Top 25 Apps to Help You Run Your Business – and Life – Better, Faster, and Smarter

Productivity Apps for Busy Business Owners and Executives

For some time, I’ve been inquiring and collecting insights to the apps our clients lean on to help them run their business interests and lives.  What follows is a list of the apps they mentioned the most.

Got something to add to the list?  Drop it in the comments section below or email me directly at ktheriault@alliedexecutives.com with your addition.

Time/Calendar Management

• Acuity - Clients can quickly view your real-time availability and self-book their own appointments—and even pay online and reschedule meetings with you with just a click.
• Tinket – Inexpensive, highly effective calendar application.  Integrates with all your calendars, Tinket is designed for people who need to find times and places to meet with others whose calendars they can’t see.  I personally love this one and use it daily.
• Harvest – Not sure where your time is going?  Unsure how much your projects are really costing you?  Easily track how you are spending your time, how your team is spending their time and on what projects, automatically turn time into billable time and feed your invoicing system, and better forecast your and your team’s time to allow for better project planning.
• Rescue Time – Another great application for seamless, automated time tracking.  Set limits and restrictions on various websites or applications. Analyze the data.  Make changes or make certain tasks or sites off limits during certain hours.

Productivity & Self-Improvement

• Wunderlist – Make to do lists, set tasks with deadlines, be reminded of important to-dos.  Great way to eliminate yellow pad or sticky-note to do lists for a person on the go.
• Way of Life – Track routines, set new ones, and make micro-changes to how you spend your time and on what. 
• Evernote — Incredibly robust file storage, management, note-taking, note gathering application.  An online file cabinet for your life.
• Headspace – The individual benefits of meditation are well researched.  It has been shown to directly reduce real and perceived stress.  This app shows you how to do it well and reap the benefits.
• Focus at Will -  A new music service based on human neuroscience. It helps you focus, reduce distractions, maintain your productivity and retain information when working, studying, writing and reading. The scientifically tested technology has been shown to alter brain activity toward a state that is more conducive to productivity.
• 1Password – Ever forget your passwords to various websites you need to access?  1Password will remember all your passwords for you and allow you to access where you want to go with a single click.
• Last Pass – An alternative to 1Password, with more control over how you manage, access, and control access.
• Audible – download and listen to books while in your car, plane, on a walk, or In your office.  Great for making use of windshield time.

Team & Project Management

• Asana – Visually coordinate all of the work your team does together – allowing you and your team to get organized, stay on track, and hit your critical deadlines.
• Slack – A communication hub for your entire team.  Slack is a place where your team comes together to collaborate, important information can be found by the right people, and your tools pipe in information when and where you need it.
• Basecamp – A GREAT tool for not only managing projects, but for keeping your team communicating, on the same page, and keeping all internal and external project related items and communications in one easy to access place.
• Traction Tools – For those of you implementing EOS – self or otherwise – Traction Tools is a great way to move from cumbersome paper tools to an online version.  Easier for you and your team to visit with and update.
• Zoom – Simple, inexpensive, video conferencing platform.  Great quality and incredibly simple to invite others to join your virtual meeting.  Incredibly easy to initiate, start, and stop meetings.    
• Trello – A visually-appealing and simple-to-use project management app that tracks your team’s workflow.

Travel

• Waze - Get the best route, every day, with real–time help from other drivers.  Waze is the world's largest community-based traffic and navigation app. Join other drivers in your area who share real-time traffic and road info, saving everyone time and gas money on their daily commute.  Free to boot.
• Mile IQ - Stress-free, simple, logging of business and personal mileage.  IRS approved.  Ditch your pen and paper logs forever!
• Park Mobile – Ever have a meeting downtown and maxed out your meter time?  No need to worry about that anymore.  Park Mobile is Minneapolis and St. Paul’s - downtown areas meter management.  Note, there is a separate app for each metro area.  You can even reserve parking spaces and times via the app. 
• 511MN – Powered by MNDOT, get the low down on all construction and detours along your route.  Get construction and other road hazard information for other states as well.

Finance

• Adaptive Insights – Business planning software, that can be deployed across teams, to better manage and deploy resources.  Budget planning, sales productivity management, all in play here.
• Mint – Effortlessly manage your personal finances all in one place.

Sales

• Capsule – Online CRM platform.  Simple to use.  Manage contacts, sales activity, opportunities, and pipeline all in one easy to get to and navigate place.