We all want to be more productive, rested, calm, collected, alert, and generally amazing. Here are 30 tech tips that can help you leave the month better than you found it.
- Learn how to make SMART goals.
- Drink your coffee from a spillproof mug. Trust us.
- Work in 90-minute intervals.
- Show your Chromebook (or laptop) some love.
- Schedule breaks into your schedule to do something fun on purpose.
- Add a calming picture to your desktop screen.
- Then hang a pretty picture in your office, about 20 feet away. Looking up at every 20 minutes for twenty seconds can prevent eye fatigue.
- Color-code your Google Calendar.
- Silence notifications to minimize distractions.
- Use Microsoft Word’s Gridline tool to keep your document in line.
- Dedicate a set time each day to read and respond to emails, and stick to it.
- Drive the above message home by adding a statement to your email signature like, “I check emails every morning and will respond by 10am.”
- Follow these hashtags on social media.
- Set an out-of-office message for after-hour emails that reminds senders you don’t take work home with you. Remember. Those who need to contact you for true emergencies will likely have your cell phone.
- Create embedded links in a Google Doc by clicking CTRL+K and searching for the content within the pop-up menu. No more extra tabs!
- Use Microsoft OneNote in your next meeting for amazing notetaking.
- Organize your desktop files into folders.
- Empty your trash.
- Commit these quick keys to memory.
- Schedule coffee with a friend via a calendar appointment, so you both remember.
- Treat yourself to a new laptop or phone case. It will feel like a brand new machine at a fraction of the cost.
- Organize your GDrive or Cloud files.
- Follow Arey Jones on Facebook.
- Add these tips to your OneNote vocabulary.
- Put a seven-minute workout app on your phone and challenge yourself to do at least one circuit daily (here’s one to try)
- Listen to an audiobook on your commute.
- Sort and empty your Download folder.
- Catch up on what’s new in Microsoft EDU.
- Watch a TED talk.
- Go absolutely tech-free for at least 30 minutes a day (when you are awake).
These are just a few ways to boost your productivity and get more out of life in general with (and without) technology. How many did you do? We'd love to know.