5 Productivity and Tracker Apps to Start Using Today
I’ve always needed to analyze data to understand events; especially when it comes to my own personal goals. I mean, how will I know if I’m taking care of my teeth if I don’t know the exact number of days that I’ve flossed? Needless to say, the track-your-every-move trend has been quite exciting for me.
I’ve always been a fan of traditional pen and paper, so I was usually creating charts and tables in a bullet journal or my Erin Condren Life Planner or my Filo Fax or whatever cute notebook I purchased that month… and that sort of became my problem.
One, it was expensive and even a bit wasteful. I was regularly buying new notebooks, pens, highlighters and other “supplies” necessary to record every minute milestone in my very average day.
Two, with my compulsive tendencies, I constantly felt the need to write and rewrite every list possible.
Three, now that I live in a Hebrew speaking country, all of the notebooks are “backwards” for me!
Four, and most importantly, I just wasn’t keeping up! Often, I’d want to cross off some habit or add a new goal and my notebook was somewhere I wasn’t!
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For better or for worse, I decided to take step into the digital age and begin my online tracking. I did a little research and started using a few apps that have worked really well for me. Of course, since I’ve been enjoying them, I had to share them with you!
These are the five productivity and tracker apps that I’ve been using and loving:
Sleep Cycle
Getting enough sleep is the most important aspect of a healthy and productive lifestyle. Unfortunately, I’ve always been terrible at going to bed. Having Sleep Cycle produce sleep analytics forces me to get into bed early because I have a measurable goal to meet!
Another fun feature about this app is the gradual alarm! Having a loud alarm jolt us awake can actually leave us feeling groggy. Sleep Cycle’s soothing alarm starts off quiet and gradually gets louder and louder over fifteen minutes or so. The result is a more natural waking up process.
A Few Things to Know About this App
- It works by listening to your movements
- It tracks your hours in bed, as well as the quality of your sleep
- It records snoring (which is how I proved to my husband that he does in-fact snore)
- It allows you to review your weekly and monthly sleep trends.
How I Use this App
It’s easy, I set the alarm each night, place the phone face down on my nightstand, and go to sleep!
HabitBull
I am very motivated by the satisfaction I get from checking off a box, so I am much more likely to remember a “habit” when I can check it off as complete.
During my planner-using-days, I was ordering custom habit stickers from Etsy every month, but that got expensive. I then tried tracking my habits in a bullet journal, but that was too messy.
Enter… HabitBull.
There are several habit tracker apps available, but I chose HabitBull because it seemed to have the most customizable features.
A Few Things to Know About this App
- It is free for the first five habits – then there is a small annual fee
- When you create a habit, it
can be:
- yes/no or a number (ex: 10 pushups a day)
- daily or a certain number of times a week/month
- Organize habits by category (and add colors to each habit)
- You can review your progress by habit, by week, and by month
- You can review statistics on your completion rates
- Add reminders and notes to habits
How I Use this App
I use HabitBull for my simple, every-day habits that I want to remember, such as taking my vitamins, applying my sunscreen, or drinking eight cups of water.
ClickUp
I’ve tried a few productivity tools, and ClickUp is (by far) my favorite. For me to use an online tool, it needs to be really customizable. It has to be fresh and modern looking. Oh, and a free platform is preferred.
My first foray into productivity platforms was with Monday.com. I actually did like their product, but it was too expensive! I couldn’t justify spending that amount of money on my personal tasks.
When I searched for a similar platform, I found ClickUp, which is one of the newer tools on the market. ClickUp checked all of my boxes. In fact, ClickUp is the app that I am most excited about sharing because I really enjoy using it!
ClickUp is so customizable, so it feels really nice to work with. I feel organized and more focused, and I’m excited to accomplish my tasks!!
A Few Things to Know About this App
You can add a lot of detail and stay very organized: first you’ll create spaces. Within each space, you’ll create projects. Within each project, you’ll create tasks. For each task, you’ll create steps.
For each project, you can choose status-steps to completion. For example, for my blog calendar space, I have both of my blogs as projects. For each project, I created the following status-steps: “open,” “plan,” “write content,” “edit photos,” “layout,” “SEO,” and “closed.” These are best seen in the “board” view.
For each step of a task, you can add a variety of details, such as due date, assignee, status, category, and notes. These are best seen in the “list view.”
There are even more helpful features of ClickUp that you’ll discover once you start exploring the platform. I definitely encourage you to check it out.
How I Use this App
I use ClickUp for my personal and professional projects which have tasks that are updated regularly or semi-regularly. Basically, it’s an outline for my day, so when I sit down at my desk, I know what to work on. I set due dates for myself, so I can hold myself accountable. I also have a list of long-term projects to work on which I reference when I need to fill any idle time. There are tons of ways to use ClickUp, so you can find the set-up that works best for you.
Evernote
I’ve been using Evernote for several years. I originally started using the program to keep track of my “inventory.” I kept a record of my spices, essential oils, knitting needles and more. If I was at the store, I could easily reference my lists so I could prevent repeat buys.
In the last year, I’ve really started to use Evernote a whole lot more because of their increased functionality.
A Few Things to Know About this App
- First, create notebooks. Within each notebook, you create notes.
- Evernote now has several templates that you can use (and customize) to track goals, projects, finances and more.
- Templates can be standalone or added to an existing note.
How I Use this App
Other than for my “inventory,” I use Evernote for long term goals that are more static, such as my new year’s resolutions or reading lists. I also use Evernote for note taking when I’m in a class or a presentation.
I love having access to this information where ever I am. Plus, it saves paper!
Focus Keeper
Focusing can be difficult when working from home; there are so many distractions. Even eating lunch can take way more time than necessary if I’m not paying attention. Focus Keeper is a great tool to keep me on task.
How it Works
Focus Keeper follows the Pomodoro Technique which uses a timer to implement the following pattern: focus for 25-mintues at a time with five-minute breaks in between. After four 25-minute sessions, there is a 25-minute break. That entire process is then repeated three more times.
This app really keeps me focused (I feel guilty if I quit before the timer is up)! I find the app particularly helpful when I plan certain activities for each session.
Prior to using focus keeper, I’d plan several tasks for a day, and then only get through one because I would allow it to take way too long. With Focus Keeper, I know I have a set amount of time to finish that task before I have to move on to the next. It actually works really well! I’m so happy I found this tool.
Deciding to go digital has actually worked out really well. I’m more organized and I’m better at managing my time, which has resulted in increased productivity (and I feel good when I’m productive).
So, if you’re looking for ways to increase your productivity or if you’d like to be better about achieving your goals, I encourage you to try a few of these apps!
Of course, if you have any favorites that I haven’t mentioned here, let me know!
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