Much productivity advice on the internet is too complicated and not actually that helpful.

Complicated systems are less likely to be used due to the friction of using them and are more brittle in the face of changing needs. You are better off use basic, flexible systems; you are more likely to use simple systems and simple systems can adapt to change more easily.

There are only a few tools you need to completely run your personal life. They are:

  • Calendar
  • Task manager
  • Note system
  • Password manager

Most knowledge work jobs will benefit from these same tools.

Calendar

Unless you have a schedule with near zero variance, it’s damned near impossible to function well in the modern world without a digital calendar.

There are too many events and people plan stuff too far out to keep it all in your head and paper doesn’t scale.

I recommend Fantastical if you use a Mac. Or Google Calendar.

Pick a digital calendar. Use it. Done.

Task Manager

There’s too much to remember to keep it all in your head. Trying to keep it in your head leads to overwhelm and dropped tasks.

Put it into a trusted system. For me, that’s digital (I simply adore Things, it’s so well done!), but for some people it is paper. (Many paper-lovers use the Bullet Journal method, but I’ve never done it. If I used paper more, I’d definitely give it a shot.)

Wherever you keep it, you must:

  • Use it daily
  • Keep it up-to-date (remove cruft, add new tasks, cross off done tasks, look through it for ideas of what to work on, etc.)
  • Trust it (because you use it)

Tip: Be wary of using your task manager as a wish list. If you aren’t making progress on a task, either double down on it and get it done or delete it.

Notes

It is useful to keep notes of things you need to remember with great detail.

Examples include:

  • That exercise protocol the physical therapist told you to do.
  • Things to do when you travel to city X.
  • Movies you want to see.
  • Goals you are actively working on.

One of my favorite things to write down is information I need to accomplish a repeat task.

Example: Somehow most of the garbage cans in our house need different sized trash bags; I created a note with each trash can’s bag size so when I need to order more, it is trivial. No guessing.

Other types of notes I find helpful:

  • Notes about books I’m reading
  • Writing to plan
  • Writing to think through a topic

Pro tip: Curating your favorite recipes and putting them into your notes app will make cooking much easier. Choosing a meal prep recipe becomes simple and you don’t need a special app just for recipes.

I prefer digital notes. I use and highly recommend Bear. But Apple Notes is also great (and free).

Password Manager

You should absolutely not reuse passwords across websites. It is very unsafe. You should use a password manager and create unique passwords for each site.

I use and recommend 1Password.

Apple makes the app Passwords at this point and I hear it’s OK, but I want something cross-platform.

Miscellaneous tips

  • Put all bills on autopay. Don’t waste your time manually paying bills.
  • Sleep and energy are important. It is worth your time to fix your sleep if it’s bad. I strongly recommend the book Sleep by Nick Littlehales. It helped me lots.
  • Be willing to pay or lose modest amounts of money to save time.
    • Example: It’s probably not worth your time to do a 30 minute errand to return a $15 item.) This is particularly true if you’re a parent.
  • If you are always behind, then there is a reason. The majority of people who are always behind consistently make choices which cause them to be behind; it’s not just happening to them.

Closing

So that’s it. Those are the tools you need in order to organize your personal life (and professional life in many jobs). They can take some practice to build the habits and skills of using them, but if you do that it will pay dividends forever.

Lastly, Sam Altman has a great blog post on productivity in general which I recommend reading. It’s got a ton of useful info beyond just tools.