What’s in a productivity system? | The Vergecast

Shared Productivity Systems

• J Peters uses Apple Reminders for both personal and shared reminders with his wife. They use shared reminders for tasks like weekend chores and birthdays. (3m0s)
• J Peters and his wife use a shared Apple Notes document to keep a running list of things they want to talk about with each other. (3m37s)
• J Peters and his wife use a shared Apple Calendar to keep track of each other's appointments. (3m16s)
• Esther relies heavily on Google Calendar but does not use a shared calendar with her husband. (32m15s)
• The speaker utilizes Google Calendar for work and personal appointments, including shared calendars with family. (56m15s)

Physical Productivity Tools

• A preference for analog productivity tools is explained, with a Papier Productivity Journal used for daily planning and task organization, supplemented by a Pomodoro app (Focus To-Do) for tackling challenging tasks. (8m2s)
• A physical journal is used to record daily to-dos, workouts, and books read. (14m8s)
• Some people prefer to write down tasks instead of using digital to-do lists because they find the act of organizing digitally to be mentally draining. (22m11s)
• A multi-tiered productivity system is used that includes a large paper calendar with sticky notes for work and personal life, a Google sheet for weekly tasks, and a physical notebook for meeting notes. (36m24s)
• A physical notebook is used for taking notes during meetings, capturing both direct tasks and thoughts, and these notes are later transferred to the weekly calendar and the main calendars. (37m16s)
• The speaker uses a physical notebook to write daily to-do lists and checks off completed tasks with a variety of fountain pens. (52m29s)
• The speaker prefers a Rhodia spiral-bound notepad with the spiral at the top for easy page removal. (54m58s)
• Upnote and a physical notebook are used for note-taking. (1h7m10s)

Digital Productivity Tools and Methods

• TickTick is favored due to its ability to understand and schedule tasks from typed instructions, such as setting reminders and recurring events. (5m46s)
• A system is used involving Google Calendar for scheduling, email for communication and task management (aiming for Inbox Zero or Inbox 10), and a Pomodoro app (Focus To-Do) for focused work sessions. (6m15s)
• The Pomodoro Technique, a time management method, is used with a timer app to break work into intervals, traditionally 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks. (11m37s)
• Notion Calendar is used for scheduling and blocking time on both personal and work calendars. (12m37s)
• Cara Verain uses the basic notes app on her phone to take notes because she finds AI features distracting. (18m30s)
• Verain keeps her work and personal calendars separate, believing that excessive focus on productivity can be counterproductive. (19m54s)
• Verain prioritizes taking notes and reviewing them thoroughly to determine her next steps, using them as a guide for scheduling and follow-ups. (21m25s)
• Esther Cohen uses Google Docs for work tasks and Apple Notes for personal tasks. (28m11s)
• Cohen prefers using her computer over her phone for productivity because she finds it easier to focus. (29m18s)
• When Cohen needs to remember to do something, she will text herself a reminder and then add it to her to-do list later. (29m57s)
• A preference is stated for using a laptop over a phone for browsing the internet. (31m45s)
• Before creating a to-do list, a "vibe session" is used to determine the important aspects of a project. (34m10s)
• The Google sheet is organized by team functions (sponsorships, operations, production) and is filled out each day with tasks for approximately 20 minutes. (36m40s)
• Victoria has started using spreadsheets more and finds that the more she learns about them, the more enjoyable they become. (41m52s)
• Jake uses the app TickTick for 99% of his organization, both professional and personal, including reminders to talk to friends. (44m32s)
• Jake prefers to input his meetings as tasks in TickTick rather than using the calendar sync feature, as he found it to be too chaotic. (46m14s)
• Calendar apps are considered mostly terrible, but the time grid feature is potentially a perfect solution for quickly viewing and understanding schedules. (47m13s)
• A list format is suitable for personal daily planning, but a calendar app is necessary when coordinating with others' schedules or determining availability. (47m43s)
• TickTick is a cross-platform to-do list app that effectively sends reminders to both computers and phones. (50m46s)
• For personal errands, the speaker uses Google Keep to create checklists. (56m41s)
• Google Keep is used for making quick checklists, especially for chores that need to be done on a busy day. (57m8s)
• Notion is used as a task management tool, where tasks for the day or week are listed out. Sometimes checklists, regular text, links to Slack messages, and due dates are used. (1h0m14s)
• Google Tasks is used for tasks with deadlines, as it integrates with Google Calendar and provides reminders. (1h1m26s)
• Airtable is powerful but can be fussy and slow, especially without a time investment to learn the program. (1h2m40s)
• UpNote is a simpler, well-designed alternative to Evernote for note taking and to-do lists. (1h5m7s)
• Joplin is a good, simple note-taking app with a decent free version, but it relies heavily on Markdown. (1h6m37s)
• Google Tasks and TickTick are used for managing to-do lists, but there is a desire to consolidate them. (1h8m13s)
• Notion is used for almost everything else. (1h8m36s)
• A preference is stated for using a combined calendar and note-taking system, with Fantastical being the preferred app. (1h12m20s)
• Apple Reminders is used for task management due to its integration with Siri. (1h13m22s)
• For larger projects, various apps have been used, including Notion and Capacities, with no definitive solution found. (1h13m42s)

Podcast Information

• The show is produced by Andrew Marino, Liam James, and Will Poor. (1h17m30s)
• This specific episode was edited by Xander Adams. (1h17m33s)
• The Vergecast is a part of the VOX Media Podcast Network. (1h17m35s)

Miscellaneous

• Some people use their calendars to schedule personal appointments with close friends. (22m56s)
• The act of writing something down, whether typing or handwriting, can aid in memory retention. (25m6s)