What is a scheduling app?
The planner is simply a productivity app that helps you organize all your activities so you always have an overview of everything.
Sometimes there can be so much that one can easily become overwhelmed. As a result, one could lose track of important tasks – not planning them, or planning them but not forgetting to do them when the time comes.
In the past, the solution was to create to-do lists and delete tasks as soon as you completed them. Planner apps can be thought of as digital versions of to-do lists.
How do scheduling apps work?
There are a variety of scheduling apps, each offering different features. However, at their core is a system for entering and managing tasks and a system for reminding you when to complete scheduled tasks.
- Assigning and managing tasks
Planner apps help you organize your tasks. So every planner app, no matter how basic, lets you create tasks and includes a calendar.
With many planner apps, the approach is to open a task box, enter tasks, and assign dates to them. For others, clicking on specific calendar dates opens a field for entering tasks for that date.
Regardless of access, after creating tasks for specific dates, you can proceed to manage tasks. These include prioritizing tasks, dividing tasks into smaller tasks, etc.
- Reminder settings
Organizing your tasks will mean nothing if the time to do them comes and goes without you realizing it. So all the best planner apps have a reminder feature. This is to alert the scheduler when it’s time to execute.
Is a planning app worth it?
Planer apps are either free or only cost a token, but they help improve personal and professional productivity, so they’re worth it. You will also find the planner app very useful if you are always busy or collaborating with others in a team.
When there is a lot, it is easier to slip. So aside from having a computer brain, one of the best ways to stay on top of a ton of tasks is to use scheduling apps.
The best scheduling apps also allow for collaboration with teams. This means you can easily assign tasks to team members, get their comments, track their progress and more. So, in addition to wanting a less efficient team collaboration solution, you’ll need a scheduling app to keep track of your team’s activities.
Also, a cost-benefit analysis of planning applications will easily show that they are worth it. Many of these apps are free, while many feature-rich paid versions cost less than $10. However, on the benefits end, these apps can help improve personal and professional productivity.
How to choose the best planning apps?
To choose the best scheduling app, you need to look at several factors. These include:
- Productivity features
- Ease of use
- Integration
- Costs
- Device Compatibility
1. Productivity features. If you’re going for a planner app, it’s because of what it can help you achieve. So a planner app should offer features that help you achieve what you want. In this regard, scheduler apps can be very basic or feature-rich.
For example, at one end of the spectrum are calendar-based scheduling apps that keep important dates and set reminders, and at the other end are project-focused scheduling apps that you can use to manage time and other project resources.
2. Ease of use. No matter how feature-rich a scheduling app is, it won’t get many positive reviews if it’s difficult to use. So, ease of use is another important factor when choosing scheduling apps. It should have a clean layout, easily identifiable cards, etc.
3. Integration. Before you decide on a planner app, you must already be using some other apps on a daily basis. So an important consideration when choosing a planner app is whether it’s compatible with other apps you already use.
4. Costs. When looking at a planner app, it’s important to consider whether it fits your budget. Be aware that planner apps vary widely in the features they offer. As such, they have different costs.
You will find some free scheduling apps, but they usually come with very basic features. Some planner apps that are paid also have free versions that are limited in features, while you will have to pay for the feature versions.
5. Compatibility. It is very important that the planner app you choose is compatible with the devices you use. For example, Android users will find it worthless to get an iOS-only scheduling app.
Advantages of planning applications
The main benefit of planner apps is that they help you stay organized. As a result, they will help you reduce stress, make your life easier and ultimately increase your productivity.
1. Limit distractions. In this information age, digital distraction is one of the biggest time stealers. Digital distractions are interrupted by a technology device such as your smartphone, tablet or computer.
Even if you are not operating the device, a simple notification can distract you from important tasks, causing you to lose valuable time or worse. Many scheduling apps come with distraction-blocking features like app blockers. This means you can block specific websites and apps during a focus session.
2. Get focused. The main benefit of the distraction-blocking feature in planning apps is your focus. When distracting websites are blocked, you can be sure that nothing will come in to disrupt your focus and concentration.
3. Help you stay organized. This benefit can also be “helping make your everyday life easier”. Planner apps help you manage your time. You can plan your day/week in advance. Then you won’t have to worry about missed assignments, when to do what, etc.
4. Reduce stress. If you stay on top of your schedule, there will be less stress. Imagine that you are working hard to complete an assignment before the deadline. Luckily, you pulled it off and hit “enter” to turn in your work right before the deadline. Now imagine having to do that every time.
With scheduling apps, you can save yourself the stress of worrying about deadlines and deadlines. This is because you would be on top of your schedule. When you know the priority of a task, you plan to execute it accordingly.
5. Increase productivity. Ultimately, planner apps help improve personal productivity. Whether the immediate benefit is to block out distractions, help you stay focused, reduce stress, or help you stay organized, there is only one goal – to complete your tasks efficiently.
2 Best Planner Apps of 2022
One of the best scheduling apps of 2022 is Journy and TimeCamp.
1. Journy
Journy is one of the most popular planning apps out there. If you’re wondering why it’s so popular, it’s because it actually helps people organize their lives.
As the name suggests, Journy uses to-do lists, so it’s very easy to use. Whether you’re managing projects or simply want to plan your next exercise routine, you can use Todoist to keep tasks organized and achieve your goals.
Journy allows you to start a “project”. You can then add tasks to the project, assign dates, and estimate how long the tasks will take. You can also break down individual tasks into smaller tasks that make them more achievable.
2. TimeCamp
If you’re looking to track your team’s performance across projects, TimeCamp was built with you in mind.
With TimeCamp you can watch:
- Team performance. You’ll see how much time your team spends on a given project. For example, how much does each team member spend on work-related apps?
- Team profitability. You’ll see if your project is on budget and can easily calculate profit margins across different projects.
- Getting started with TimeCamp is very easy. You start with a “timesheet” view where you can create tasks, assign them to projects and start tracking them.
