Productivity Toolbox

Zheng Teck | Posted on June 29, 2020 |

Jumpstart your Personal Growth with Productivity Toolbox

Have you ever wondered how to become more efficient in life? Or why are some people so organise? Or does it seems like they are so fast at everything?

Using technology, we can vastly improve our daily lives by saving some time here and there.

Here are 5 top apps I use to help with my personal growth,

Trello – A Task Management Tool
Zapier – Automation by Integration
Canva – Graphic Design Platform
OneNote – Digital Notebook
Zoho Mail – Free Email Service

1. Trello

Trello is a kanban style list-making application. You can think of it as simply post-it notes in columns. It is fast and simple to use. It helps you to organise your tasks and actionables in to lists and cards.

A board will consist of list, and list will contain cards. You will have the following functions on a card –

Add a description
Add comments
Set due date
Assign Members
Categories
Add a checklist
Link attachment via Cloud Services e.g. Google Drive
Set a Cover Picture
Add it to your watchlist

I use Trello as personal task management tool to track my to do list. Trello is very flexible making it a powerful application. Moreover, there are many application integration available and also a Butler automation service to manage your cards well.

2. Zapier

Zapier is online automation tool that allows you to connect your apps and automate workflows. It allows user to integrate applications without coding or relying on developers to build the integration.

Each Zap will start with an Trigger follow by a series of actions.

Let’s look at an example –

In the above example, I have created a Zap such that whenever my a new row is created on my Google Sheet the data is extract and re-organised and added as a comment in on of my Tello card.

This is just an simple example, you automate much more with Zapier –

Save new Gmail attachments to Google Drive
Extract specifics of an email and save the data to a Google Spreadsheet
Get SMS Reminders when there’s a purchase on your eCommerce Store
Create new Trello cards from TypeForm responses
Create Trello cards weekly at scheduled time

The free version of Zapier is limited to 2-Steps Zaps, 1000 Tasks with a maximum of 5 Zaps. It’s a wonder intergtation software with limitless possibilities worth paying for.

3. Canva

Canva is a graphic design platform that allows users to create social media graphics, presentations, posters and other visual content. Canvas provides a simple drag and drop interface for users to interact with.

Why would I need it? Well, I find many of the time I find myself in need to create graphic designs for projects, events or even presentations. Canva is like an army swiss knife for effective and efficient graphic design.

Moreover, it’s complete web based so you don’t have to download any programmes to used it.

4. OneNote

Designed to function as an electronic version of a paper notebook, Microsoft OneNote is a note-taking and personal information management application for collecting, organizing and sharing digital information.

OneNote is especially useful if you are using stylus device like the Surface Book or an iPad because it allows you to draw freely. You can add notes wherever you want, draw, highlight, it’s like a never ending piece of big paper.

5. Zoho Mail

Have you every wonder how individuals get their personalised email address e.g. [email protected]?

To get your own email, you will first need to own the domain. Thereafter, you can simple register on Zoho Mail and get your own email for free.

Why is Zoho Mail on this list? Using your own domain for your emails can help you build your branding and make you stand out if you are working on a project or organising an event. It creates consistency and credibility for yourself and your brand.

It is not really a productivity app but it made it to the list because I feel that as you grow, it is important to develop your personal brand as well.

Don’t have a domian? Get one today!

Register your Domain Name Today!

Questions

If you have any questions just drop me a message and I will try my best to explain it to you.