CSA Online by Alan Breznick Managing Your Life with Digital Tools Basic Digital Calendars Let’s start with the basic digital calendar and scheduling tools readily available on laptops, tablets and smartphones. The big three players in this market – Apple, Google and Microsoft – all offer free, multi-platform calendar and related scheduling apps built into their software. All three calendar and scheduling apps can be set with timely audio alerts, high-contrast visual displays and easy-to-use buttons for those with physical limitations. But the market giants’ offerings have some key differences as well. For starters, Google Calendar earns plaudits from market experts for its cross-platform compatibility, collaboration, smart features and strong integration with many third-party apps and services. Yet it also draws complaints that it is less visually appealing and has fewer online capabilities than its two main rivals. Microsoft Outlook’s Calendar stands out for its robust scheduling features, tight security and easy integration with Teams, Exchange and other Microsoft products. However, critics complain that the Outlook interface seems a bit dated compared with its rivals and other apps, and that it may be overkill for simple personal use. Apple’s iCal shines for its intuitive interface and seamless syncing with other Apple products, devices and services; for its ability to work with voice commands; and for its complete integration with the company’s Siri virtual voice assistant. However, as is typical with Apple products, iCal has limited cross-platform functionality because it doesn’t work with products outside of the Apple universe. So, consider all of these factors when deciding which basic digital calendar to use. Most of your other digital scheduling and organizing decisions will likely flow from this baseline pick. Life may be a grand adventure but these days, much of it also seems like a highly detailed exercise in project management. In our roles as life-project managers, the steady shift from paper to digital tools has created a world in which we employ either ready-made or personalized solutions to track our time and tackle our to-do lists. Most of us employ tools that have migrated from office to home and taken on new uses – sometimes challenging us to develop new skills. And many of us are hybrid project managers, employing a mix of digital/online and paper-and-pencil tools. How to Stay Organized So how do you keep on top of everything that’s going on in your busy life? Are you sharing a Google calendar…or toting a handsome Filofax? Keeping running lists on your smartphone…or in a red manila folder on your desk or dining room table? If you are curious about some of the newer options (or new uses for older, office-based options that have moved into everyday life), here’s a look at some basic tools that can help you with a life that is, increasingly, lived digitally and online. These tools and software applications run the gamut from digital calendars and schedulers to voice-activated virtual assistants and specialized digital reminder alerts, from smartphone apps to talking clocks – let alone tried-and-true timers, sticky notes, wall planners and whiteboards. You can keep your trusty paper planner and still move forward. No matter whether they are high tech or high touch, all of these tools and services have one thing in common: they can all help you manage your time and stay organized as life continues to change around you. 48 | www.snowbirds.org
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