Rohan's blog

It’s not Notion, Bearapp, google docs or your so loved productivity app…

Time is limited. You, me and even Elon Musk has 24 hours. You can buy time with money. But there is an upper cap.

Not even one second for more than 24 hours. Out of which, you sleep for about 8 hours or so. And there are certain things you need to do yourself only like brushing teeth, showering and your leisure time.

You can buy tools but you have to do it yourself. It will consume time. After all of this, you will have roughly 14 hours of time.

Now, everyone is in a race to maximize this time. That’s productivity for you in a nutshell.

Slave Treatment

If you work in a traditional company, your boss will check how much time are you working. Although you will be entitled leaves, she will force you to not take them. And when you do go on holiday, she will email you tonnes of work for you to do some on your holiday.

Basically, she is making you productive without your will and with no rewards of any kind.

In her eyes, she is making you do every bit of work possible in your time – making her seem good and company earning millions.

While you are told, it’s your job to do this and your salary is a gift. You should be happy that you got a job in the first place.

This is why many people don’t want to maximize in a typical work environment. It’s basically modern slavery.

Should You Be Productive

The answer seems easy – YES.

But that’s something you have to decide for yourself. First and foremost – if you are being forced to do something then it’s bad. Try to get out of that situation – take help from your peers, family and friends.

Doing more isn’t being productive. You can punch holes in papers all day for 20 hours. But the value you generate isn’t humungous.

And then there is do you want to be productive in the first place.

Because the world has progressed a lot – and now you should aim for a multitude of things. And not simply, being most efficient.

Zen Mode

What you want to achieve might differ from everyone else. But a common theme that is generating is that you want freedom, peace and calmness.

Freedom to do whatever you want with your time. Peace within self and being calm all the time. Now, if you are constantly chasing higher status in a game, you will hardly find all these qualities.

What if you decide – it’s enough for you. The amount of money saved, the lifestyle you have and the friends around you – enough.

Suddenly, you are at ease. You have the freedom to say NO because you don’t want more, you have enough.

Less interaction over a game so less conflict and you can stay at peace and slowly you can calm yourself over a long-time.

Productivity Apps

There are tons of productivity apps from the timer to scheduling to taking notes. And some which act as an all in one.

Many have great features and really save you a lot of time. The promise is simple – save you time, give you clarity and help you do more at the same time. And they deliver. But there is a catch.

Often, you have to learn the UI and ways of doing things as per the app. And if you want to switch to another app, the learning curve is often steep.

And for it to work efficiently, everyone has to use the same app. Allow it to give notifications so you are in the loop.

Basically, you have to allow a new app to interrupt you in any way possible for it to work its the charm.

It’s partly annoying. Partly how all productivity apps work.

That’s one of the reasons why many people use it and suddenly stop using it. Either because they forget about it slowly. Or there is too much to remember about the app for it to function to it’s optimal.

Note-Taking App And Email

No matter in which way you want to be productive, it all comes down to having one note-taking app. Be it Notion, Roam or simple default one which you have in your mobile.

The note-taking app is the most popular choice because it can be used in many ways:

• Writing ideas.
• Having an editorial for things to publish.
• Something to remind you about.
• Having a checklist of things to do.
• Writing full-length articles.
• Future plans and goals tracking.

And many more thing. So, the note-taking app is the powerhouse productivity app for your life. But there’s a catch.

The Default App Of Yours

All of this is fine. And it works beautifully but you have to remember to check your note-taking app every day.

Only, then you can use it to its full potential. If you forget about checking it then you miss out on any important thing for that day.

There is no notification in-built in the note-taking app. And even if it was, it doesn’t work because your notes are not time-stamped.

For example, mine is like below:

1. Weekly goals: 2 articles, 3 videos
2. List of ideas.
3. Trips to go after the pandemic.
4. Things to buy.
5. Projects you are currently working on.

And seeing them daily helps me to move things and update my notes at the end of it. Now, I check my note-taking app Twist almost daily.

But if I don’t want to miss anything then I put my notes as an email from me to myself. Because I check my email every day without fail at least once.

Hence, I propose the best note-taking app for you would be the one which you can open daily. Or it has some integration with a tool like an email you use daily. So, you don’t have to worry about missing out on things because you were trying to become more productive.

Tools You Can Use

Here are some of the best productivity tools I use. You may find it useful.

• Gmail: free email service – I use it to note and do important things.
• Twist: Threaded comments and note-taking service, I use it to write many things I am doing.
• Notion: Organize and connect many ideas I am having.
• OneTab: Chrome extension to get back to websites I opened but didn’t interact with.

I hope you find your best productive app – whatever that maybe.