While working from home sounds like paradise to some, there are quite a few challenges to overcome. With more and more (lucky and gifted) Steemians quitting their day jobs to focus exclusively on content creation for this platform, I decided it was time to share my favorite tools and services for productivity when working solo.
Yes, I know, there's no shortage of similar lists out there. But after testing a bunch of tools and service over the years, I found that these are the most effective for me. If you have better tools and services to suggest: hit me in the comments.
I manage most of my writing on Google Docs. Granted, it doesn't give me the same functionality or flexibility as Microsoft Office products (Excel is so way superior to Google Sheets). But it's free, accessible from all my devices and backed up on my Google Drive.
Even if you don't charge an hourly rate, knowing how much time you spend on every task really helps quantify the value you get from every type of activity. Toggl is a fairly simple punch-clock service (and app) that lets you keep track of your time, bill clients (if you need to) and get a good overview of how your work time is spent.
Ever found yourself with a computer lagging painfully due to too many open tabs in your browser? No? Well, lucky you! Those of us who tend to open 10 or 20 or 70 tabs - there's OneTab. It's probably the most useful browser add-on I've ever installed. You can simply shrink all your open tabs into a neat list of links that you can restore at any time on the OneTab tab. Free is sure as hell cheaper than the cost of additional RAM.
It's past midnight, and here I am steeming away. Spending hours at night in front of an LCD screen (yes, mobiles count) can really mess with your melatonin secretion and prevent you from getting a good night's sleep when you finally pull yourself away from the screens. To reduce that effect, apps like Flux and Twilight (for mobile) adjust the brightness and color temperature of your screen. It can get red and annoying, so play around till you find the right settings for you.
5. Paint.net
For all those little graphics fix-ups, crops, memes and macros that don't justify power up the Photoshop I use this lightweight open source alternative. It has limited functionality, but for most tasks it's more than enough.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Now it's your turn! Recommend YOUR favorite tools in the comments.
I like to store work files in cloud , if pc or notebook fails I have all info saved.
I use many of those too. F.lux is a God send for an insomniac like me - if I'm using my computer or Ipad at night I don't want to be screwing up my body clock any worse than it already is.
I also don't bother with Word or MS Office unless I have to and use Google Docs instead.
I still keep my Office360 subscription just in case I need the extra power or need to re-edit old docs but most of the time I just use Google docs, Textwrangler (for text files) and Writeroom when I want to just fire off some writing without interruptions.
I must try Onetab as I am one of those people with a never ending list of tabs open.
Also Toggl and Paint.net could probe useful too. I'm finding Photoshop is too much to load up for simple adjustments on small images.
Thanks for sharing these helpful tools.
I still pay Microsoft too because I sometimes need more spreadsheet functionality than Google offers. And I have clients who like Power Point.
Glad to be of assistance! <3
Thanks. Yes I forgot about Powerpoint!
I've repressed.
Very useful tips. I will try some of the tools to make myself more productive. I am resteeming this article.
Thanks! I hope it helps people who are just getting started working independently and still looking for their routine, and people like me - just optimizing our work day in the home.
Amazing how we run our company from home but do not use any of those tools.
Some cool ones we use are Pic Monkey for image design and editing, Greenshot for screenshots and DropBox.
Good taste! Use flux, onetab and Toggl myself, too.!
Very useful! I also work from home so I know that feeling, being alone and don't getting out for several days! (sometimes :)
I use Toggl (love it!) and Google Drive for all my docs/spreadsheets, etc. Will try OneTab! Yes, another one with several tabs open xD
Ah, I always use Asana (tasks) so I don't forget anything. Includes tasks, projects, conversations and dashboards. You can also attach documents.
I was going to include Asana as I use it too, but it's more for cooperation on tasks with other people rather than just task tracking. But yeah, Asana is great.
I use it for task tracking, otherwise I couldn't remember what I have to do 😂😂😂
My life, story of. :D
Yes, use them all)) Flux has begun irritating me last time...It was the only to delete out)
These are very good tips and a very nicely done post. I knew you would excel in steemit considering your background and obvious talent. You are still great!
THANK YOU! <3
As an author, I LOVE google docs because it automatically saves your work! No fear of losing a whole manuscript!
I couldn't work the way I do without f.lux, beaming white light really ruins a good nights sleep.
I have a diagnosed sleep disorder. Two of them really, but only one is related to light and melatonin production. So flux and twilight are lifesavers for me.