If there’s one thing we all need more of, it’s time – we need time to get through our to-do lists, time to focus on what really matters, and maybe even some leftover time to do something really unusual like relax! And while technology can sometimes feel like it’s just one more thing to manage, the right tools can actually save you hours, keep you organized, and cut back on those inevitable headaches along the way. With that in mind, here are some tips on how to make technology work for you to help you when you need it most – read on to find out more. 

Get Your Information In One Central Place 

Think of all the places you’ve got information scattered around – emails, calendars, random Post-It notes, and plenty of spreadsheets (there are always spreadsheets)… now think of how great it would be if you would bring all that together in one single, easy-to-access place. Wouldn’t that be fantastic? Well, the good news is, it can happen because there’s tech to ensure it does. 

If you can find a centralized system for your specific needs, that’s really going to help you save time and headaches because you’ll have exactly the right tech tool to help you. These systems tend to fall under the banner of a CRM (customer relationship manager), but they can be used for all kinds of things and don’t have to just focus on the customer themselves. For example, if you work in a school, a student information system might be the version you’d opt for – it would have all the features you need and since it’s specific to your organization, it’ll help you in every way you might want it to. 

Project Management Apps 

One of the biggest time-wasters in any group setting is simply not knowing who’s doing what or when things are supposed to happen – and you’ll know how it feels because it’s something everyone has a problem with, and probably on a fairly regular basis as well! So if that is the case, project management apps can be the ideal way to solve the issue – these are apps that help you assign tasks, set deadlines, and track progress without a single email or meeting, and that is definitely the right way to go about things because it’s less confusing and it’s going to save a massive amount of time (one email might not seem like much of a problem, but times that by however many you send in a day, and you’ll see that it’s a lot of time)

A nice touch for the majority of these apps is that visual layout of tasks helps keep you motivated by showing you exactly how much you’re accomplishing (and what’s still on your plate). For bonus points, look for project management tools that integrate with your calendar or email, and ensure that the entire team is caught up and using them. If you can manage that, there shouldn’t be any issues with miscommunication and everything should run a lot more smoothly. 

Try Speech-To-Text 

Have you ever wished you could just talk instead of type? It might not have occurred to you, and for fast typers, it’s not necessarily going to be a problem at all, but if you’re a little bit slower when it comes to your keyboard skills, or if you find that you can usually talk a lot better than you can write, this kind of tech tool could be something that really makes a difference and makes your written communication much easier to understand for everyone. 

Even if you are pretty good at typing, speech-to-text tools are also incredible for brainstorming on the go. Instead of needing to sit at your desk, you can write while you walk, drive, or even work out, and although most of the time we do suggest that multi-tasking isn’t ideal, this could be one of the new times when it actually works in your favor, so it could certainly be worth a try; once you start using this tool, you’ll be surprised at how much time you save.

Time-Blocking

Ever heard of time-blocking? It’s been an idea that’s floated around for a long time, but if you don’t know how to do it, it might just seem like a strange thing to do. However, it can make you a lot more productive, getting more done in the same amount of time, or saving time altogether. Time-blocking is  all about dividing your day into specific chunks of time dedicated to particular tasks, and it’s meant to help so you can keep distractions at bay and dive deep into whatever needs doing. 

How does it work? Well, by dedicating, say, 25 minutes to focused work followed by a five-minute break, you can breeze through tasks without feeling burned out, and you’ll be ticking things off your to-do list nice and quickly. Start by setting up a series of time blocks in the morning and see how you get on, and tweak if need be.