Update: since writing the post below, a new iPhone business card scanner has been released through the iTunes store that scans, then syncs, business cards into your Mac address book, more details here.
Now that the dust has settled over iPhone 2.0 and those of us with our shiny new toys are adding applications like it was the Treo (here we go again), I made a short list of my favorite productivity apps:
- Twitterriffic: I joined Twitter reluctantly and never quite got used to the somewhat ceaseless interruptions so I had to turn off notifications. I'm sure a skilled user would have found another way to stay connected without being constantly disrupted, but leave it up to iPhone 2.0 and Twitterrific to salvage my loss of love for Twitter. I use Twitter(iffic) by following (mostly) marketing professionals or business professionals who point to articles or important news going on in the marketing world. It is fun to occasionally read about what else is going on in their lives, but I have thoroughly enjoyed tapping into the minds of these gurus when I experience wait times. Mircoblogging is the new water cooler.
- Omnifocus is at the top of my list for most productive iPhone apps. Omnifocus is what the iPhone was built for. Now, my "to-do" list, or project management tool is easily viewable and can be updated virtually anywhere. I use it as a simple shopping list as well as a project management tool that helps break down significant projects into manageable tasks. I subscribe to David Allen's Getting Things Done method of project management and particularly enjoy how I can publish and access tasks by context. A thorough review of Omnifocus for the iPhone can be found on 43folders here.
- NetNewsWire has created a brilliant interface for the iPhone. Brilliant in its simplicity. For me, RSS feeds on the iPhone are for wait times. I prefer the Mac's NetNewsWire interface if I'm anywhere near my laptop but since my daily digest of input consists of a growing list of RSS feeds, it's nice to catch up on these feeds no matter where I am. You can read a more detailed review from Macworld here.
- Evernote: Oh, wow. I find myself reduced to monosyllabic exultations over this one. When I first tried it, I remember thinking "big deal". That is, until I amassed a significant list of notes on my laptop that easily sync to my Evernote account and are accessible on the iPhone. Use it as your business card scanner, an audible to-do list, and much more.
These tools are so easy to set up and use they make you feel as though you could accomplish anything. Herein lies a strange paradox to productivity tools: they can actually make you less productive. It is now easier to capture all of those wonderful ideas that constantly flit through your mind, anywhere at anytime. Managing this flurry of thought takes time. More importantly, knowing which projects to manage, when, takes a careful ordering of priorities. In the words of Neil Young, "if you follow every dream, you might get lost". Distractions are at an alarming all-time high. These tools should be a means-to-an-end that allow us to focus more, not less. (Consider what International Chess Master Josh Waitzkin writes regarding the "multitasking virus"). Nonetheless, I prefer these tools as alternatives to not capturing most ideas at all and certainly to a less ordered way of approaching my day (week, month, year).
