TGIF, friends! I’ve been in *major* productivity mode lately. Granted, “productive” is my normal speed, so I start feeling antsy + shaky like a girl off of her coffee if I’m NOT being productive in some way/shape/form at any given moment. Sometimes, it’s a problem (like when at the spa… dayum girl, can ya just relaaaaaax for a hot sec??). But I just get such a ~rush~ from crossing things off of my list, so I’m all about learning + discovering new ways to become even more productive + get ish done. But I’m whipping this post out poolside, where I’ve got a pile of boarwalk fries + my current summer read, so I’m a happy camper. 🙂 We’ve been in Maryland for the past few days for one of J’s work conferences, so I just tagged along to use the pool + spa. #priorities. We’re heading home today and then I’m immediately off to one of my bestie’s Bachelorettes for the weekend, and then off AGAIN next week…and the week after that. So in between pina coladas means productivity to the max to – oh I dunno – actually get my work done, too. Ha!

While I AM a self-starter by nature, oftentimes I DO need that friendly push/assist to really amp up the productivity levels and get things movin’ + groovin’. In thinking about all of the different tools, apps, + such that I personally use to triple my OWN productivity , I figured it’d be fun to share with all of YOU, too. So…here are 12 tools to triple your productivity – consider this your headstart on next week’s productivity. 😉

1. StayFocused Google Chrome extension – This easy extension lets you block a specific website from your computer for a certain period of time. Once you’re on the site you don’t want to be on for productivity purposes (hollah @ Facebook), you just click the little timer icon in your extension toolbar, and hit “block this site” – it then blocks the site from being accessed for the specified duration of time. Super simple, super effective.
2. F.B. Purity Facebook app – Total transparency: I don’t use this one myself. But only because it’s a bit hard given my job – ha! BUT. This is an extension/app that hides the ads, suggested posts, posts you maky like, sponsored posts, games your friends are playing, more like, etc that ends up cluttering your feed to no end. Read up on it + give it a try here!
3. brain.fm app – Brain FM tunes you into music to improve your focus + sleep + relax! It IS , which is why I included it here for y’all, but I’d also recommend checking out Spotify and searching “focus” for a buncha focus-boosting playlists to help with your productivity, since that’s f-r-e-e.
4. Dashlane – I’ve mentioned Dashlane quite a few times in the past, and for good reason – I’ve been using it for forever at this point (as does J). It’s a totally safe, encrypted hub to hold all of your usernames + passwords in one place, and then autopopulate them into their respective fields when you hop on your favorite log-in-required websites. Boosts productivity cos ain’t nobody got time to remember 52 different username/password combos (and you know you should have different combos if you don’t wanna get hacked…)
5. Boomerang – My actual lifeline. I rely on Boomerang slightly less than bobby pins and oxygen. Boomerang is a Gmail extension that will “boomerang” an email back to your inbox on a specific day, at a specific time, that you designate. PERF if you need to remind yourself to reply to so-and-so, or if you don’t want to forget to follow up on a convo later.
6. Evernote – IDK if Evernote really triples my productivity, per say, but it sure as heck triples my life satisfaction. Ha! Evernote lets you create “notebooks” and categorize your books + notes accordingly, however ya want/need. I’m a big note taker (surprise, surprise…ha!), so this is my dream. I use it on my desktop, but also have the mobile app, so whenever/wherever I’m hit with major inspo or ALL THE IDEAS that I just need to jot down STAT, I’m set.
7. Trello – In the same vein as Evernote, Trello keeps ish *organized*. Instead of creating notebooks to write, you’re creating boards. Each board has different lists, so it’s create for keeping track of everything from to-do’s to goals to movies to watch. It’s all drag n’ droppable, too, AND you can invite folks to collaborate with you on boards.
8. Focus Keeper app – Easy phone app that utilizes the Pomodoro Method in theory. You go through “rounds” of 25 minute time intervals, and have specific “goals” to hit. The app does a little beep reminder to help you get more done – handy little thing to have on hand!
9. To-do list apps: Wunderlist, TickTick – These are just two of the different “to do list” sorta apps on my phone at the present. Wunderlist actually reminds me a LOT of Trello – you can create different “lists” and check things off accordingly. Groceries, movies to watch, travel, work, family – etc. TickTick, on the other hand, lets you add tasks + reminders, set repeating intervals for recurring tasks, subscribe to third-party calendars (hello, GCal), use folders + tags to categorize your lists, make checklists WITHIN lists, + more. Personally, I think Wunderlist is a *bit* more user friendly than TickTick, but both are good options if you want/need an organized system on your phone!
10. Cube timer – This little gem was a recent add in my Amazon cart, and I’m so glad I made the impulse buy. 😉 It’s a simple-enough timer; you just turn it on, then set it face-up on whichever time interval you’d like it set for. When it’s done, it beeps, and you flip the cube face-down to turn off the alarm. I prefer this over my phone timer when I’m working, because usually, the point is for me to not be NEAR my phone to really triple my productivity.
11. Disable notifications – Turn ’em off, yo! Put your phone on airplane mode, throw it in another room, and FORGET ABOUT IT (you know the accent).
12. Pause inbox – A new Gmail feature! Pause inbox let’s you do just that – pause your inbox. If you’re someone like me who either a.) always has email open (bad), b.) always jumps to check email notifications (bad), or c.) both of the above (guilty…and bad), this is HANDY. It legit stops new emails from appearing in your inbox until you un-pause it, or for a chosen duration of time. Tip: Don’t implement on a day when you actually DO have something important and/or urgent you’re waiting on or need to tend to ASAP. 😉 But if it’s a non-busy hour or two (or a day off – any time when you could/should take a hot sec break from email), considering pushing pause altogether. OR, just make sure you mark the “delivery exceptions” box to note a specific urgent message you might be expecting.

Have you tried any of these productivity maximizing tools yet?

If not, which sounds like it’ll help your own productivity the most? Do you have any that work really well for you that I didn’t mention here? LET A SISTAH KNOW in a comment down below!

Now go have yourself the most kickass weekend ever.