time starts with understanding how you spend it in the first place. RescueTime tracks how much time you spend on certain activities or websites and provides you with a detailed report. From there, you can block certain websites for a set amount of time or how often you’d like to receive alerts.
2. Focus Lock: But after you’ve blocked a few sites on your desktop computer, having a mobile device by your side is still tempting. Android users can set a timer to block access to certain apps with Focus Lock.
3. 1Password: We may not realize how much time we spend entering passwords into websites online. 1Password streamlines this process by allowing you to store all kinds of information, including your website logins, bank accounts, passports, wills and investments. Then when you go to login at a website, 1Password autofills the username and password for you and enhances the security of your accounts through Advanced Encryption Service-256 technology.
4. Evernote: Evernote serves multiple purposes, but foremost the digital notepad allows you to keep track of your multimedia in one place. It can sync notes, to-do lists, photos, video clips and audio recordings across all of your devices.
5. Any.do: The to-do list has been a cherished tool for generations of time-management aficionados, and the 21st-century versions are the best yet. Any.do’s simple platform makes it a great app for task lists, calendar reminders and more.
6. Pocket: One of the biggest time sinks comes from the sheer number of articles and videos we encounter online. Rather than fall into a black hole of YouTube videos or BuzzFeed articles during work hours, save the links in one place for later with Pocket. One feature of the platform allows users to save links directly from their browsers or from apps such as Twitter, Flipboard, Pulse and Zite.
7. GroupMe: If you stay in touch with colleagues through text messages, then GroupMe is the app for you, primarily because it allows users to send messages, photos and other multimedia to multiple people at a time.
8. Uber: Finally, no list of time-saving tools would be complete without Uber, the ride-sharing app that Bay Area techies have installed on their phones since the service launched and is now available in many cities. Just open the app, request a driver, and someone will be there in a few minutes to take you where you need to go. There’s no need for you to pull out your wallet to pay — the app charges the credit card you have stored. You’ll never have to hunt for a cab again to get to your next business meeting.
