As promised, this post will give you some insight on digital tools. If digital tools fit your time management personality you have a host of tools to choose from. You have Palm Pilots, BlackBerry’s along with an array of handheld computers and mobile phones to choose from. Both will help you manage your time with the calendar and task list features. It will also let you store and manage your contact list and even write and save handwritten notes to yourself. Some of the higher end models serve as a PDA and mobile phone and will also let you manage your email.
With BlackBerry you can access up to 10 email accounts-not that I recommend anyone have 10 different email accounts. You can also manage your media files, access the internet and get maps and directions on a BlackBerry and have hundreds of apps to choose from.
Digital tools can be synchronized with your laptop or desktop and you can print what ever you choose from each. These two features are great if you have an assistant or someone who needs to access your schedule or other information. They can do so from your computer or from what you’ve printed, provided that you keep your computer updated and print the updated information.
Digital tools offer you the ability to search for information quickly, group and rearrange tasks and easily back up. Of course, as with any great thing there are some disadvantages. You can only view one screen at a time and for some, archived information is not easily referenced.
Now, as far as purchasing a PDA, you can find some handhelds at your favorite office supply store, but before you venture out, do your homework to see the various models available and the features that each tool has. If you’re interested in a mobile phone option, check with your mobile service provider to see which models they carry. Not everyone carries each model and some may be exclusive to particular providers. Choose a tool that gives you the features that you need, learn how to use each of them and optimize its use.
Now that you have information on paper and digital tools available to you, you can choose your time management tool. Make your choice based upon your time management personality. If you don’t know what your time management personality is, take time to discover it. Once again, I invite you to check out my Personalizing Time Management audio series to go through that process, learn the other elements of a solid time management system and set it up.