5 digital tools to boost your productivity

Digital calendar, desk, stationery - digital tools you can use.

As a busy mum it can feel impossible to keep track of everything, which is where digital tools make life much easier. With the right tools in place, you can organise your schedule, manage daily tasks, and become super productive, without relying on memory alone.

In this post you’ll learn what digital tools are, and how they can support your everyday life, from keeping track of family schedules, simplifying meal planning, and organising your never-ending to do list.

You’ll also discover practical ways to use each tool, so you can start seeing the results of digital productivity immediately. Plus, there’s a simple step-by-step approach to choosing the right tools for your needs.

By the end of this post you’ll have a clear understanding of which digital tools can support your daily life, and how to use them in ways that work for you.

Table of Contents

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What are digital tools?

Digital tools are apps, software, or online platforms that help you organise your time, and manage the different parts of your life, using your phone, tablet, or computer.

They help:

Keep track of family schedules
Manage to do lists and reminders
Plan meals and shopping lists
Organise household tasks and routines
Store important notes and information in one place
Create systems that reduce the mental load of motherhood.

Tools to improve productivity

Here are 5 digital tools that make everyday tasks easier, faster, and more manageable, and best of all, you don’t need to be tech-savvy to use them.

Google Calendar

There are many different digital calendars you can use, the one I use every day is Google Calendar.

Google Calendar is great for managing family life, as it allows you to keep everything in one place, which you can access from your digital device at any time.

Some of the ways I use Google Calendar, which you may like to try as well include:

Keeping track of school events, appointments, and activities
Colour coding family members so I can see if someone is over scheduled
Setting reminders for important tasks and events
Sharing calendars with family members
Adding locations to entries

TOP TIP: Set reminders the day before and an hour before for important tasks and appointments, so you don’t forget them.

Todoist

If your to do list items live in your head, or are scattered across many scraps of paper, it’s hard to remember what needs doing by when.

One of the best ways to write a to do list and ensure that everything on it gets done, is to use a to do list app.

My favourite to do list app is todoist, which you can use to:

Set deadlines and reminders for important tasks
Break bigger tasks into smaller steps
Set goals
Set recurring tasks (like laundry or bin day)
Collaborate on shared projects
Create project folders and assign tasks and dates to them
Use labels to easily identify tasks

The free version of todoist allows you to create 5 projects, which means creating to do lists for 5 areas of your life.

If you want to create more than 5 projects you need to pay a subscription fee, which I did for the first year I used todoist, until I realised that I could use my phone’s notes app for free, which could help me in the same way I was using todoist.

Let’s explore this free notes app option.

Desk, phone, notepad - digital tools you can use.

Notes app

If you’re looking for a simple, free digital productivity tool then your phone’s notes app is perfect.

I love using my phone’s notes app to create different to do lists for different areas of my life.

For example, I have a moving to do list, that lists everything I need to do before, during, and after a move.

I also have a travel packing list, and a weekly house cleaning to do list.

You can also use a notes app to do a brain dump, which is where you type everything that’s in your brain, so you can start to action everything you need to do.

Here are some brain dump items you can add to your notes app:

Appointments to be made, or that are upcoming
Bills to pay
Books to read
Gift ideas
Grocery list items
Meal ideas
Random thoughts and to dos
School reminders
Shopping lists
Travel to do list
TV shows to watch

Once you’ve written your brain dump in your notes app, add items from it into their relevant to do list, or add them into your digital calendar so you can start to action them.

Google Keep

Google Keep is great for recording quick notes and reminders on the go.

You can use it to:

Create quick notes and checklists
Set reminders for important tasks
Colour-code notes for different areas (home, school, meals)
Use voice notes when you’re busy

AnyList

AnyList helps you make grocery lists, and even juggle multiple shopping lists, saving time and reducing the stress that comes with feeding your family.

You can use it to:

Create and organise grocery lists
Add items quickly using voice or text
Share lists with other people
Plan meals

Woman typing on keypad - digital tools you can use.

How to choose the right productivity tools

The key to choosing the right tools to improve productivity is to focus on your biggest daily problem, and find a tool that solves it.

For example, let’s say your biggest daily problem is keeping track of everything.

Here are the steps you can take to find a digital tool that will solve this problem:

Step 1 Identify the problem

The problem is that you feel overwhelmed trying to remember all the events you need to attend, the appointments you’ve made, and all the to dos you need to get done.

Step 2 Match a digital tool to the problem

Look at this list of digital tools and see which one will solve your problem.

In this case a digital calendar will work best, because it’s designed to store and remind you of events, appointments, and tasks.

Step 3 Start using the tool

Choose a version of the digital tool that you think you can confidently and easily use.

In the case of digital calendars, I would recommend choosing Google Calendar, because it’s easy to use, is available on most devices, and there are many online resources to help you get started.

When you’ve chosen the tool to solve your problem, start using it in the most basic way first. So for a digital calendar, start by inputting upcoming events, appointments, and tasks.

Once you feel comfortable inputting these things, research additional features you can start to use to help you become even more productive, such as using colour codes, sharing your calendar, or creating recurring events.

Step 4 Create habits to use it

The best way to ensure you use the tool you’ve chosen is to get into the habit of using it.

An easy way to get into the habit of using Google Calendar, is to spend a few minutes each morning checking it to make sure you’re ready for what the day has in store.

You can then spend another few minutes at night looking at what’s coming up the next day.

Step 5 Choose another digital productivity tool

Once you feel comfortable with the first digital tool you’ve chosen to solve a daily problem, go through these steps again and choose another tool for another problem you need help with.

RELATED POST: Digital declutter tips for busy mums

Digital tools to boost your productivity – a recap

Whether it’s keeping track of family schedules with a digital calendar, managing tasks with a to do list app, or quickly capturing ideas in a notes app, digital tools can make a big difference to how productive you are.

The key to choosing the right tool is to keep things simple. Start with a tool that solves your biggest daily challenge, get into the habit of using it, and then start using another tool when you’re ready.

Over time digital tools will become part of your daily life, helping you plan ahead, and freeing up mental space, so instead of feeling overwhelmed by everything you need to do, you’ll have a system that works for the demands of your busy life.

Which digital tool would make the biggest difference to your daily routine?

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5 digital tools to boost your productivity

What are digital tools?