Top Ten Favorite Apps

Organize for Success® Turns 10

In honor of 10 years of business for Organize for Success®, I will be posting a "top 10" list to this blog each day through Wednesday, May 31st. Each Sunday, my team will randomly select from those who commented on the prior week's "top 10" blog posts for a gift card giveaway and free download of one eBook from OrganizeForSuccess.biz/shop. The grand prize package for celebrating Organize for Success, LLC's 10 years in business will be awarded on Thursday, June 1st, randomly selecting from all those who commented on any of the month's "top 10" blog posts as well as those who have subscribed to my eNewsletter for a winner to receive downloads of all 5 eBooks, a pass for my Stress and Time Management online video course as well as a 60-minute productivity consultation via video conference.

As a bit of a techie, narrowing down my favorite tech tools to only 10 is quite a challenge, but, today, here are my top 10 apps:

10. AroundMe - With all my traveling locally or nationwide, this app helps me quickly locate the closest coffee shop, gas station, movie theatre, parking deck, restaurant, grocery store or bank, allows me to search for specific businesses by name and shows the local weather report for wherever I might be located. Although there are separate apps I use for finding hidden treasures while traveling (like Along The Way, CurEat, Detour, Field Trip, Find. Eat. Drink., Gas Buddy, iExit, Offline, Peek and Roots Rated), this tool helps me easily find what I'm seeking amidst my surroundings no matter where I might be when doing the searching.

9. Doodle - Committee meetings, client sessions with corporate teams, planning appointments with those supporting my business efforts, getting my friends together for a girls' night out... There are countless times I need to schedule face-to-face commitments with groups of people. With Doodle, folks vote for which suggested option works best, and we schedule the meeting for whatever time works best for most, eliminating all the back-and-forth emailing.

8. Dropbox - Whether it's a Word document, Excel spreadsheet, PowerPoint presentation or PDF image, when I'm on-the-go, I must be able to quickly and easily access from any of my devices what files are needed; plus, many files are too large to email while a growing number of recipients are frightful to open unexpected attachments. Dropbox solves each of those issues: I can store files in the cloud to share between devices and easily share links for others to download items I'm trying to share with them.

7. Evernote - Online research, articles to review, training notes, ideas for upcoming workshops, checklists, client session summaries and much, much more... There's simply too much for my little brain to track, particularly since "Our brains are meant for thinking, not remembering", which is why Evernote's ability to help me "remember everything" is vital. My information syncs real-time between all my devices, organization is streamlined through notebooks and tags, I can quickly locate what I need when I need it, and I can easily collaborate with others. Amazing tool!

6. Facebook / Instagram - I am a big fan of the visual impact from scrolling through my Instagram feed; however, it's super frustrating to not be able to hyperlink those images directly to their related content. Facebook answers that quandary by allowing links alongside images, but it can get a bit cluttered at times. Both of these apps are owned by Facebook and make it difficult to see all the content shared by those you are following due to using algorithms; still, they offer great ways to stay connected with my favorite sources for up-to-date information as well as my friends.

5. PaperKarma - Want to cut down on the mail coming into your home or business? No need to go through the hassle of Catalog Choice. With this app, scan your address on the mailing label of what snail mail you've received; it'll block those future mailings. Although this app is on a brief hiatus right now, click on over to its website to be notified when it relaunches soon.

4. Scannable - There are many times I need to convert paper to an electronic file; this app easily captures the paper in my life quickly and beautifully, turning one page or multiple pages into high-quality scans that I can save to the photos on my phone, add to my account in Evernote, put in an online file repository, email someone or include in a text message. A great example is with magazine articles because I prefer reading my magazines in their printed forms but like to retain articles for later reference in an electronic form. Plus, if I use Scannable to scan business cards, the images become rich contacts with LinkedIn details, photos and the ability to add them to my phone's contacts.

3. Venmo - I'm often meeting clients in their offices or out at a public location, making it imperative to have this tool for collecting payments while out and about. Additionally, it's great for repaying friends for ticket purchases or splitting meals at restaurants. It pulls funds from the payee's Venmo account, bank account or debit account, moves money directly to the destination bank account in as little as one business day and is free unless the payment comes from a credit card, when it adds the standard 3% fee to the person making the payment, not whoever receives the money.

2. WRAL's Sports Fan - As a fan of the David Glenn Radio Show, which broadcasts noon - 3pm weekdays statewide across North Carolina, I like to catch what portions I can between appointments or while working on my Mac. Sometimes, I'm not in a position to listen to it on the radio, and this app makes it possible to catch the broadcast from wherever I'm working.

1. Zoom - Meeting virtually with clients nationwide requires a tool for face-to-face connections without having to travel any further than the screen of my tech tool. For 1-to-1 meetings, Zoom is quick, easy and free to use for video conferencing or screen-sharing, which is an awesome combo; then, for events with multiple participants, there are tiered pricing options.

Bonus - MusicID - I enjoy many different kinds of music but often hear a tune I like and wonder about the title / artist. When in doubt, I open MusicID, tap the circle for "Identify" and hold the phone near my speakers. Very quickly, all my questions about the song are answered, and I can hop to iTunes if I want to buy it.

Which apps are your favorites and why? Are there any on this list you'd like to check into further?