Here are hacks to reduce time, but not quality, on your deliverables
Working from home means you can take some shortcuts that you probably couldn't at your workplace and still manage to deliver quality work. Here are some hacks to reduce your workload and get some spare time to bake that banana bread you have been craving.
Take a nap
Taking a nap in an office is usually frowned upon but at home you can make it part of your work life. Some studies have shown that taking a nap can increase both alertness and productivity. However, there are some rules to napping; you can't nap for more than 20-26 minutes, and you should ideally not nap after 3 pm as it will disturb your sleep cycle. An app called Nap26 can help you achieve this 26-minute power nap. All you have to do is use a pair of headphones and run the app.
ADVERTISEMENT
Speak, don't type
Why type when you can dictate. There are many decent voice-to-text converters available, but the best one, Dragon Home will cost R11,500. That said, it is a worthy investment for those who are serious about not typing. However, for most of us there is dictation.io, a website that lets you dictate a block of text right from your browser. Sure, it isn't as robust as Dragon, but at least it works.
Pre-send your work mails
If you are like me, inspiration strikes at the weirdest times and oddest hours. Mostly it isn't the time to be sending anyone a work email or a personal one. By the time it is, I have all but forgotten the great idea. Boomerang can save you from this predicament. It is a Gmail extension that can schedule emails to be sent at specific times. So, you can type your inspired mail and then schedule it to be sent at say 10 am instead of 2.30 am. You can also set it with reminders, if you don't hear back from the person.
Get an assistant
Compiling the minutes of a meeting or a work call can be one of the most annoying things in the world. However, this can be solved with Fireflies.ai. You can integrate your calendar with the program and Fireflies will automatically be part of the meet—recording and producing a transcript of the meeting with almost no user interaction. You can also upload previously recorded calls and get the script. For the free users you can store up to 3,000 minutes of conversation. Anything more and you will have to pay for a subscription.
Decisions
What to eat, what show to watch, what music to listen are just some of the decisions we spend a lot of time thinking about. How about instead of trying to figure these things out, you leave it to destiny. Spin The Wheel app lets you make customisable Wheels of Fortune that you can then spin to make quick decisions. It's about time destiny did some of the heavy lifting.
Spellcheck like a boss
Grammarly is spellcheck on steroids. It can check grammar, syntax, and even gives you an overall score for your writing. It accurately suggests the best corrections 99 per cent of the time. Grammarly can be used from their website, as an extension in your browser and even in Microsoft Word. The free version requires you to register an account and has some limitations but it is nothing you can't live without.
Schedule to discover more time
Sticking to a schedule can really transform your work-from-home situation from annoying to bliss. I personally like finding time I never knew I had. The best scheduling software to get organised is Any do. The app is simple to use and it organises itself into tasks which you can assign a time frame to. You can use it to organise both your home and office work. It will sync across all devices, so that no matter what device you are using including Alexa and Google Assistant you have access to it. Trust me this one thing will save you crazy amounts of time.
Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates.
Mid-Day is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@middayinfomedialtd) and stay updated with the latest news
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
