Many of us wish that we were better at managing our time but have no idea where to start with improving. Here are nine fantastic time management tools that make using your time more efficiently as simple as could be.
1. Rescue Time
Rescue Time is a fantastic tool for anyone who wants to use their time more efficiently but doesn’t really know where to begin. Rescue Time makes it easy to track what you have been doing and for how long every day. It then provides users with weekly reports that break down exactly how they have spent their time.
You might be surprised by exactly where your time is going. Until you start recording exactly what you are doing and measuring it for yourself, you can never really be sure where you can make the most improvement.
Review how you spend your time and look for ways to remove time-wasting activities. For example, if you spend an hour disappearing down a Reddit rabbit hole every lunchtime, even though you know you should be tackling a few emails, use a plugin to block sites that distract you.
2. Remember The Milk
Remember The Milk is a to-do list on steroids. This tool doesn’t just enable you to keep a note of everything that you need to do with your time, it is a multiplatform app that enables you to easily manage your tasks and plan how you will use your time.
Not only does Remember The Milk work across a wide range of devices, but it can also integrate with a number of other apps, including Outlook and Gmail, in order to help you manage your commitments better. You can receive reminders on any of your devices to help you keep track of what you need to do.
Using tech tools to keep track of your to-do list is far more efficient than sticking a list on the refrigerator. It’s always there, at your fingertips, so you have no excuse to forget important tasks.
3. Blocksite
Blocksite is a nifty little tool that does exactly what it says on the tin – it blocks access to certain websites. Whether we work from home or within a big office, it can often feel as if our workday is full of distractions, many of them internet-based. Relying on willpower alone to keep you from checking your Facebook feed throughout the day doesn’t work for most people. That’s where Blocksite comes in.
Blocksite ensures better time management when you are supposed to be working by physically preventing you from accessing the websites that are causing you the most problems. You can set a custom schedule so that websites are blocked during your most important hours.
Remember that Reddit rabbit hole we mentioned earlier? Use Blocksite to kick your Reddit habit. Now you can’t waste hours of your life reading pointless comment threads written by trolls.
4. Focus Booster
Focus Booster is based around the tried and tested Pomodoro Technique. The idea behind the Pomodoro Technique is that by giving yourself regular breaks, usually five minutes every 20-25 minutes, you can maintain your focus and concentration over long periods of time.
Reward yourself for focussing on the task at hand. For example, if you successfully complete a 25-minute stretch without losing concentration, have a chocolate biscuit as a bonus reward. For obvious reasons, don’t do this too often, as it could lead to excessive weight gain!
5. Toggl
Toggl is another tool that makes tracking how you are using your time much easier and enables you to identify any problem areas. As well as enabling you to easily record how much time you are spending on various tasks and projects, Toggl also offers analytical tools for understanding that data.
Assign time to different clients if you work as a freelancer. Further assign time to various tasks for that client, so you can see how much time you spend on a set project. Toggl is really useful if you bill by the hour. You can check at a glance how much time you have expended on a client or project, and if the project is in danger of creeping beyond the scope of the original proposal, you’re in a better position to take steps to correct the issue.
6. Dropbox
With Dropbox, you can easily move from one device to another. You can begin working on a laptop and then upload your documents so you can access them from your smartphone. Dropbox helps you to better manage your time by enabling you to pick up important tasks on the go. It also means that you can work on things in your spare time.
Install DropBox on all your devices and work on projects from anywhere. All files on your device are stored in a local folder, so if you lose interest connection, they will be synced as soon as you reconnect.
DropBox is a valuable collaboration tool. Multiple people can work on the same files, with all changes synced to the cloud. This is far more time-efficient than waiting for person A to email a file to person B for their comments and then email it back again.
7. MyLifeOrganized (MLO)
MLO is one of the best to-do list apps that we have ever seen. As well as enabling you to make your own to-do lists, you can also use MLO to prioritize your workload.
8. Pocket
If you have a job that involves gathering information from the internet, you have probably come across things that interest you but aren’t relevant to your current work. Instead of losing time peering down these rabbit holes, Pocket enables you to save promising content so you can review it later. This leaves you free to focus on the task at hand.
9. Asana
Asana is a project management tool with a focus on efficiency. Asana is one of the most popular project management tools out there and its intuitive interface makes it easy to plan your projects in the most time-efficient way possible.
If you are looking to regain control over your time and use whatever time you have more efficiently, these tools are an excellent starting point. Naturally, a good dose of willpower is also required, but these tools will help you, nonetheless.
