My favourite app is Trello, a project management tool. You create “boards”, which are like virtual desktops, and put “lists” on each board. The lists are set out across the screen and each consists of “cards”, which sit one below the other. Boards, lists, and cards can be created and deleted at will.
Trello comes in Desktop and tablet versions. You can access your account from multiple devices. You can give other people access to specific boards within your account, so that you can work on projects collaboratively.
The cards can be colour labelled, and they can be given due dates. Trello can be integrated with your calendar, so that dated cards show up on the calendar. There are fields on each card to put a more detailed description as well as comments. Links and attachments can be added to the cards. Each card has the facility to create a checklist, with tick boxes. You click on each card to open it and see the contents. Cards, and even whole lists can be moved around on the board, or even between boards. Once a card is created, the system records who does what with the card on the card itself, which is especially useful when collaborating with others. You move cards or whole lists of cards by interacting with menus, or, within a single board, with your finger, if you have a touch-sensitive screen.
I like Trello because of its flexibility. It is as flexible as having pens and paper spread over several tables, but so much tidier, and, of course, you can delete and edit text, as well as make things happen automatically, rather than having to do everything yourself. I have boards for all areas of my life: client work, practice development, domestic projects, and so on. I like the fact that I can use different systems to organise different boards. Some of my boards just have lists on: lists of films I want to watch, items I need to buy, and blog ideas. Other boards have action plans, with the sequence of action going down the page, card by card. Some boards are more like Gantt charts, with lists of actions going across the page in chronological order. I use Apple products and there is another app, called IFTT (If this, then that), which enables you to create applets: tiny add-on programmes enabling extra, bespoke functionality.
I have tried a number of To Do, and project management apps over the years. This is my favourite so far. Of course, like any such system, it only works if you discipline yourself to look at it at least once a day and update your information. I print off my To Do Today list at the beginning of each day, and I update the system at the end of the day. I wouldn’t say I am that great at sticking to a routine, but so far, I’ve stuck to this one, probably because I can see that it’s really helping me be more efficient.
The basic Trello app is free to use, although you can pay for more functionality with Trello Gold.
If this blog interested you, then you might like to attend a webinar run by CBT Psychotherapist Briefings on Friday, August 3rd, at 2pm:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/techie-online-swap-shop-tips-apps-software-tickets-46503227405
Do you have a favourite app? Why not write a few words telling us about it and comment below or send it to ipsigmembership@gmail.com
Adam May. Email: adamatclothhall@gmail.com
CBT Psychotherapist in independent practice on Anglesey, in North Wales.
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