There’s no denying it. Sometimes life can get a little crazy.
You meet your deadlines at work, finish your grocery shopping during lunch hour, and manage to hit the road in time for daycare pick-up duty. You even remember to call Mom on the way home and wish her a happy birthday. Then you pull into the garage, hang up your jacket inside…and the doorbell rings. Panic slowly sets in as you suddenly remember it’s your turn to host the book club for dinner tonight. :-{
We’ve all been there before. Between managing work life, social events, anniversaries, birthdays, household schedules, and regular chores – some days you feel like your head is going to explode. You could use a personal assistant.
You actually can have a personal assistant- one that’s always with you, in your back pocket. One of the awesome things about smartphones is that there are some great apps that can seriously help simplify your life.
Organization apps are the most popular type for busy people – professionals, students, marrieds, and singles. Note-taking and to-do-list apps allow you to capture things you want to remember and file them away instantly. Not only can you manage all your deadlines, upcoming events, and date nights on your smartphone, but you can also easily share them with your family and friends so you’re all on the same page.
Here are a few of our absolute favorite, can’t-live-without-them organization apps that will leave you with less worry and more free time!
Any.DO is a popular, free app that lets you create and manage to-do lists for different days of the week. It’s intuitive and super easy to use. (Plus, your inner perfectionist will delight in the feature that lets you simply shake your phone to clear out your completed tasks!) :)
Any.DO will also integrate with your calendar. And it will sync with all your digital devices so you don’t miss a thing. Chosen by PCWorld as a top app in 2012, it’s simply awesome!
Evernote is another free app that allows you to save and store your digital notes and interests across all your devices. Use it to stay organized, type or dictate a note to yourself, clip web pages, plan a trip, manage a project, or organize files.
You can even take photos and attach them to your notes for later reference. Evernote is also a great collaboration tool; share projects with your family or team members- wherever they may be. It’s simple, but powerful.
In love with Siri? Well, be sure to use it with Remember the Milk to make Siri even more amazing. Once installed, you can simply ask Siri to remind you of important events and tasks.
Sort by priority, due date, or task name. This app gives you plenty of flexibility in how you’d like to be reminded of your tasks. According to PCWorld, “Remember The Milk reinvented the to-do list.”
Things is a paid iPhone app that allows you to sort, label, and prioritize your tasks in lots of different ways. Plan your vacation, schedule appointments, update projects, and more.
The Things app is really great for those moments when you think, “Quick- I need to write that down before I forget.”
Check out this quick tutorial to see just how easy Things is to use!
So which note-taking or to-do app should you choose? Many of them are free or very affordable, so there’s no harm in trying out a few. See which one works best for you. Once you find one that fits your busy life, you’ll find you suddenly have a lot more time for fun! :)
