5 Office Management Tools to Help You Get Organized

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5 Office Management Tools to Help You Get Organized

Professionals often begin each year with a goal to get more organized. But with so much to do in a given day, it’s almost impossible to set time aside to make lists and sort through piles of clutter. While an app can’t help with the mess in your office, it can help you be more efficient and productive.

As someone who firmly embraces technology, there are a few apps I can recommend that can make life easier for professionals. These tools may even help you squeeze a few extra minutes into your day to sort through those stacks of paper on your desk.

• Evernoteâ€" If you’ve ever had a great idea while you were in line at the post office or struggled to remember the name of someone you met last week, Evernote can help. Residing on your smartphone or tablet, Evernote lets you take notes, snap pictures, and save websites in one app. It’s also great for organizing your next conference. You can save your agendas and itineraries in the app for use once you arrive.
• Wunderlistâ€" This app supercharges the to-do list concept, making it easy to not only make a list, but to delegate items to other team members. Once items are added, they can be sorted using a variety of criteria, with items moved to a separate area once they’ve been completed.
• Clearâ€" Made exclusively for iOS devices, Clear allows user to make lists and move items around using screen swipes. The app’s attractive design makes it stand out among the many list-making apps available for mobile devices. To create an item, you pull down on the bar at the top of the list. Once an item is completed, simply swipe over that item and it’s marked as complete.
• Basecampâ€" Today’s teams are rarely gathered in one place, with members traveling, working from home, and moving from one meeting to another. Basecamp creates a central location for employees to meet, providing a place to share documents, post quick updates, and provide to-do lists. Tasks can be created and assigned directly in the software, with accessibility from anywhere.
• Remember the Milkâ€" With the exception of its attention-getting name, Remember the Milk looks like many other list-making apps on the surface. But one thing that sets this app apart is that items can be sent to the app from a wide range of places, including Outlook, Gmail, Twitter, and Bookmarklet. Bookmarklet is another great app that can help with organization, allowing webpages to be saved without ads and other clutter for easy reading at your convenience.

These great tools are only as helpful as the person using them. Setting time aside throughout the day to update lists and create new items can make a big difference. At the very least, you’ll feel as though you’re taking control of the clutter. You’ll also set a great example for your co-workers, who will notice the difference in your productivity and may even be inspired to try out a few of these apps themselves.