I constantly find myself wondering what apps certain people use in their day-to-day. Will there be a difference between mine and other members of the FI community? How will mine differ from other business owners? etc.
Make sure to tell me some of your everyday apps in the comments below!
This is a short and quick article about what apps I use every day or almost every day[mfn]Not including social media, email, calendar, etc. (i.e stuff we all use every day)[/mfn].
It should also be noted that I will link to these apps, none of which are affiliate links. I use them daily purely because I love what they do!
1. Pushbullet
Pushbullet is honestly the most useful app I have ever used. What it does is quite simple, but when you need it, you need it.
Basically, it takes all the notifications that I usually get on my phone and displays them on my computer.
This includes text messages, emails, Facebook messages, everything.
The free version, which I used for the longest time, comes with 100 free messages and … that’s about it.
However, even the paid version, which is only $39.99/year is a steal of a deal in my opinion. I use this version and it allows you copy/paste between devices, send an unlimited amount of messages, and use your phone buttons from your computer (archive emails, dismiss the notification, etc.)
Note: Pushbullet does have one flaw in that, because of the rules of the App Store it only works for Android
Note: While it was a feature that I loved having they have since removed the ability to answer phone calls from your computer. I’m not sure why? But it is now removed
2. Wavebox
There are many apps out there that do the same thing as Wavebox, it is simply the version I prefer to use.
What Wavebox does is allow you to view multiple Gmail inboxes all in one window.
This means not going between multiple windows all the time in the browser, switching between all of your emails, logging in and out of Google Drive as you need to get access to different accounts’ Drives, you simply click a different icon in the same window.
As you can see in the graphic beside I also have other often visited sites equipped into my Wavebox.
This versatility allows me to switch back and forth between my emails, my Google Drive, my Analytics, my Calendar, my accounting, and Asana (#4 on this list)
There are also a bunch more options for adding to it, including Todoist, Slack, Trello, even Microsoft Office!
Best of all, if you only want to get 2 Gmails on the same screen, it’s free.
I’ve linked to their pricing page here, but honestly unless you have a need of extensions other than Gmail being in your Wavebox the free plan should last you more than good enough!
3. Rescuetime
Rescuetime is a time management app.
It doesn’t do anything by itself but is rather a tool to help you figure out how you’re managing your time so that you can optimize it.
In my case, I have included a picture of what my stats for today look like as 1:30 PM today.
So as you can see, while I have been fairly productive for the morning and early afternoon, primarily focusing on business and utilities [mfn]This is what Pushbullet shows up as, so it is me texting my boss and tech support in the case of this morning[/mfn], I also struggled with going on Social Media and Entertainment (YouTube) far more often than I would have liked.
It also takes into account both your computer and your phone, which is a necessity for many of us.
There are alternative ways to log how you manage your time, and if you’re looking for some more I urge you to check out this video by Thomas Frank, as he goes quite in-depth on multiple ones.
Note: I have set the video to start at the point about time tracking, but honestly the entire video is great and if you have the time I definitely recommend checking out the whole thing and see if the some of the solutions may work for you.
4. Asana
Asana is well-known, but if you haven’t heard of it, it is pretty much a to-do list.
It allows you to set deadlines and checklists for yourself of tasks you have to do.
I’m sure that I’m not alone in saying that my memory some days is absolutely terrible. Like walk to the kitchen and forget what I was looking for 20 times in a row terrible.
So between my calendar and Asana, absolutely everything gets written down, easing my mind of having to remember all the minor things or tasks I have go through my brain every day.
And of course, the best part? It’s free!
5. LastPass
Last but not least for apps I use every day is LastPass.
This was actually a too little too late scenario.
Up until recently, I used the same password for everything, and one of those passwords (in particular the one I used for Snapchat) became compromised and random garbage was sent to all of my friends on my Snapchat contact list until I was able to close the account and get a new one going.
After this, I vowed to never again let my password be easily remembered or guessed, so I got LastPass.
It lets you generate random passwords 8-150 characters in length, remembers them, and fills them in on the proper website, and, if you want, requires two-factor authentication to use.
There are many similar apps but, as this one is free it is extremely hard to argue against!
And that’s the top 5!
Hopefully you found this helpful, and hopefully, you’re able to start using some of these apps in your own personal life.
Let me know which was your favourite by commenting below!
See you all soon,
Ryan
