Despite our better intentions, we all get a little sucked in to the ever changing world of social media. In fact, as I am sure you've realized, your smartphone is never too far out of reach - whether it's texting your friends, learning a new language or just being your own personal dj, you use your smartphone for just about everything. While having a phone can be quite a distraction, it can also be a really great resource and make life so much easier.
With so many apps being created, you can now use your phone to store information, provide valuable insight even purchase a new car, crazy right?! The best part is many of these resources are absolutely free. The thing is there are just so many apps that choosing the one that's right for you can be quite difficult.
Here are some of my favourite free apps for a more effortless life. While these links are to download them from the Play Store, you can search for them in the App Store of choice!
NOTES
The first app I wanted to share is one we all know too well, the Notes App. At any given time there will always be something to remember and the notes app that comes pre-loaded on most smartphones can a super helpful in collecting all your ideas, to -do's and lists. I use the note app pretty often and have it now has a permanent position on my home screen as a nifty widget. I mainly use it to jot down my random ideas and anything else that may come up throughout the day; an idea I have for a new blog post, a new collaboration I want to work with, even a reminder to check my emails. I have found recently that I have been using it to record items for my grocery lists and anything else that I have to copy and paste like my tags for Instagram.
NOTION
The next app I wanted to mention is Notion. I had seen a lot of buzz surrounding this app a few months ago and I was curious to see exactly what that buzz was all about. Now I do admit I was a bit skeptical in the beginning until I took the chance and tried it for myself. From the very first day I tried it and I am still blown away by how powerful this productivity app really is.
Notion is definitely an app I cannot live without and I use it every single day not, it's actually replaced many of the apps I had been using before. You can use notion for just about everything but some of the ways I use Notion are to write out all my content for my blog posts, organized brain dumps and ideas, tracking my analytics. On a more personal note, I use Notion for managing my daily and weekly to-do's, for my mood boards and visions and to keep track of my watch list. I've also added another purpose for my notion and that as a budget tracker for each month. This app really is a multi-purpose platform.
If your a content creator, looking to improve your brand's presence or just someone who like to have a cohesive feed. Then this app is for you.
UNUM is the coolest kid on the block as for as Instagram theme app planners go. After spending hours creating amazing content, you need an app that is going to help you to plan out your Instagram feed. I had tried so many apps prior to this and actually had it downloaded on my smartphone for quite a long time before using it and that was one of my biggest mistakes. I had spent so much time looking for the right app when the entire time the app I needed was right in my hands.
UNUM is now the app I use to plan my feed plus it has this super nifty option to use Story Feeds, so I have been using it to plan my stories as well. The thing about UNUM that I love is that it's not restrictive in the slightest, you can use the app to create any feed whether it's TikTok, Snap Chat etc. The UNUM app also gives you the ability to edit your images but I mostly just use it to keep the aesthetic cohesive while laying out my future posts and rearrange them to ensure that the order they are in fits with everything else and looks good together.
This app is such a stress reliever because it takes all the pressure off content creation because everything is already planned in advance. So if you don't want the hassle of worrying what to post each day, you can just take a day to batch create your content and UNUM will literally do the rest. All your posts for the next week or two will be ready for posting. No more stressing out to find something to post.
PRO TIP: When you switch to a business account, you can use UNUM on your desktop to schedule your Instagram posts and content ahead of time to avoid a time crunch when it's time for posting!
Being organized and staying organized is something that I absolutely love, so finding tools that make this process easier for me is a life saver in my opinion. No matter the occasion, I always have some kind of to-do list, whether it's on the notes apps, my notion or google to-do lists.
Regardless, I needed an app that would serve the sole purpose of allowing me to have a full view of my calendar while giving me the option to have reminders for my daily routines as a college student. I wanted to find an app to use that I could check things off my to do list, and be able to look at several different lists at a time. In my search, I found the Any.Do Task & To-Do List App and I fell in love! The app is absolutely FREE to download and has a very simple interface so its super easy to use.
In using this app for quite some time now, I noticed that there is really a sense of accomplishment you get when a task is completed and you just swipe it away. Another amazing feature about this app is its categories. When you are planning out your day, the app gives you the option to place your tasks in categories, 'today, tomorrow, upcoming and someday'. However, even though your tasks are categorised, they aren't locked into those categories because you can always move them around to suit your schedule. So, if you didn't get to complete a task today, you can always move it to tomorrow's agenda with ease. That means no more mental checklists!
If you upgrade to premium it unlock so many more features. Apart from a wide array of themes and backgrounds that are now available to you, you'll also have access to Focus Mode where you can concentrate more on your tasks by eliminating distractions to keep you on track. However, I must say my favourite feature about the premium plan is the ability to create reminders right from my WhatsApp conversations.
PRO TIP: You can also have different folders on the app for the many areas of your life whether it's personal, work or collaborations this app is guaranteed to make you life a whole lot easier. Plus, no more mental checklists
Canva is the next app on my list and I must say that this one is super easy and an absolute blast to use. It's an excellent tool for those who aren't necessarily versed in graphic design. Having beautiful and stunning graphics is so important to catch the attention of your audience. So, having a great platform where you can master your graphic design skills to create designs and make money online while your at it is amazing.
There are so many designs that can be created in Canva and if you’re a blogger like me, marketing your blog is a huge portion of your job. You’re responsible for making your own social media graphics (such as Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram), opt-ins, your logo, and so much more. I can definitely say, I love using Canva to easily design my Pinterest graphics in literally less than 10 minutes! Having upgraded to Canva Pro, has made my life as a blogger and entrepreneur so much easier. No matter what you need to design, whether you're a freelancer, online business owner or just a student, Canva is the Platform you need!
GOOGLE DRIVE
I used to have so many different folders on my laptop and I would get so overwhelmed because there would be a million folders when I needed to find something. Even worse, I started to run out of space and storing important files, etc. became such a hassle. That's until I discovered the power of Google Drive. In my Google Drive App I customized my folders to really match the aesthetic of my laptop and set the tone for me to actually use it.
Google Drive also has a lot of storage space so I never have to worry about diminishing my phone storage because I can just move everything there and it's so much easier that purchasing an external h-drive which you'll have to take with you everywhere. I love using this so much that I created like four google drive accounts( personal, blogging, online store and one for Etsy!)
I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is looking to save space while ensuring that your files, photos or documents are easy to access. Another great feature about Google Drive is that it makes it easy to share files between people, so collaborations with your team are now easier that ever.
TODOIST
As a solopreneur, my days can get pretty hectic and being able to have a firm grasps on my tasks can be a huge game changer and determinant in how much I am able to get done. It was actually my need to find an app that I could use on my computer that would allow me to keep track of my activities online that lead me to find Todoist.
Todoist is literally my favourite app for getting things done on a daily basis. This powerful and truly astounding piece of software has allowed me to be able to effectively manage not only my to-do lists each day but also my time. What I love about Todoist is the availability of their free plan, it has so many features that allow you to create literally 80 projects and add up to 5 people if you are part of a team for instance.
Some of their feature that really stuck with me include:
- Recurring task due dates
- Priority tasks
- Integrations along 10 platforms and devices
After using the app for the past 6 months, I must say so glad that I was able to find it. In fact, I became so hooked on the app early on and the changes I had seen in my productivity that I decided to upgrade to their premium plan. I was not disappointed.
Upgrading to their Premium plan allowed me to do so much more and if you are working from home or just have a really busy schedule you should definitely check this out. Some of the feature I was able to have access to once I upgraded include:
-Calendar syncing
-Manage up to 300 projects
-A shared team inbox
-A host of project templates
-Reminders (so helpful!)
-Project Labels
-Automatic Backups
-Email Forwarding
There's so much you can get done with this app, the possibilities are endless.
FOREST
Forest is a study timer that allows and encourages you to stay off your phone while you are getting work done. The idea behind the app is that you set that timer for the topic you want to study or task you want to complete and in completing your task you are able to plant a virtual tree.
One of my favourite things about the app is actually the concept. The way the app works is that if you leave the app before your task is completed your tree will die but if you manage to stay off your phone and stay committed to the task at hand for the entire time set, you will get coins which can be used in the app to buy new types or species of trees or plants.
However, if you accumulate enough coins they can also be used to finance the planting of a tree in the real world. I don't know about you guys but that's really inspiring. All in all, the app is such a great way to avoid being distracted by your phone and social media while your working and another thing I love is that it's available on my desktop as well.
MONEYFY
Moneyfy is an app that I use to track all of my spending. I use Moneyfy as a way to track my expenses each month and have an idea about where my money is going. With the app, you can categorize all your expenses and customize what your chart would look like.
After using Moneyfy for just one month of tracking everything I spent down to the last cent, I was able to determine exactly where the majority of my finances were going towards which was - food. Something that I really like about Moneyfy is that it's essentially a calculator that allows you to see the total amount that you are spending.
Now, I don't depend on this fully to track my expenses but it is a really great way to have a visual to represent where your money is going especially if you're an impulsive spender
Finally, there's the Pocket App. This app has been such a major help in keeping track of articles I find online. Pocket is an app that helps you to save interest articles, videos etc. that you find online that you can enjoy later. I love this app so much but one of the things that I found to be a great feature is that it allows me to be able to use it on my phone, my desk top and my tablet and I am able to sync everything that I have regardless of which device I am using. So no matter where I am, I can have those articles with me. I love staying productive so having them with me no matter what allows me to never feel like I am wasting time.
Also, I really love their newsletter because I get really great suggestion for articles that I should check out or that they think I would love. Plus, when I read the newsletter I can also save them to the app right then. So essentially you're just pocketing good articles to save for later which is really cool.
Using these apps can save you so much time and energy each day, leaving room for you to spend time on more important tasks and activities. from your day, leaving room for the more important stuff. Leave me a comment and let me know what your favourite app is and how it has made your life easier.
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