In digital work, things can get complicated for a simple reason: We add steps.
A small task becomes a search, a download, a new application, browser tab and finally a workaround. None of these steps individually appear to be very important, but taken over the course of the day, they add up to excess friction.
Here are few things that can make your daily online work hassle-free.
1. Keep Frequently Used Utilities Within Reach
If you have to keep looking for the tool you need to get the job done, find it once and keep it where you can reach it easily.
For instance, developers often require a JSON formatter or a regex tester, and content teams may compress images over and over again or compare text.
Familiar utilities have been saved as bookmarks (or as a single platform in the case of platforms with multiple utilities) and this can save time and reduce context switching.
The approach is exemplified by ToolFlora, a collection of browser-based tools, which enables users to access common tools without having to search each one individually.
It is not about the hundred of bookmarks you’ve gathered. Have only the tools that are truly consistent with your workflow.
2. Separate Quick Tasks From Complex Work
Not all problems need to be solved in a complicated way.
If you need to compare two short texts just once, you can take a look at a simple diff tool. For those with a need to process thousands of files per day, automation or specialized software may be more suited, however.
It’s important to remember and ask if the task is:
- Occasional and simple
- Repetitive and time-consuming
- Sensitive or confidential
- Automation appropriate size.
That snap judgment can keep you from taking the wrong approach.
3. Check Your Input Before Blaming the Tool
An unexpected result doesn’t always mean the problem is with the utility.
Always look to the input first.
Any JSON object that is malformed, any timestamp that isn’t properly formatted, any regex pattern that is incomplete or any image format that isn’t supported can lead to confusing results.
If you take a few seconds to check its entry, you can save a lot of time from trying to troubleshoot.
4. Don’t Upload Sensitive Information Just for Convenience
It’s easy to use a browser based utility, but convenience does not come at the expense of security.
Do not type in sensitive data such as passwords, API keys, private tokens or any kind of confidential information, personal records, or proprietary information into an unfamiliar online service.
For instance, a JWT decoder during development can come in handy during reviewing a test token. This does not imply that a production authentication token is to be pasted into a random website.
Use trusted internal or local tools if appropriate for sensitive work.
5. Use Tools to Remove Repetitive Friction
A small online utility can be best used as something that would otherwise distract you from your focus.
Suppose you have some documentation, and you want to compare two versions of a paragraph. Or you need to format JSON to debug an API response. Or you’re creating an image that is too big.
These aren’t major projects. They’re small interruptions.
Each can be predictably handled by a proper utility as opposed to a mini research session.
6. Build a Toolkit Around Your Actual Work
No such thing as an universal set of tools which everyone requires.
- A developer might keep access to:
- JSON formatting tools
- Regex testers
- Timestamp converters
- JWT utilities
- Text comparison tools
A marketer/content creator may be more interested in:
- Image compression
- Text cleanup
- Format conversion
- Duplicate removal
- Content comparison
Select utilities that are relevant to the problems you experience.
7. Know When to Stop Looking for a Tool
It can take as long to find the right tool as it does to do the job by hand.
Taking ten minutes to compare five utilities is not a good use of time if it can be accomplished in half a minute with one utility.
The purpose of a digital toolkit is to work to make things simpler, not add another hurdle in the decision-making process.
A More Practical Approach to Digital Productivity
Increasing digital productivity doesn’t have to be another major app or complicated process.
Sometimes it’s acknowledging minor, regularly occurring issues and providing yourself straightforward methods to deal with them.
Keep handy the necessary utilities. Choose the most basic solution that is suitable. Protect sensitive information. Automate tasks only if they’re repeated.
Most importantly, your toolbox should be based on the work you do, not the tools you can find.
Some trustworthy utilities may be worth more than dozens of rarely used utilities.
