The 5 Best Productivity Apps for Entrepreneurs They keep track of those myriad details of work, so you don't have to.
By Lanna Apisukh •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Advanced technology has changed employees' work habits, the management of their daily goals and the way they accomplish tasks. However, this progress has also brought increased workloads that require multitasking, which eventually may decrease effectiveness. So, how do entrepreneurs actually get any work done?
Related: 4 Time-Saving Apps Useful for Every Harried Entrepreneur
Fortunately, technology has made it easier for entrepreneurs to accomplish routine tasks, manage time more efficiently and keep track of responsibilities in a more orderly fashion.
Credit the gaggle of mobile productivity apps now available on the market. However, it's important to know how to choose the right app for your work style. Below are some of the apps that do a good job helping you to avoid the distractions of everyday demands.
1. Evernote
Through Evernote's web and mobile app, you can create digital notebooks for everything from keeping track of your expenses and managing your calendar, to creating slideshow presentations and planning your next trip. Whether it's personal or business expenses, keeping track of receipts is impossible for even the most organized of people. By creating one of Evernote's digital notebooks, you're able to screen-shot your receipt right after payment, making it easier to locate expenses in the future.
The best way to use Evernote, though, is to take advantage of everything else it has to offer. The more notebooks you add, the more valuable the app becomes. Try taking snapshots of everything in your office and on your shelves, then insert it all into a notebook and relieve the stress of sorting through papers. All you have to do is tag the notes you're taking for easy search access at a later date. It's a game changer when you're scrambling for those notes you quickly jotted down during your weekly meetings.
2. Letterspace
It's imperative for entrepreneurs to make important decisions on the company's future without neglecting everyday responsibilities and tasks. For example, no one actually enjoys taking notes, but it's essential. This is where Letterspace comes into play. It's a great -- and free -- note-taking app that utilizes hashtags to organize your thoughts into a sophisticated and easy-to-use interface. One of Letterspace's most beneficial features is the cursor that sits directly above the keyboard. This feature allows users to move paragraphs of notes around making it easier than ever for entrepreneurs to edit anything from a paragraph switch to a simple typo.
Related: 8 Business Practices That Increase Productivity
3. Humin
Ask any entrepreneur: He or she will tell you that the essence of business success lies in making the right connections -- whether they be for potential new business, partnerships or that next round of funding. Entrepreneurs are constantly networking and conducting meetings, but it can be almost impossible to keep track of how and where you met someone. Humin handles all of that for you. When you insert information into the app, it remembers all of the tiny details of how and where you met someone, allowing you to actually be in the moment instead of trying to remember information later. Humin solves this problem by combining your contacts, dialing and voice mailbox to calculate who your most important contacts are.
4. LISTEN
Another productivity app to consider is LISTEN, developed by RealNetworks, the company I work with. LISTEN's innovative app utilizes ringback tone technology to respond to incoming calls when you're too busy to answer the phone. Its newly released 2.0 features also include auto SMS reply capabilities which, when enabled, respond to both inbound calls and incoming text messages. You can also customize both your voice and SMS responses, giving contacts a specific heads-up (e.g., "About to close on a deal; let me call you back!"). LISTEN further boasts such 2.0 personalization features as Calendar Integration (syncs your auto replies with your meetings) and Location Detection, which responds to calls and text messages based on your geographic location. Also be sure to try LISTEN's Drive mode, which will play a status message informing callers (and texters) when you're behind the wheel.
5. Workflow
Time management is yet another key part to building and running a successful business. Managing workflow is the foundation of utilizing time effectively. With the Workflow app, you're able to customize your phone so you can bypass tasks that are a waste of time. For example, you can call an Uber in advance of your next calendar event or create a button to give your mom a quick call. Workflow allows you to create any type of button for any type of activity that you may do on a regular basis and with the simple click of that button your task is being completed.
