10 Best Apps for Staying Productive On the Go
Whether traveling is simply part of your job, or you just have too much work to get done to cut all ties on vacation, maintaining a high level of productivity is essential to getting it all done. Most of us carry around powerful smart devices everywhere we go. In order to maximize our efforts, it’s essential to use those devices to their full potential. There are a few apps available to help us do exactly that.
Google Drive
Cloud-based storage services are essential to maintaining maximum productivity while working with others around the world. Rather than wasting valuable time sending files to multiple accounts, Google Drive allows you to simply upload them to their cloud service where it can be instantly accessed by anyone on your team. Unlike a lot of cloud storage apps, Google Drive allows you to easily see when documents are being edited by other people to help you keep track of the status of your projects. You can choose from a wide range of price options depending on your individual and group needs, including the free base service to test it out for yourself.
Basecamp
Basecamp is an absolute powerhouse when it comes to managing your projects while you travel. This multi-platform app helps users keep track of their group projects from anywhere, on any device. The idea of Basecamp is to allow you to work with your team just like you would if you were all in the same physical location. You can share files, send messages, view and share progress milestones, and so much more. There’s a reason Basecamp is rated the top project management app on the market. See why for yourself with their free 60-day trial.
Not all productivity apps are created to help you increase your workflow. Pocket was designed to help keep you on task in a different way. It’s happened to all of us. One minute you’re diligently researching for your next big presentation, then suddenly you’re 20 minutes into an article about the first human face transplant. Pocket was created as a way for users to easily save articles, videos, and images for later viewing so that you can quickly get back to the task at hand. Once you’ve saved your content, it can be viewed from any device and even be shared with other pocket users.
Tripit
If you’re someone who loves to travel, especially if you have work to do while traveling, TripIt is an app that you need to download right now. One of the most time-consuming aspects of travel is keeping track of the travel experience itself. This insanely helpful app allows you to forward all of your travel-related emails to a special email address where they’re automatically organized into an easy-to-read itinerary. And that’s just the free version. For less than $50 a year, the pro version gives you access to real-time flight monitoring and can help you quickly change flight plans mid-trip.
Google Calendar
Keeping track of everything you need to get done while you travel can be a daunting task. With so many things requiring your attention, such as flight times, documents, and activities, deadlines can sometimes slip by without notice. This is where Google steps up to save the day. This free cross-platform calendar allows users to keep track of everything they need to remember as well as share single events or entire calendars with family and colleagues. Google Calendar seamlessly syncs with other event-monitoring apps to help you keep all of your important dates in one place.
QuickBooks
When it comes to managing your finances while you travel, QuickBooks stands high above the rest. This robust app allows you to monitor your finances, create invoices and receive payments from anywhere that your travels take you. You can even accept and make payments in multiple currencies, making it easier to personally keep the money flowing no matter how large your business gets. Once you take the 30-day free trial for a test run, you’ll gladly sign up for the $12.99 monthly payments.
Google Hangouts
The market is full of apps promising to be the next best chat option to keep you in touch with your many circles. Google once again stands out from the rest with this well-rounded, easy-to-use chat service. This app allows users to stay in the loop with text, voice, and video calls on all of your favorite devices. You can even hold conference calls to get everyone up to speed without the need for all the wasted time making individual calls. Video calls to other Google users as well as voice calls to phone numbers based in the U.S and Canada are free. It’s never been easier to stay connected with everyone that’s important to your projects and your company.
SwiftKey
While most of us who work on the go will have a laptop with us, sometimes it’s just more convenient to grab your phone for making quick edits to documents or responding to emails. The problem is that standard keyboards can sometimes be too frustrating to want to deal with. SwiftKey is an excellent solution to this dilemma, adding a huge amount of functionality to your device’s keyboard. SwiftKey offers a variety of customization options including multiple layouts, swipe typing (which isn’t otherwise offered on iPhones), and incredibly accurate predictive texting. You can even save your settings and dictionary additions to a cloud service to seamlessly transfer them between your Android and iOS devices.
LastPass
Keeping track of all of those passwords can be pretty much impossible depending on how many services you use to get your work done. Especially when it comes to finances or cloud-based services, the list of passwords we’re supposed to remember can get pretty ridiculous. LastPass is here to end all of that. This ultra-secure password vault will not only help keep all of your valuable information out of the hands of the less honest people in the world, but it generates super strong passwords for you as well. Once you’ve synced your passwords with the built-in browser, LastPass will automatically fill in forms and login information when you’re on the internet.
Quip
For people that work on the move, the standard household name office suites tend to fall short of meeting their needs. While most offer cloud-based services these days, they’re much too basic to be a good solution for someone who needs to complete a variety of tasks on a multitude of devices. Quip brings to the table everything you could ask for in an office suite with the necessary addition of cross-platform collaboration. Users can create and share documents and to-do lists as well as edit them with colleagues just as you would if you were sitting side by side. You can easily view any edits that have been made as well as use the built-in messaging system to seamlessly communicate and hash out any ideas you might have.
Whether you’re tying up some loose ends on vacation or your work is the reason for your travels, these apps are guaranteed to make your life easier and help you make the most of your efforts. That being said, these productivity boosters are nothing without the Internet. Anyone who has traveled even the smallest amount will tell you that Internet around the world can be dodgy at best.
When you have people counting on you to get the work done, you simply can’t afford to rely on an inconsistent internet connection.
Keepgo offers multiple prepaid internet solutions to keep you connected and productive no matter where your work takes you.
The Lifetime Data Sim Card allows you to avoid wasting time searching for a local sim card in each new country you visit. You can also avoid the incredibly high roaming charges that many less prepared travelers are faced with. Simply replace your current SIM card with the Keepgo lifetime SIM and you’re back in business the minute the wheels touch the runway.
If you prefer to leave your home SIM card right where it is, or if you are traveling with a SIM locked handset, Keepgo’s Lifetime mobile Wi-Fi hotspot may be a better option for you. This pocket-sized life saver offers a secure way to connect up to 10 wireless devices at once. No matter what your work requires of you, you’ll be prepared to get the job done.
So whether you find yourself across the country or on the other side of the world, the great options from Keepgo combined with these powerful productivity boosters are a surefire way to help you shine among the rest, while the rest just struggle to keep up.
