Time management is key for any task we have to do. During your years at college, you will need to perfect your time management skills in order to stay up to date in all of your classes. Sometimes it is hard to know what to spend more time on and how to avoid distractions. Many of us procrastinate until the last minute. We spend hours scrolling through social media, watching TV shows, listening to podcasts, or reading books/magazines/articles on topics unrelated to our classes. This is honestly very normal. It seems our generation(s) has(have) a shorter attention span and we are easily distracted.

However, as we begin a new semester–a new course or start a new job–it is necessary to learn how to manage our time properly. Luckily, we live in the era of technology and we have found ourselves relying on it for most of the things we do, there are plenty of apps you can download on your phone or your laptop to help you with this. One simple Google search will display at least 50 different apps. For this reason, I dug a little deeper and narrowed it down to three apps I believe you should be using if you struggle with time management: RescueTime, Remember the Milk, and MyLifeOrganized.

RescueTime

RescueTime is the app that encourages you to get more from your day without working more. It allows you to track your time and block off any digital distractions you may have. There are six very relevant tools that make this a great time management app.

1.  Automatic time tracking the hours you spend on apps, documents, and websites.
2. Detailed insights, reports, and trends regarding your working habits and the process you make.
3. One-click offline time tracking allows you to track your time even when you are not online.
4. Block distracting websites when you need to focus on specific tasks. You will be able to set daily time limits to focus better during certain moments of the day.
5. Set goals to know what you should be working on.
6. Synching to your other important apps such as calendar and Slack.

Remember the Milk

Remember the Milk is also known as the smart to-do app for busy people. This app bases its work in four relevant actions that will allow you to get your tasks done, achieve your goals, and meet your deadlines.

1. Get to-dos out of your head: they will send notifications to remind you of what you have to do.
2. Get reminded anywhere: with their reminders, you will never forget the “milk" again.
3. Get things done together: the app allows you to share tasks and lists with other people to work through your goals faster.
4. Everywhere you go: Remember the Milk automatically syncs all your devices.

MyLifeOrganized

MyLifeOrganized’s brand lemma is “The Most Flexible Task Management Tool" and that is completely true with the different resources the app offers. They guarantee your time management skills improve with six extremely relevant features.

1. You are able to create different to-do lists to include every task and deadline you have.
2.  You can outline a hierarchy to determine which actions in your to-do lists are the most important ones.
3. Based on the hierarchy and deadlines you have, you are able to create a more important to-do list to know which tasks need your immediate attention.
4. You will receive notifications to remind you of specific things you must do once you are near that location.
5. The app allows you to sync everything with the cloud, so you are able to access your information from multiple devices.
6. You can create a task through an email by sending it to your MLO inbox and turning it into an action.

These apps are a few resources and tools you can use to improve your time management skills. The best thing to do is make a habit out of creating to-do lists, keeping track of the time you spend on each activity–even the ones that push you to procrastinate–, and always write down your deadlines. When you create a good working cycle for yourself, you will be able to manage your time properly. In the meantime, technology will help you manage time better.

Want to become a Noodle contributor? Email: contributor@noodle.com