Apps | List Producer

App Makes Paybacks Quicker

April 25, 2013/0 Comments/in Apps, Increase Productivity, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time/by Paula Rizzo

Money (Photo credit: 401(K) 2013)

I’m all about making life easier and that’s why I have to share this new app with you. It’s called Venmo and it’s basically a way to pay back all your debts to your friends instantly.

Say you are out to dinner with your friend and the restaurant only accepts cash (ugh -you should have done your homework before hand and skipped this place!). Your friend only has credit cards so you kindly pick up the tab because you have cash. Now she owes you.

This scenario has happened to me time and time again and depending on the friend has either been an quick repayment or one that I’m waiting weeks to receive. Enter Venmo…the instant way to pay people back. Think of it as PayPal with your iPhone.

Make an account and link your bank account (don’t worry, it’s safe) and connect with other friends who also have accounts through Venmo. Now pay them back and get payments instantly. It’s really that simple. I tried it out recently and it works perfectly. It’s a good system for group payments too. Check it out and let me know what you think!

Carrot: Bossy To-Do List App Makes Productivity a Game

April 7, 2013/4 Comments/in Apps, Benefits of List Making, Increase Productivity, List Making, Reduce Stress, Saving Time, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

I don’t usually respond well to bullies but for some reason I’m really liking the Carrot app because of it’s pushy ways. I downloaded the to-do list app after a friend told me about it and I’ve been using it for several days.

The idea is that this to-do list with a personality will help you to get all your tasks ticked off. And when I say “personality” I mean “attitude.” Carrot’s mood changes depending on how productive you are. It’s pretty funny actually. But as you finish a task you earn points and unlock new features and get rewards.

Here’s my list of pros and cons:

PROS:

The fun game-type format makes you want to complete tasks to find out what Carrot has in store next.
It’s very easy to use and intuitive.
One of the gifts I was given was a cat named Captain Whiskers. How cute!

CONS:

Not very forgiving if you make a mistake at first. As you work your way through the levels you are able to edit, undo and change tasks.
There aren’t any pictures of Captain Whiskers. I think they will probably improve on this in future versions to increase the fun factor.
I could see people getting tired of Carrot’s schtick and not using it after the novelty wears off.

I think this could be a fun way to get more done for a lot of people. It’s definitely worth a try. Let me know what you think of Carrot if you’re using it. Also — I have no idea why it’s called Carrot.

Pack These Items When You Travel

March 31, 2013/0 Comments/in Apps, Benefits of List Making, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Tool for Success, Travel/by Paula Rizzo

Paula & Nicole at the Trevi Fountain in Rome

Traveling can be very stressful no matter how much you plan. People go travelling for a whole host of reasons. Some people are interested in doing something like this Cultural Care Au Pair, whilst others are only interested in being tourists. But there are some tips and tricks that I’ve found to help you out. Recently, Jay and I went to Italy and Paris with our friends Nicole and Peter. They were the ones we went to visit in Paris in July.

Anyway — Nicole is a crazy planner/researcher like me. She makes lists and is super organized. She even wrote a guest post about ways to pack for a two week European vacation in a carry on. It’s brilliant advice. We had a blast planning out every stop on our two-week Italian tour. So we teamed up with this list of travel must haves: Read more

Best Food Apps

March 25, 2013/0 Comments/in Apps, Decision Making, Food, Increase Productivity, Saving Money, Saving Time, Shopping, Technology, Tool for Success, Travel, Wine/by Paula Rizzo

Salumi e vino lucchese. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s no secret — I love food! For someone who works in television I don’t actually watch it that often but when I do I’m always watching a cooking show. I love talking about food, eating it and planning out menus.

So when Mindy Kobrin of Meals on Heels asked me to write a guest blog for her food site I was thrilled! I decided to write about some apps that make planning, eating and enjoying much easier. Here’s a look at that blog post: 5 Must-Have Food Apps.

Bonus App

While on vacation in Italy and Paris recently I found another useful app that I didn’t include in my guest post. It’s called Delectable and it’s a wine app that is very smart. You just snap a photo of a wine that you’re enjoying and the app does the rest. The photo is sent to a database that identifies where the wine was produced, what year it was, what type it is, etc. And it even tells you where you can buy the wine. It’s a clever and practical app for wine lovers. It definitely came in handy in Tuscany. More on that trip soon. But I hope you find these apps helpful in the meantime.

9 Ways to be Productive on a Snow Day

February 7, 2013/2 Comments/in Apps, Benefits of List Making, Decision Making, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, List Making, Relationships, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

SNOW DAY in TIMES SQUARE 2011 – Manhattan, New York City – 01/26/11 (Photo credit: asterix611)

The mention of extreme weather does a funny thing to people. It throws us into a total frenzy. No one wants to sit in a freezing home in the middle of winter. All you can think of is how much milk you have in the house and whether or not your car has gas. My office has been a buzz about the Nor’easter headed for New York City for days.

A snow day is a good excuse to do all the things you’ve been “meaning” to do but just haven’t gotten to do. If you do get snowed in — here’s my list of things you can do to be productive:

Clean out just ONE desk, junk or dresser drawer. Get to more if you can but start with just one.
Catch up on your saved DVR shows. (in your PJs)
Look up and try out a new workout on YouTube.
Start compiling all the paperwork you need to do your taxes. I recommend Evernote to keep track of it all.
Do some online shopping to cross off some birthday or holiday gifts from your to-do list.
Do research for an upcoming wedding, vacation or project.
Download the Next Issue app to browse all your favorite magazines in one spot.
Try out a new recipe. One of my favorite blogs Cooking With Books should give you some inspiration.
Begin a new book. Check Goodreads.com for fabulous recommendations from friends.