Productivity helps you achieve your goals efficiently, like meeting deadlines for clients and completing the items on your daily task list. When your productivity drops, the effects are noticeable. For example, tasks are left undone, incomplete, or rushed, all of which can lead to a disappointing outcome. However, being exceptionally productive isn’t as easy as it seems.
Your ability to be productive relies on a multitude of factors, like establishing a work-life balance, having the motivation to get things done, and being committed to seeing tasks through to the end. These seem simple enough, but even when you’re fully dedicated, there are many things that can get in the way.
If you have pressing deadlines or if other people rely on your work to move forward, you can increase your productivity by embracing the following technology.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the best technological advancements we’ve seen emerge in a long time. While it’s not truly sentient (yet), it can do wonders to improve productivity. For example, at the end of October, the iPhone 16 is getting upgraded with Apple Intelligence, which promises to make everyday tasks easier. For example, users will be able to write an email and have the AI system rewrite it in a more professional (or more casual) tone. For the sake of brevity, users can also ask Apple Intelligence to condense long text into a short summary, a bulleted list, or even a table with data. It will even automatically suggest responses to emails and text messages.
Another useful feature is the generative AI for images. If you need to take photos as part of your job, you won’t need to deal with complicated edits to perfect them. Just use the embedded feature right in your iPhone to remove unwanted elements from an image, which means you can post the image much faster and you don’t have to wait on anyone else if you aren’t good with editing.
If you’ve already been looking at the new iPhone 16, you’ll need to buy at least the Pro model to get access to Apple Intelligence. The upgrade is coming with the release of iOS 18.1, which requires the Pro or Max models. It’s going to be a significant investment, but as long as you get phone insurance and protect it with a phone case proven to withstand drops and shocks, it will be money well spent. Having an AI assistant will make you more productive, and you can’t put a price tag on that.
Task management software
No matter how good you are at completing tasks, it always helps to keep them organized where you can see all of your weekly and daily tasks at a glance, receive email reminders, and get updates as soon as someone comments or assigns you a new task.
Using an app like Basecamp, Asana, or Monday will help you stay on track by the hour if that’s how you work best. You’ll have a task list to review and check off as you get through your day, and nothing will be left to memory. A task management solution will help you prioritize your tasks, which will lead to better time management. Once you’re able to make the best use of your time throughout the day, you’ll notice an uptick in productivity because you’ll accomplish more in less time.
Screen time apps
If you’re someone who gets easily distracted by social media notifications, emails, and YouTube videos, you’ll benefit from using a screen time app. All you need to do is use it for a week to find out how much time you’re spending using each app. Seeing the reality of how much time you’re wasting will tell you exactly how much more time you’ll have to get your daily work completed. When you stop spending time on social media and checking your email, you’ll automatically be more productive.
Put every meeting in your calendar
Put every call and meeting in a calendar that will sync across all your devices. This simple, yet powerful action will make a massive difference in your productivity. Set an alarm to go off 15 minutes before your call or meeting, and stay focused on your work until you hear that alarm. You’ll never have to scramble at the last minute and put off important work because you’ve forgotten about a call. Also, never take unscheduled calls because that will tank your productivity.
Tech supports productivity
As long as you don’t get lost in the minutia of using too many applications, technology has the power to boost productivity by helping you manage your time and tasks more efficiently.