Yesterday, I made a timed to-do list, put my phone on Do Not Disturb, and wrapped up all pending work by 8 PM. Today, I rolled over in bed to attend my morning meeting, then promptly went back to sleep after it was over, and couldn't finish more than 60% of my designated tasks by EOD. Do you see where I'm going with this?
This new work from home life, that every mortal on the planet had to swiftly adapt to without any prior notice, is full of challenges, to say the least. But the way you structure your day, and organise your work, seems to have an evident impact on your productivity for the day. After all, working from home, a place with no defined boundaries unlike your office, requires you to set your own boundaries by meticulously planning your day. Being on top of the work from home game means making detailed task lists, timing yourself, successfully blocking out interruptions, and structuring your day to a T. In other words, organise, organise and organise!
Let us tell you where to start. How about from installing these 5 organisation apps for work from home days?
Image Courtesy - Pexels
1. Trello
Arguably one of the best organiser and productivity apps out there, we chose Trello for its minimal user-friendly layout, ease in use, and the amount of flexibility in the app, Trello basically lets you organise your tasks, projects, deadlines or any other important work into lists that you can work on along with your team.
Available On
iOS, macOS (10.9 or higher), Android & Windows 10
2. Evernote
If you HAVE to write everything down in order for it to reach your brain, Evernote is just the productivity app for you. Evernote lets you take notes in whatever form you want, be it simple text, drawings, photographs or saved web content. All your notes are securely stored, and you can choose to share, annotate or edit them, search or tag people or even add attachments.
Available On
iOS, Android, Windows 10
3. Pomodoro Timer
If you've read our blog on productivity hacks for WFH, you're probably already familiar with the Pomodoro technique. If not, the technique essentially involves dividing your tasks into four 25-minute long work sessions, each followed by a 5-minute break. Upon completion of 4 Pomodoro, you get a longer break for 15-20 minutes. Well, this timer takes care of it all by managing your Pomodoro sessions.
Available On
iOS, Android
4. Forest: Stay Focused
A personal favourite, this cutesy and minimal app uses a creative way to ensure you stay focused on the task at hand, and successfully avoid distractions. Whenever you want a concentrated, interruption-free productivity session, you go to the app, and plant a seed in the Forest. Your seed will grow into a healthy tree, only if you don't use your phone before it does. If you leave the app and wander, your tree will wither. Simple, and so effective.
Available On
iOS, Android, Chrome Extension
5. Tody: Smarter Cleaning
This is a task app that helps you focus on cleaning your house. The perfect app for taking care of all your household chores on time, Tody not only makes a list of cleaning needs, but also lets you clean in three different modes, ranging from relaxed to standard and to proactive. You can even set a frequency for each household task.
Available On
iOS, Android
Install now and reap the rewards, right away.