Improving Productivity with Smart Devices

Your time is valuable. Sometimes you don’t realize how valuable until you are trying to get your work finished and are hit with numerous distractions and tasks that grab your attention. This has become increasingly clear for me as I am working from home due to Covid-19. I have personally found many valuable smart devices which helped me improve my productivity at home. Whether you work in a traditional office or in a home office, you are in charge of your immediate environment. Using a few smart devices can actually improve your productivity and offer you a better way to work. Here I will cover a few of the ways that I use smart home devices to improve my productivity and hopefully you can get some ideas for how you can as well. Please feel free to leave a comment and tell us how you use smart home technology to improve your productivity.

Little Things Add Up to Big Time Savings

Smart devices give you an opportunity to free yourself from having to go to a light to turn it on or off. They allow you to control multiple types of devices with a handheld remote, an app that you download to your phone or even voice control. Regardless of how you control your devices the goal is to remove small tasks which eat up time so you can concentrate on the work. Some tasks which can be automated should be and others just need to be simplified. While many smart home devices are not directly related to work they can free up your time just the same which leads to higher productivity. Here is a list of some of my favorite automations
  1. Cleaning the Floors with Robot Vacuum and Mop
  2. Regulating the Temperature
  3. Feeding and Watering the Dog
  4. Regulating the Wi-Fi Connection for the Kids with Set Schedules and Automatic Cut-off
  5. Mowing the Lawn with Robot Lawn Mower
  6. Watering the Grass With Smart Irrigation Controller
These are all great ways to save time which can lead to higher productivity, but what about actually improving productivity in the workplace.  Next I will cover some ways that you can improve productivity using smart technology.

Smart Technology That Can Help Improve Productivity

The first device on my list has to be the smart digital assistant. Regardless of which assistant your design your smart home around this has to be the essential product in every smart home setup.  A good smart assistant can help you open up lines of communication, answer questions, help you with research and automate simple tasks like turning on the lights or letting other people know you are in a meeting.  I have a friend who set up a red light indicator outside his office door which he could have his smart assistant turn on when he wanted privacy.   In addition to simple tasks you can set up more complicated automations like having your smart assistant read your email to you or let you know when you have meetings on your schedule. Here is a list of some of my favorite digital assistant tasks
  1. Read my email
  2. Read my appointments
  3. Create a calendar appointment
  4. Create a reminder
  5. Manage the lighting
  6. Start or end a phone call
  7. Play background music(Play, Pause, or Stop)
  8. Notify me of package delivery
  9. Notify me when the door bell rings
  10. Set do not disturb
  11. Start time tracking
However you use your smart assistant make sure that you choose the right one to work best with the rest of your devices.  Check out our guide to the smart home digital assistant for help on how to choose the best one for your situation. For more ideas on how you can use your digital assistant check out our other articles about digital assistants. Don’t forget to read about IFTT for more automation ideas as well.

The next device you will need for smart home productivity is the Rocketbook notebook. Not only is this notebook reusable, you can instantly scan your notes directly into a number of cloud destinations including Google Drive, Evernote, Slack, Dropbox, Box, OneNote, OneDrive, Google Photos, Trello and email. Rocketbook has a wide range of products so they are sure to have one that will fit your style and workflow. 

What home office could be complete without the right computer setup.  In the past having several monitors was a requirement for being productive in the workplace.  However, with the technological advancements of 4K television sets you can now utilize a single 50″ TV as your computer monitor by sizing your apps to the 4 corners of the screen. This creates the illusion of 4 monitors without using up as much valuable space. These smart TV’s not only have Alexa built in but they come with tons of apps and double great as a computer monitor.

Timeflip2 Time Tracker

The next nugget of productivity I have to offer is the Timeflip2 Time Tracker. This amazing little device has 12 sides and you can assign a different project or task to each side. Just click the button on the side with the current project you are are working on and it starts the timer. Click again to stop and the phone app will track all the time you spent on that project. Flip it to a different project and start again. The app also comes with data analytics to help you improve productivity.

Sometimes being too comfortable can hinder your productivity. On the other hand, having just the right amount of comfort can really help you settle in and focus on what needs to get done. Long hours are no problem with this fantastic lap desk.

✔ VACUUMIZED CUSHIONS for the sake of the environment – Ironing permitted

✔ Ventilation grille for optimal cooling of your notebook

✔ Suitable for notebooks up to 17 inches

✔ Patented ergonomics through lateral support cushions | Board is not fixed to the cushions

Knowing how to use smart devices effectively is the best way to maximize your potential. Focus on improving your efficiency and look for ways that smart devices may be of use to you.  In the end, you will be saving both time and money. Maximizing your potential means working smarter, not harder. With smart devices, you can increase your productivity and make your life much simpler in the process.