We know that your digital working day can feel identical to the one before: same old emails, same old apps you’re opening and closing constantly (hello Instagram), same old browser searches.
On average, you’ll receive over 100 emails a day while at work. In the US, the average working adult spends 5 hours looking at emails, and 13% check their work emails in bed. You might as well be getting some emails in that aren’t from annoying Jill from Finance, or newsletters from a brand you signed up to receive emails from 3 years ago because you wanted to get a discount code.
Apple users can access over 1.96 millions apps, and for Google Play users that number soars to over 2.87 million. There’s got to be some good ones in there that won’t disappoint you like when Flappy Bird was discontinued. There are – we’ve checked.
We’re here with some recommendations of apps, software, and newsletters that will add some spark back into your working week and spice up your inbox while also helping you smash your career goals.
Software
Loved by over 20,000 users, Just Not Sorry, is an extension for Chrome that will highlight when you are “diminishing” your voice in emails. This includes apologising and words that suggest you’re unsure of yourself like “actually”.
You might well have been living under a rock if you haven’t seen a Grammarly ad or two (or 100) during your time on the internet. The spelling and grammar checker is used by 30,000,000 people every single day and you can download it for free.
How many tabs have you got open right now? If you’re anything like us, it’s probably 10+ and it’s not good for your computer or your peace of mind. Physical clutter is mental clutter, people. One Tab will collect all of your unopened tabs together in one list, saving up to 95% of memory and giving you some digital breathing space.
Seem to spend hours searching for people’s email addresses online? Hunter will provide you with the email address associated with any site that you open, saving you time and finding you the best contact for your your next email.
Every time you open a new tab page with Momentum, you’ll have a motivational quote pop up, a checklist reminder for something you want to achieve that day, and a beautiful photograph. What’s not to love? This extension will keep you feeling inspired and on-track throughout your working day.
Apps
Forever checking your phone when you’re meant to be in work-mode? We’ve all been there. Forest is a great app which will dissuade you from checking Instagram for the 100th time. Simply input how many minutes you want to be distraction-free for, and watch as a digital tree grows – pick up your phone and you kill the tree.
Trello is our favourite to-do list organiser. It’s easy to create new columns, to-do ‘cards’, and labels to keep you on-track and your priorities sorted.
Having important conversations with different people on different apps can be mind-boggling, and searching through your DMs, emails, texts, and WhatsApp messages to find one message is time-consuming and irritating. Cloze is a “relationship manager” app that combines your conversations into one place automatically.
Hours will help you keep track of the real amount of time you spend doing your various work tasks. Can never figure out why you don’t have enough time in the day to get the stuff done you need to get done, given that you only spend half an hour doing emails every day? Hours might give you the reality check that it’s more like 3 hours.
Ummo is the app that’ll help you smash your next presentation, your next salary review meeting, and networking event. We all ‘um’ and ‘uh yeah so anyway’ a lot more than we realise while we’re talking, and Ummo will highlight your favourite filler words while you talk, meaning you can focus on training yourself out of using them. “Like” is our biggest speech sin – what’s yours?
Newsletters
The Career Contessa newsletters are some of our favourites, giving you amazing career insights multiple times a week.
The Do Lectures‘ newsletter promises that it contains 5 things: ideas, optimism, encouragement, heart, and hope. Those are definitely things we could do with during the working week.
For The Interested is a newsletter for creative entrepreneurs looking for ways to expand their business and grow their audience. Sound like you?
Twice a month, Jocelyn K Glei sends out her insightful newsletter that shows you ways to be more creative in your working life. Jocelyn is a writer and podcaster on a mission to help us all work more creatively during the “Age of Distraction” and to become productive in a way that is nourishing and fulfilling to us.
And, of course, the The Art Gorgeous newsletter for all of your arty news needs. But you knew that already. 😉
Author: Verity Babbs
