5 Apps That Make Life Easier for Harried CEOs Apps can't run your business for you but they can help keep the avalanche of details from burying you.
By Pratik Dholakiya •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
When you lead a company, you don't have any days off. You eat, sleep and breathe your business, with life squeezed in edgeways, if you're lucky. No matter how many trusted employees you may have, that need to be in control and on top of every crisis, however small, is inescapable.
But does that mean CEOs really have no life? I can vouch that's not the case for the ones that I know personally. In fact, I've found that the folks in the C-Suite tend to be the sharpest guys in town, figuring out ways and means to achieve the proverbial work-life balance in style.
Know a CEO who needs some respite and a helping hand? Show them this list of apps that will give them the gift of time and smarts, both at the same time.
1. Manage ideas.
Most CEOs have a million-and-one things on their minds at any given point in time. So what do you do when you have that game-changing eureka moment in the middle of an important meeting? Note it down for posterity on Evernote, of course.
Not only can you store your ideas in the form of notes or save an interesting clipping from the Internet inside Evernote, you can also share it easily with coworkers via email or social media. The built in chat option allows quick discussions on items shared on the go. The premium version of Evernote offers a host of exciting features like turning notes, scribbles and clippings into presentations in one step. It even allows you to scan business cards and add them to your contacts automatically.
Related: Cultivating The Mindset of a Successful Entrepreneur
2. Manage information.
If there ever was a threat to Flipboard and its roaring popularity, it's Inside. Inside is a news aggregator app with a difference. Instead of bringing you hundreds of articles arranged by interests, Inside brings you the top news stories in short 200 word snippets.
No one has the time to read through a 2000 word article only to find that it was utterly useless. Inside first shows you the top 50 stories of the hour in snippet style, in a single feed. Besides the main feed, users can customize their feeds with topics they care about. They can read a story in depth by swiping left on the snippet. Like most other news apps you can share news items, comment on them and upvote them to propel them into the top 50 list.
3. Manage relationships.
Most CEOs meet hundreds of new people via their work every single week. While many of them have little to no impact on our business or life, there'll always be those relationships that can blossom into profitable partnerships with just a little bit of nurturing. Contactually is a contact management app that prevents important contacts from slipping through the cracks and helps you nurture potentially profitable relationships.
The app consolidates all your contacts from your smartphone, email and social networks all in one place. It then asks you to segregate your contacts into neat buckets based on their importance to you and set reminders for each of them. Based on your buckets, you'll receive reminders to contact Mr. XYZ whose detailed profile information is available at your fingertips on Contactually. You can then confidently pick up that phone and chat with Mr. XYZ about your last conversation, their latest holiday or a new promotion -- all tips from Contactually.
Related: 6 Ways to Cultivate Your VIP Relationships
4. Manage travel.
A CEO who doesn't travel is a CEO who's not going places. Literally and figuratively.
Fall back on the old favorite in travel planning TripIt, when you want sanity over your travel plans. Just forward your travel bookings -- air tickets, hotels, car rentals -- to TripIt's official email ID. The app then consolidates all your paperwork to create a single itinerary for your trip. From sending you automatic updates about flight changes to locating alternate flights, choosing the best seats on the plane to even chasing down your refund when you cancel a flight; there's seemingly nothing this masterful tool can't do.
5. Manage life.
So, you thought I forgot all those platitudes I gave about work-life balance at the beginning of this article? No sir!
After all that work, every CEO has fairly won themselves the right to a real break. And what better way to take a break than with a few great friends and a bottle of the finest vino? Head to Wineosphere for authentic reviews about the best wines in town. The app also tells you where to buy these wines, offers you deals and discounts on your purchases and lets you share your latest discoveries with your friends on social media. Go ahead, let the cares of those long hard days melt away into a classic bottle of Sauvignon Blanc!
Related: How to Manage Time With 10 Tips That Work
