The week between Christmas and New Year’s is often a black hole of productivity.  Between sugar hangovers and lack of sleep, getting work done can be impossible.  The good news is that this week gives us time to reflect on things we’ve done right and areas in which we can do better. One way we are always look to improve at Nash Creative Co., is that of productivity.  No matter how much ground we gain in this realm, there is always room for improvement.  In an effort to make the upcoming year even better than this year, we are sharing our best productivity products and hacks with you.  Leave a comment and let us know what you do to be more productive.  As entrepreneurs, parents, small business owners, employers and employees, we can make 2017 our most productive year yet!

1. Coffee.  Seriously, coffee is important.  In addition to providing a daily dose of water (we really hope our trainers aren’t reading this), it fuels us.  That’s why we take our coffee makers seriously.  We have a new love and it’s called the Ninja Coffee Bar.  In addition to making regular coffee, it can make iced coffee, lattes, mochas and more.  Our favorite part is that the water reservoir is removable, meaning that instead of carrying water from the sink via a cup or pitcher, you carry the reservoir to the sink and fill it.  No more water dripping down the sides of your coffee maker!  We especially love the ability to easily brew a cup, a half of a pot or a whole pot.

2. Amazon Prime.  Most people already know about this, but we often forget to use Amazon Prime for business.  Being located in a rural area, we cannot easily get everything we need for a smooth running office.  Ink cartridges are a 30 plus minute drive.  Prime allows us to get what we need, delivered to my doorstep in a matter of 2 days, all without a minimum order.

3. Passion Planner.  If you are looking for a handy way to set goals and incorporate them into your daily, weekly, and monthly to-do lists, then we highly recommend this planner.  It walks you through your long term goals and helps you break them down into smaller chunks.  At the end of each month, there is a section to evaluate how you did with reaching your goals.

4. My Fitness Pal.  Track your weight loss goals with this app.  Users can record their weight, measurements, exercise, foods they’ve consumed and daily water intake.  It’s free and it makes a huge difference when it comes to staying on track.

5. DustBuster.  This may seem like an unlikely item to add to the list, but as any parent can attest to, cleaning can take a huge amount of time.  Even if you hire it out, the daily cereal spills, crumbs and dirt can add up.  We love our DustBuster because it is powerful, yet easy enough for our kids to use.  The fact that we don’t have to haul out our big vacuum every time a box of cereal is dumped over is a huge plus.

6. Number 5 leads us straight into number 6.  Delegating.  Your kids/spouse/roommate can and should help.  Don’t be an island, ask for help. Trying to do it all leads only to failing at everything.

7. Wave Apps.  This software allows you to track expenses, invoice clients, collect payments and generate reports.  The free version is amazing.  Users can set up recurring invoices that are automatically emailed to clients.  We find this especially helpful for clients that are billed yearly.  No more calendar reminders.  Simply set up the invoice, the frequency of invoicing and you are done.

8. Evernote.   As every sticky note junkie know, sticky notes eventually lose their stick.  That’s why we use Evernote.  We use it for everything from brainstorming, to code snippets for web design, to contract ideas.  When users read something that they want to remember, they can put it in Evernote, use tags to organize it and the next time they need remember a piece of information, they can simply use the search feature and every note with the tag they’ve searched is brought up on their screen.

9. Every Dollar App.  Tracking spending is a pain, especially with multiple people using one account.  Every Dollar allows you to set your monthly budget and sync your bank account.  Like many similar apps, Every Dollar helps keep you accountable.  For us, this app is a bit easier to use than others (such as Mint or You Need a Budget), but this is a matter of personal preference.

10. Filmic Pro.  As video becomes more and more important to social media marketing, having a way to easily film high quality video, without spending a ton of money is important.  Filmic Pro is an app that costs less than $10.  It claims to turn your phone into a HD camera. While it may not be as a great as a $5000 camera, it does do wonders and for next to nothing.  Filmic Pro allows you to adjust the ISO, frame rate, exposure, audio gain control and more.  Using this app saves time when it comes to editing and the final product looks amazing, considering the small price tag of this handy little app. 

An iPhone and Filmic Pro allowed us to film this video for Empowering Fitness.  In our opinion, you get way more than you pay for with Filmic Pro.

So there you have it folks!  Our top ten productivity hacks of 2016.  Tell, us, what do you use to maximize your productivity?