Two tools for productivity
So many times during the day we get distracted by other things; from email messages to phone calls, it only takes a few moments to completely lose your train of thought and tank your productivity.
One way to stay on top of this is to utilize time tracking tools, so you can see exactly where your time is being spent throughout the day. While there are a plethora of these tools on the market, here’s a look at two of the newcomers.
First up: Ding
The first app, Ding, is a simple time tracking for freelancers and small teams. Ding makes it easy to track time and stay on top of your business. See the time you’ve spent and the money you’ve made. We’ll always keep your logged time safe, but you’re free to export the hours you need as PDF or CSV. For yourself or your clients.
Once you’re signed up, Ding can be broken down into three parts: activity, overview, and projects. Activity is your homepage, where you’ll see your latest time tracking activities and stats. You can log your time from the box on the right. Overview allows you to filter out just the time entries you need and then downloaded. Projects gives you an list of projects you’re working on, that can be archived upon completion. A really minimalist, but effective time tracking tool, so you never miss any billable hours.
Second up: Focus Booster
The second tool, Focus Booster, is a digital pomodoro timer. The pomodoro technique is a proven and popular time management life hack. The main premise behind the technique is to work in sprints (called pomodoro sessions) and maintain regular breaks. These breaks keep the mind fresh and fast, which is required when working with such focus. The other key principle behind maintaining focus with the pomodoro technique is being able to effectively manage distractions.
While the original pomodoro technique methodology calls for no digital distractions, times are changing. We all work on computers, so is seems counterproductive to not use a pomodoro app that will streamline timesheeting, invoicing and reporting. This is just what Focus Booster does. It is less intrusive than a physical timer and having an online pomodoro timer is a much more convenient way of making your day productive.
Focus Booster offers visual and audio cues to help you develop a good relationship with time; automatically allowing you to track all the sessions you complete and giving you instant statistics on your productivity. The best part of Focus Booster is you can use it without installing anything, so if you your workplace prohibits downloads, you can still keep on top of your time and productivity.
