5 Powerful Productivity Tools for Business Owners

In recent posts, I have written about a productivity framework and the time management skills business owners need to survive and prosper.

Today, I cover productivity tools I have found invaluable to help cope with the demands of running a business.

The productivity tools are either free, or low cost.

Since the launch of Chat GPT, artificial intelligence is all the rage. In addition to stand alone systems, AI is being built into many tools we use on a day-to-day basis. (Microsoft Office for example, Canva, etc.)

It is also now being used for chatbots on websites to answer customer enquiries. While this form of AI has been around for some time, some current versions provide very much a human like experience.

AI is a powerful productivity tool with enormous potential. It is, and will, fundamentally transform how we work and live our lives.

Since the launch of Chat GPT, I have used a number of different systems including:

Plus a number of different Apps that plug into AI.

My favourites are Google Gemini and Perplexity.

I particularly like Perplexity because of its more conversational style and that it will provide links to sites from which it draws its information.

I find Gemini helpful as, when I ask it to review information, it not only suggests changes, but also provides reasons for the change. I find Gemini really educative.

Ways I use AI as a productivity tool include:

I tell my clients to think of AI as a really smart, but inexperienced, personal assistant.

To get the best from it, you need to provide clear and detailed instructions. And, because this assistant is inexperienced, it is crucial you check the output is correct. AI does make mistakes!

AI has quickly become one of my favourite productivity tools.

Another “go to” productivity tool I use is Microsoft’s note- taking app, OneNote.

For many years, I was a raving fan of Evernote, but now prefer OneNote as it integrates easily with other Microsoft products.

Like a CRM, I use OneNote not just for note taking, but also to store key customer information.

Over the years working with well over 1500 businesses I found one of the greatest “time bandits” is searching for information. With OneNote you can have it all in one place.

For clients, I include not only notes from meetings, but also copies of important emails, and attachments.

I also use OneNote to store “how to’s” for tasks I may only perform on an occasional basis:

I find OneNote saves an enormous amount of time. and it is another of my favourite productivity tools.

For many years I used a range of websites and tools for image, video and content creation. This was not only time consuming, but also expensive.

Over the years Canva has significantly expanded its suite of tools becoming an essential productivity tool for many business owners.

While you can use Canva for free, its Pro and Teams subscriptions are highly affordable.

With Canva you can:

Canva also comes with embedded AI which is helpful for ideas around wording of documents.

The thing I love about Canva is that it is very simple to use. You don’t need graphic design skills to use it.

It saves me an enormous amount of time, and is another of my favourite productivity tools.

Another area I find business owners waste a lot of time is searching for passwords and/or important documents.

Benefits of using a Password Manager include:

Over the years I have used a number of Password Managers, including, LastPass, Keeper, 1Password but now prefer Bitwarden.

While Bitwarden is free, I have a premium account as I also use it to store key business documents & share key passwords with family members.

As a productivity tool, Password Managers offer many benefits.

In business today you will often have many passwords which can easily be lost or forgotten.(I have more than 400). A Password Manager makes life a lot easier and, more secure.

The ability to quickly retrieve passwords or key documents, no matter where you are saves time and reduces stress. A Password Manager is an essential productivity tool.

Knowing how you actually use your time, how long tasks take, is essential if you want to improve your, or your teams, productivity.

ATracker is a low cost productivity tool which provides insights as to how time is actually being used – allowing you to make informed business decisions.

I have used ATracker for many years and include it as an essential part of my productivity tool suite.

ATracker is easy to set up and use. You can see at a glance how your time is being used over a given period.

Data can also be exported to allow further analysis if needed.