Time management and organizers
Time management is a very difficult task for many modern and active people, but the ability to manage their time, as a rule, is the secret of success. The rapidity of the passage of time and the development of technology make proper time allocation a serious problem. Many different courses and seminars can teach you how to use your time more efficiently, competently draw up a plan of your activities, set goals and achieve your goals within the stipulated time.
It is not necessary to take any courses to learn how to manage your time. We offer a simple and affordable way to help structure your schedule and free up some free time.
Perhaps the simplest and most well-known means of self-organization is the nose, on which everything must be hacked. Of course, we are not talking about the organ of smell, but about a simple device for memorization. The nose was a wooden plank, on which it was necessary to make marks, to remind myself of some important matter. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to remember what kind of business the user left a note for himself.
')
With the development of personal technology, there were needs that ordinary paper diaries and planners could no longer satisfy. Let's see which gadgets and time planning programs existed, say, twenty years ago.
In the market of electronic devices, quite functional personal organizers appeared, which fit in a hand (although rather large). Monochrome LCD-display, a small keyboard and 512 kilobytes of memory was enough for the basic functions of the digital organizer.
The Japanese company Sharp Corporation was engaged in the release of a series of organizers «Sharp Wizard». One of the models, the OZ9600, was equipped with a pen for writing or drawing. According to the manufacturer, this allowed to solve the problem of "thumbs", which is difficult to hit on the controls. Device memory could be expanded with external memory cards. To connect two Sharp Wizards, the device has an infrared port, which allows you to transfer contacts, documents and notes to another organizer. In addition, using the infrared port, you could connect to a computer and print the necessary information on the printer. And with the help of a connected modem, this little assistant could turn into a small online terminal, with which it was possible to send an email or fax.
Another notable representative of this category of gadgets is the Casio BOSS (Business Organizer Scheduling System - business scheduling system). In addition to the ordinary calendar, to-do list and telephone directory, the device is distinguished by a built-in spreadsheet editor compatible with the popular tabular processor of that time, Lotus 1-2-3. The organizer is really personal: confidential information can be protected with a password. External plug-in modem allows you to connect to the network, check and send e-mail and fax.
The experimental product was the organizer Seiko UC-2000. These seemingly unremarkable watches were in fact a portable mini-computer equipped with an external dock, which, by the way, worked on three AA batteries. As many as two kilobytes of information were placed in this device, and if necessary, he knew how to show time and remind of upcoming events. Content could be managed without a dock, using standard control buttons. In addition, this unusual device could perform the functions of a simple calculator.
Pay attention to the software. For computers running the Macintosh, In control has become widely known. The program is great for team planning and segregation of duties. The main objects of the program are projects and tasks. Tasks can be grouped and prioritized, as well as delegated to specific people. For personal use, the scheduler is more convenient (To Do list). The program's tools allow you to associate any entry in the organizer with a specific file on the computer disk. A convenient presentation of the calendar in the form of a tape of time very clearly demonstrates all your plans for the near future.
Of the organizers for the PC is to provide a paid Lotus Organizer from Lotus Development Corporation. The developers of this application have focused on the compliance of the program interface with the appearance of an ordinary paper planner. Which, frankly, the usability of the program hurt the order (the fake drawn rings, which supposedly hold virtual pages, occupy almost half of the useful space of the window). The program uses a system of tabs with which you can quickly navigate to the calendar, telephone directory or time line. A handy feature of the program is the ability to create cross-references between entries and contacts on the fly.
So, as for modern organizers. Outside the XXI century, and people came up with a huge variety of ways, how to save your time, how to clean up your head and life. To consider all of them, in our opinion, is impossible, but our task is somewhat different. You can select the brightest subjects.
To begin, consider the organizers of the top 3 category according to the site time-tracking-management-software-review.toptenreviews.com
BillQuick Online is an example of an organizer that is suitable for one person as well as for large companies. It is also appropriate for staff and project managers, as there are an abundance of options for customizing your organizer. In the process of recording the time of your activity, the application captures the data in such a way that you can use the built-in business intelligence tools that communicate their solutions to improve efficiency.
In addition, besides the online service, BillQuick has local versions. You can install the program on your work computer and use the organizer without an Internet connection, or install the application on your work server for remote users, which, again, allows you to work with BillQuick on your computers even when there is no Internet connection.
Tenrox Timesheet is a “web-based” organizer that allows you to monitor the status of your project, keep track of hours of execution and send information about payroll reports from almost anywhere. All you need is an internet connection.
Tenrox will help you track whether the company fulfills all the necessary requirements and assigned tasks. You can also program your application to support your personal internal overtime requirements, diseases, and project requirements.
Replicon is a “web-based” organizer that allows time management of large and small organizations. Since Replicon keeps your data online, you don’t need to worry about any platform updates and store data recovery files.
Workers can use Replicon to send information to their colleagues, and there are various modules for management that can help you learn things like project costs, customer accounts, payroll, and productivity. The account supports multi-level access, the hierarchy of resolutions is respected.
Unfortunately, in our opinion, a very convenient organizer for companies, called MinuteHound, did not get into the rating of the review reviewed.
- "web-based" time manager, which provides the ability to see all transactions in the current time. You can see who is working, and who is not, how many hours have been spent, and many other things. This organizer is very flexible in settings.
If your organization is large enough, then you will not pay for the license, but for the number of employees and enterprises you manage.
With the help of this management you will monitor the workflow in the "live broadcast" mode, you can manage loads and tasks. For all this, you have all the necessary tools.
Well, all these organizers are extremely convenient, but they are still more designed for large companies. Naturally, they can be programmed for personal use, but we will look at a couple of “personal” organizers.
- A way to manage time for modern and active people.
The program allows you to plan your work day, manage your projects, store the necessary documents, analyze tasks of any complexity, presenting them visually to yourself.
LeaderTask is also a scheduler, file and password manager, phone and address book and calendar. The program gives you the opportunity to see tasks during a month, week or day, but you can always go back to notes made earlier and make any changes, set a reminder, or connect with other events of your calendar.
This organizer is very easy to learn and use. The service also offers you application guides, offline and online help.
All of the above applications are paid options for your time management. But you do not have to pay to get what you want? In skillful hands, even a simple calendar on a phone or computer becomes quite flexible and powerful organizer. Evaluate your needs and take a closer look at the standard tools of this application on your favorite device: perhaps this calendar can do everything you need from it.
Also on the Internet it is possible to find quite convenient and free programs for your time management.
One of the options for a free and convenient time manager is the online version of miniplan.ru.
- one of the best free organizers, which is a truncated version of the more serious and paid project "Megaplan." On the one hand, this is a regular organizer in which you can add cases and notes, but on the other hand, it is a very powerful tool for self-organization. Thanks to the email, phone and jabber notification capabilities, you will definitely not miss a single case, and the local TaskPotch panel will allow you to store a lot of notes, add cases directly to your watch, and even draw (it can be very useful for focusing on or information).
The mini-plan is extremely easy to use, and you can learn how to use it in one minute, thanks to the tutorial video on the main page, and the registration takes no more than ten seconds, which allows you to get started quickly and easily. In general, we were very pleased with this service, because He really helped to use time more efficiently and introduced us to the online organizers in general. If you are full of cases and you do not need to keep a lot of notes, then this service will be your perfect assistant.
Impressive functionality of the organizer program from Microsoft, which is part of Microsoft Office - Microsoft OneNote. Text notes are easily sorted by directories, and the tree structure will keep your notes in order. Audio recordings and video clips can be added to notes quickly and conveniently if they are related to recording. Handwriting is also supported if you use OneNote on your tablet. The program supports synchronization of information between devices running Windows, including Windows Mobile. In Windows 8, a metro application has become available that allows you to access your notes online.
Among the giants of online organizers, Evernote and the recently launched Google Keep stand out.
- Multi-platform cloud service for storing various text notes, documents, images, media files. Your data is stored on the project server can easily be synchronized between all devices. Files can be attached to text notes (for a free account - up to 25 megabytes, which is quite enough), and the notes themselves can be sorted by directories. All images attached to the records are recognized on the Evernote server, and the results are included in the search index. Evernote has the ability to add audio notes or save your location. And, of course, your data will always be safe - they can be easily encrypted.
Google's online organizer (https://drive.google.com/keep/) seems pretty simple-minded. The service allows you to create “on the fly” disordered notes in any place that has access to the Internet. Full integration with other Google services is provided. Google Keep is available from a browser or Android application.
So, all the variety of existing tools or techniques does not save you from having to keep in mind the main plans and objectives. There are various techniques, perhaps you already have your own, which allows you to remain self-organized. If not, we can offer you some recommendations on how to use organizers correctly.
If you are a person far from modern information technologies, you have an excellent memory and you do not have a gadget smarter than you, it is quite possible that you should not think about third-party gadgets. Perhaps pen and paper are your best helpers in organizing yourself. On the other hand, if you are a happy owner of a device that is convenient for accessing the Internet, and you want to squeeze more benefit for yourself (and from yourself), then you are able to use any online service if you are not sufficiently collected.
Set yourself a reminder if your short-term memory periodically fails you. This will help not to be late for an important meeting (or date). The main convenience of such a device is that it is always at hand. But be careful: if you are easily distracted, you can easily be not in your favorite organizer, but on VKontakte somewhere. If your organizer has the function of putting the program widget in a prominent place on the desktop, do it. If this is an online service, then make the page of this service the main one. (If after that another browser becomes your favorite browser - well, you have to make this page the main one there.)
Try to get in the habit of recording your interesting thoughts and plans and review your notes every week. After some of them you can send to the archive or further develop. Free up your memory for more important things. And do not forget to back up!
And yet, all modern services and gadgets will be useful only if you really want to use your time to the maximum and do more. It is unlikely that the to-do list for the week will be useful if it remains dead in kilobytes in the memory of your organizer.
In the event that you still have not found a suitable time management technique, we advise you to pay attention to such time management technologies as MindMap , GTD , Do Less . Experiment and choose what suits you best, and someday you will become the true owner of your time.
time-tracking-management-software-review.toptenreviews.com
Telecast "Computer Chronicles" - "The Best Organizer Software And Hardware", 1993.
It is not necessary to take any courses to learn how to manage your time. We offer a simple and affordable way to help structure your schedule and free up some free time.
Past organizers
Perhaps the simplest and most well-known means of self-organization is the nose, on which everything must be hacked. Of course, we are not talking about the organ of smell, but about a simple device for memorization. The nose was a wooden plank, on which it was necessary to make marks, to remind myself of some important matter. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to remember what kind of business the user left a note for himself.
')
With the development of personal technology, there were needs that ordinary paper diaries and planners could no longer satisfy. Let's see which gadgets and time planning programs existed, say, twenty years ago.
In the market of electronic devices, quite functional personal organizers appeared, which fit in a hand (although rather large). Monochrome LCD-display, a small keyboard and 512 kilobytes of memory was enough for the basic functions of the digital organizer.
The Japanese company Sharp Corporation was engaged in the release of a series of organizers «Sharp Wizard». One of the models, the OZ9600, was equipped with a pen for writing or drawing. According to the manufacturer, this allowed to solve the problem of "thumbs", which is difficult to hit on the controls. Device memory could be expanded with external memory cards. To connect two Sharp Wizards, the device has an infrared port, which allows you to transfer contacts, documents and notes to another organizer. In addition, using the infrared port, you could connect to a computer and print the necessary information on the printer. And with the help of a connected modem, this little assistant could turn into a small online terminal, with which it was possible to send an email or fax.
Another notable representative of this category of gadgets is the Casio BOSS (Business Organizer Scheduling System - business scheduling system). In addition to the ordinary calendar, to-do list and telephone directory, the device is distinguished by a built-in spreadsheet editor compatible with the popular tabular processor of that time, Lotus 1-2-3. The organizer is really personal: confidential information can be protected with a password. External plug-in modem allows you to connect to the network, check and send e-mail and fax.
The experimental product was the organizer Seiko UC-2000. These seemingly unremarkable watches were in fact a portable mini-computer equipped with an external dock, which, by the way, worked on three AA batteries. As many as two kilobytes of information were placed in this device, and if necessary, he knew how to show time and remind of upcoming events. Content could be managed without a dock, using standard control buttons. In addition, this unusual device could perform the functions of a simple calculator.
Pay attention to the software. For computers running the Macintosh, In control has become widely known. The program is great for team planning and segregation of duties. The main objects of the program are projects and tasks. Tasks can be grouped and prioritized, as well as delegated to specific people. For personal use, the scheduler is more convenient (To Do list). The program's tools allow you to associate any entry in the organizer with a specific file on the computer disk. A convenient presentation of the calendar in the form of a tape of time very clearly demonstrates all your plans for the near future.
Of the organizers for the PC is to provide a paid Lotus Organizer from Lotus Development Corporation. The developers of this application have focused on the compliance of the program interface with the appearance of an ordinary paper planner. Which, frankly, the usability of the program hurt the order (the fake drawn rings, which supposedly hold virtual pages, occupy almost half of the useful space of the window). The program uses a system of tabs with which you can quickly navigate to the calendar, telephone directory or time line. A handy feature of the program is the ability to create cross-references between entries and contacts on the fly.
Modern organizers
So, as for modern organizers. Outside the XXI century, and people came up with a huge variety of ways, how to save your time, how to clean up your head and life. To consider all of them, in our opinion, is impossible, but our task is somewhat different. You can select the brightest subjects.
To begin, consider the organizers of the top 3 category according to the site time-tracking-management-software-review.toptenreviews.com
BillQuick Online
BillQuick Online is an example of an organizer that is suitable for one person as well as for large companies. It is also appropriate for staff and project managers, as there are an abundance of options for customizing your organizer. In the process of recording the time of your activity, the application captures the data in such a way that you can use the built-in business intelligence tools that communicate their solutions to improve efficiency.
In addition, besides the online service, BillQuick has local versions. You can install the program on your work computer and use the organizer without an Internet connection, or install the application on your work server for remote users, which, again, allows you to work with BillQuick on your computers even when there is no Internet connection.
Tenrox Timesheet
Tenrox Timesheet is a “web-based” organizer that allows you to monitor the status of your project, keep track of hours of execution and send information about payroll reports from almost anywhere. All you need is an internet connection.
Tenrox will help you track whether the company fulfills all the necessary requirements and assigned tasks. You can also program your application to support your personal internal overtime requirements, diseases, and project requirements.
Replicon
Replicon is a “web-based” organizer that allows time management of large and small organizations. Since Replicon keeps your data online, you don’t need to worry about any platform updates and store data recovery files.
Workers can use Replicon to send information to their colleagues, and there are various modules for management that can help you learn things like project costs, customer accounts, payroll, and productivity. The account supports multi-level access, the hierarchy of resolutions is respected.
Unfortunately, in our opinion, a very convenient organizer for companies, called MinuteHound, did not get into the rating of the review reviewed.
Minutehound
- "web-based" time manager, which provides the ability to see all transactions in the current time. You can see who is working, and who is not, how many hours have been spent, and many other things. This organizer is very flexible in settings.
If your organization is large enough, then you will not pay for the license, but for the number of employees and enterprises you manage.
With the help of this management you will monitor the workflow in the "live broadcast" mode, you can manage loads and tasks. For all this, you have all the necessary tools.
Well, all these organizers are extremely convenient, but they are still more designed for large companies. Naturally, they can be programmed for personal use, but we will look at a couple of “personal” organizers.
The LeaderTask electronic organizer
- A way to manage time for modern and active people.
The program allows you to plan your work day, manage your projects, store the necessary documents, analyze tasks of any complexity, presenting them visually to yourself.
LeaderTask is also a scheduler, file and password manager, phone and address book and calendar. The program gives you the opportunity to see tasks during a month, week or day, but you can always go back to notes made earlier and make any changes, set a reminder, or connect with other events of your calendar.
This organizer is very easy to learn and use. The service also offers you application guides, offline and online help.
All of the above applications are paid options for your time management. But you do not have to pay to get what you want? In skillful hands, even a simple calendar on a phone or computer becomes quite flexible and powerful organizer. Evaluate your needs and take a closer look at the standard tools of this application on your favorite device: perhaps this calendar can do everything you need from it.
Also on the Internet it is possible to find quite convenient and free programs for your time management.
One of the options for a free and convenient time manager is the online version of miniplan.ru.
Miniplan
- one of the best free organizers, which is a truncated version of the more serious and paid project "Megaplan." On the one hand, this is a regular organizer in which you can add cases and notes, but on the other hand, it is a very powerful tool for self-organization. Thanks to the email, phone and jabber notification capabilities, you will definitely not miss a single case, and the local TaskPotch panel will allow you to store a lot of notes, add cases directly to your watch, and even draw (it can be very useful for focusing on or information).
The mini-plan is extremely easy to use, and you can learn how to use it in one minute, thanks to the tutorial video on the main page, and the registration takes no more than ten seconds, which allows you to get started quickly and easily. In general, we were very pleased with this service, because He really helped to use time more efficiently and introduced us to the online organizers in general. If you are full of cases and you do not need to keep a lot of notes, then this service will be your perfect assistant.
Microsoft OneNote
Impressive functionality of the organizer program from Microsoft, which is part of Microsoft Office - Microsoft OneNote. Text notes are easily sorted by directories, and the tree structure will keep your notes in order. Audio recordings and video clips can be added to notes quickly and conveniently if they are related to recording. Handwriting is also supported if you use OneNote on your tablet. The program supports synchronization of information between devices running Windows, including Windows Mobile. In Windows 8, a metro application has become available that allows you to access your notes online.
Among the giants of online organizers, Evernote and the recently launched Google Keep stand out.
Evernote
- Multi-platform cloud service for storing various text notes, documents, images, media files. Your data is stored on the project server can easily be synchronized between all devices. Files can be attached to text notes (for a free account - up to 25 megabytes, which is quite enough), and the notes themselves can be sorted by directories. All images attached to the records are recognized on the Evernote server, and the results are included in the search index. Evernote has the ability to add audio notes or save your location. And, of course, your data will always be safe - they can be easily encrypted.
Google keep
Google's online organizer (https://drive.google.com/keep/) seems pretty simple-minded. The service allows you to create “on the fly” disordered notes in any place that has access to the Internet. Full integration with other Google services is provided. Google Keep is available from a browser or Android application.
And how to use it?
So, all the variety of existing tools or techniques does not save you from having to keep in mind the main plans and objectives. There are various techniques, perhaps you already have your own, which allows you to remain self-organized. If not, we can offer you some recommendations on how to use organizers correctly.
If you are a person far from modern information technologies, you have an excellent memory and you do not have a gadget smarter than you, it is quite possible that you should not think about third-party gadgets. Perhaps pen and paper are your best helpers in organizing yourself. On the other hand, if you are a happy owner of a device that is convenient for accessing the Internet, and you want to squeeze more benefit for yourself (and from yourself), then you are able to use any online service if you are not sufficiently collected.
Set yourself a reminder if your short-term memory periodically fails you. This will help not to be late for an important meeting (or date). The main convenience of such a device is that it is always at hand. But be careful: if you are easily distracted, you can easily be not in your favorite organizer, but on VKontakte somewhere. If your organizer has the function of putting the program widget in a prominent place on the desktop, do it. If this is an online service, then make the page of this service the main one. (If after that another browser becomes your favorite browser - well, you have to make this page the main one there.)
Try to get in the habit of recording your interesting thoughts and plans and review your notes every week. After some of them you can send to the archive or further develop. Free up your memory for more important things. And do not forget to back up!
And yet, all modern services and gadgets will be useful only if you really want to use your time to the maximum and do more. It is unlikely that the to-do list for the week will be useful if it remains dead in kilobytes in the memory of your organizer.
In the event that you still have not found a suitable time management technique, we advise you to pay attention to such time management technologies as MindMap , GTD , Do Less . Experiment and choose what suits you best, and someday you will become the true owner of your time.
Sources:
time-tracking-management-software-review.toptenreviews.com
Telecast "Computer Chronicles" - "The Best Organizer Software And Hardware", 1993.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/180277/
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