Choosing the Right Productivity Application

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About this lesson

Outlining the best methods for finding the right productivity application for your use, without wasting time and effort.

Quick reference

Choosing the Right Productivity Application

Picking the right resource to keep you organized will help to save you time and money. Jumping around productivity apps or tools can be a laborious process, so making sure you've dedicated yourself to the best resource for you will be key. We will explore how to get this right. In this lesson, we'll help you to understand productivity tools and how to approach choosing your next resource. Many people can become wrapped up in the process of choosing a productivity application and that can be a very ineffective use of your time. 

To consider:

  • Simplicity
  • Availability
  • Features and Functions
  • Speed
  • Job role, needs and usage
  • Suitable to your workflow and activities

When to use

  • When choosing productivity apps and resources 
  • To be used when advising others to choose a resource

Instructions

  • Systematically review your productivity tools and resources 
  • Review a resource for its functionality against your needs 
  • Avoid picking a resource for its design only, implement multiple approaches
  • Make use of your notebook to take notes of how to approach new resources
  • Begin applying these concepts to your tools/resources

Hints & Tips

  • Remember to take your time choosing a resource 
  • Respect that other people will have different selections 
  • A successful recipe is one that fits your style of work, not others 
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  • 00:04 Hello, everyone and welcome to another video.
  • 00:07 This is a GoSkills.com course and I'm your host Francesco D'Alessio.
  • 00:13 In this video, I wanted to talk a little bit about choosing the right
  • 00:17 productivity application.
  • 00:19 Now, I know a lot of you out there are trying to find that golden resource to
  • 00:23 really help improve your productivity and efficiency in your day.
  • 00:26 And of course, that is so valuable.
  • 00:28 Once you've found that, there is so
  • 00:30 many different things that can benefit your life.
  • 00:32 You feel less stress.
  • 00:34 You feel more productive.
  • 00:35 You work more efficiently and so much more.
  • 00:38 Finding that is really vital.
  • 00:40 So let's jump into why is it important to choose the right application?
  • 00:45 There's many people that ask, why is that valuable?
  • 00:48 Resources are important,
  • 00:50 having the right resource to run your day is a very useful thing.
  • 00:54 The second thing is obviously, in your daily routine.
  • 00:57 You don't wanna have to scurry to find a resource spending your time doing that,
  • 01:01 when once you've found one, you can settle and be comfortable with it.
  • 01:05 So it really does enhance your daily routine.
  • 01:08 The third thing is that it really does gain value.
  • 01:10 So for example, when you're using it and you know how to use it.
  • 01:14 The more and more you use it, the more and more you gain value.
  • 01:17 And finally, your productivity will be higher.
  • 01:19 Because you will be comfortable with the resource and your workflow.
  • 01:23 All of that is vitally important.
  • 01:26 You need to ask yourself, what is right for you?
  • 01:28 And the right fit for you is different for everyone, but
  • 01:31 there are some really core concepts.
  • 01:33 And very similar to a computer, you need to look at the speed of an application,
  • 01:38 the reliability and efficiency.
  • 01:40 The better the fit, the more effective the resource.
  • 01:43 But you should always note down that you should try and aim for an application that
  • 01:47 provides speed, reliability and efficiency to help boost your productivity.
  • 01:53 The right fit for
  • 01:54 you in a productivity application needs to cover these four elements.
  • 01:58 Now of course, number one, simplicity.
  • 02:00 A lot of people want to move to applications,
  • 02:03 because of the simplicity of an application.
  • 02:06 They might not like it,
  • 02:07 because it's overcomplicated or visually not very attractive.
  • 02:11 So actually having a simple application in design
  • 02:13 is something that you will like as a productivity application.
  • 02:17 The second thing you need to be aware of when you're reviewing them is device
  • 02:21 availability.
  • 02:21 If I were to move to Android and a Windows tomorrow,
  • 02:24 would I still be able to run my workflow from there?
  • 02:27 Device availability is so important and
  • 02:30 having those resources there is incredibly helpful.
  • 02:34 Range of features is another really handy thing if you have got a feature range that
  • 02:37 is stretched, but you don't know, for example, in the project management
  • 02:41 resources you have got some type of invoicing functions inside there.
  • 02:44 And you're like okay, I didn't know that I needed this.
  • 02:47 But if I need to get to it, I can get to it.
  • 02:49 So range of features is important, being able to have those ready for
  • 02:53 when you can use them in context.
  • 02:55 There is a feature, for example, inside Todoist,
  • 02:57 the to-do list application I use called Smart Schedule.
  • 03:00 I know I'm not gonna be using it now.
  • 03:02 But in the next three or four months, it might become more relevant.
  • 03:05 So having this range of features is important.
  • 03:08 There's also deep functionality and
  • 03:10 what I mean by that is having a feature that doesn't just touch the surface,
  • 03:14 say for example, task input, say being able to add a task to to-do list.
  • 03:18 It doesn't just add a task, but gives you deep functionality like adding lots of
  • 03:23 content, potentially attachments and things like that.
  • 03:26 So actually having deep functionality is a very important factor.
  • 03:30 So of course,
  • 03:31 there are factors that influence your choice when you get started.
  • 03:34 There are things that will push you either way.
  • 03:37 Usage, obviously, how much you use a resource to just be aware that.
  • 03:41 How many times you use it is important.
  • 03:43 Time spent on that resource is obviously important.
  • 03:46 So those are just two factors you need to have in the back of your head,
  • 03:49 your job role will vary.
  • 03:50 So for example, I would recommend another resource to someone against someone who is
  • 03:55 working in a different role.
  • 03:56 Because experiences are totally different and the context is.
  • 04:00 Same with team collaboration, you need to know whether you need team functions.
  • 04:04 And if you do then, that changes the resource you'll go for.
  • 04:07 And naturally, price as well.
  • 04:08 So these are all factors that will influence your choice.
  • 04:12 The right fit for you is really one that suits your workflow, your activities and
  • 04:16 your needs.
  • 04:17 Just be aware of that, your workflow, activities and needs.
  • 04:19 These are all core things to your system that you need to keep pumping around and
  • 04:24 making sure they're consistent.
  • 04:26 I've put some exercises to challenge your system.
  • 04:29 The exercises, what are your needs.
  • 04:30 Understanding your current needs.
  • 04:32 Addressing workflow issues you may have and what has worked in the past.
  • 04:36 The goal is to highlight your workflow potential, so that you can, maybe apply
  • 04:40 this to choosing your own resource when we move on to the resources section.
  • 04:44 In the third feature, we're gonna be discussing premium and
  • 04:47 whether you should go premium and then we're gonna be jumping into the resources.
  • 04:50 Make sure to email if you have got any questions and
  • 04:53 I'm looking forward to the next video.
  • 04:55 Cheers.

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