As a PR consultant and the CEO of a global PR firm, Aeris PR,Kate Antonova deals with dozens of people daily. Hundreds of calls, business travel, changing time zones, and never-ending task lists. To stay sane and have time and mental space for creative freedom, here’s what she needs to be extremely good at her job? That’s right, organizational skills and unflinching time management.
Thankfully, there are plenty of tools today, suited for every necessity and fancy. See the list of my must-haves as a comms specialist!
#1 Gmail
First things first. Gmail, with its basic interface and all the functions needed in business communications. Not to mention that it is a part of the Google ecosystem, the most used and most helpful service suite for me. Gmail is simply the backbone of my correspondence.
#2 Telegram
Another hero app that helps me keep connected with the world is Telegram. The best messenger you can imagine: texts, audio, video calls, folders for chats, sticker packs, advanced notification settings, user-friendly design, stability, and high-end security! At the moment, there really is no alternative for me in terms of business and personal chat.
#3 Zoom
Communication is my profession. So, here is to another app to connect with people! My clients and team are located in the US, Europe, CIS countries, and the Middle East, and Zoom meetings sometimes take up the largest part of my day. And nothing yet can beat Zoom.
#4 NotionÂ
It is so much more than just a text editor! Need any information stored or presented to other people quickly and beautifully? Notion comes to you. Its simplicity and capabilities at the same time are mesmerizing. It is meant for team work, you can reference people easily, embed almost anything, and most importantly, everything is a block and your eye doesn’t get distracted in the super clean interface! The list of benefits could go on and on.
#5 Miro
My favorite collaborative whiteboard platform. It supports many ways for individual and team work: mind mapping, agile workflows, whiteboarding, etc. Manage projects, brainstorm, or create boards as big and as intricate as you need with your teammates. As I am usually short on time, it is important to me that the tool has a rich range of templates and offers a quality export function. As I am a partly visual learner, Miro has my complete affection and almost everyday visits.
#6 Dilims
I need to thank the developers of this timezone management app for saving my nervous system and time, obviously! There is no need to try to manually match my hours with those of my colleagues, clients, and journalists around the globe. With the Dilims interface, they are visible to me with one click, and planning a video call or e-mail send time is a matter of seconds with this app. Visual customization options help keep track of time even more.
#7 Nomad
Time to honor an app that lets me enjoy everything else that’s on this list, anywhere in the world! We take the Internet for granted unless we travel and face roaming rates. Nomad helps me stay connected literally everywhere by offering flexible data plans at a local rate in any country. I just buy a plan, activate the eSIM card, and benefit from using the Internet as much as I need.Â
#8 Todoist or simply Notes on iOS
Plans are worthless, planning is invaluable, they say. There is not much to explain here. I just write things down here, and try to put them to use! The best thing about to-do lists is that they stay with you as long as you want to keep them, and you can get back to them any time you want.
 #9 Be Focused: Pomodoro Timer
If planning is invaluable, doing must be divine. To avoid thousands of notes piling up for months in my Todoist and Notes, I sometimes use the Be Focused app, where it’s about “doing tasks on time or going home.” The Pomodoro technique helps me make use of my mental capabilities that become more efficient when
big goals are broken up into chunks. I love plenty of customization options in Be Focused, like setting my own work time and break intervals, adding due dates, great sound selection, etc.
 #10 Insight Timer
I am a big yoga and meditation fan. This app has a really extensive meditation library, counting more than 100,000 of them. It also offers some remarkable opportunities, like creating a sense of connection with the community. For example, you can join topic-specific groups or just send a thank-you note to others meditating at the same time as you.
As I love to learn and advance in mindful practices, Insight Timer is the perfect app for me, allowing me to connect with a mentor or attend a workshop to deepen my meditation skills.
Of course, it is just a part of the tools that I find useful for work and performance as an entrepreneur. Other than this, I also use a lot of apps designed for PR pros, but it is definitely a subject for a separate post! One last thing I want to mention is my outtake of app usage. Don’t get overwhelmed with them and avoid app oversaturation. As long as you choose and use them wisely, apps can really save you time and effort and may enhance your effectiveness. Assess your problems and needs and take it from there. Find one app that fits, test it, and don’t stop until you find your thing.
