There is an APP for that!

Our goal at design+conquer is to help you make your life easier – plain and simple.  We can do that through helping you to organize your space, by creating new systems that are based on how you live, or even just being that person that helps you tackle things you’d rather not do, but know that you must.  So in these crazy, busy days one of the best ways to help make your life easier is to help you make the most of your time.  Let’s face it – we are all constantly connected to a device for the majority of our waking hours so here are some helpful apps that are worth checking out.

There are many, many amazing apps out there – the tried and true ones that everyone loves … Evernote,  Dropbox, Google calendar and so on.  In the interest of keeping this list a reasonable length and saving you time from reading about apps you are already familiar with (see – already making your life easier!) these are some cool apps that you may not be aware of.

1.   Hootsuite – this is a really neat app that allows you to manage your social media profiles all in one place.  Imagine being able to access Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Linkedin, etc. all through one app.  If you are a business owner, it can also provide additional capabilities that include scheduling messages & tweets, tracking brand mentions and analyzing social media traffic.  So cool!  Such a time-saver!

2.  Zite – hello custom magazine!  You begin your Zite app by selecting which news topics you want to show up in your feed.  They have everything you can think of – arts & culture, politics, business, fashion, entrepreneurship, celebrity gossip, gadgets, personal finance, and many more.  You can also add your own topics.  Zite then analyzes millions of articles each day and brings you the best of your favorite magazine, newspapers, authors, blogs and videos. BAM! Save time by only reading what really interests you!

3. Cardmunch – how many people do you collect business cards from, eventually manually enter into your contact database and then later (if you remember) reach out and connect with? Voila! Now with Cardmunch you take a picture of said business card and not only is it automatically converted into a contact, but the app will also show you the LinkedIn profile of the individual and give you the instant ability to reach out and create a new connection. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

4. Dinner Spinner – doesn’t the name alone make you want to use it?  You can find recipes by ingredient (what do you have sitting around that you want to use up?) or you can use the spinner for dinner inspiration.  Once you pick what you want to make, the app automatically downloads the ingredient list to your main allrecipes.com shopping list (you are using this app for grocery shopping, aren’t you?) so that when you get to the store your list is ready and waiting. It almost makes you excited about cooking dinner!

5.  My Fitness Pal – So now that you know what you’ll be eating (thanks dinner spinner!) you can track it in this app.  I was introduced to this app by Bill Abbott at Tribe Fitness  who kicks my butt on a daily basis.  He uses it with all of his clients to help them set goals (weight loss, nutrition, etc.) by tracking food and exercise – and this is the perfect tool to do that.  With the largest food database going it’s easy to accurately track your calories, carbs, fat, protein, sugar and sodium.  You also get to make up a fun username so that if you want you can share your progress with friends for motivation and encouragement.  Big shout out to my friend HolidayDisco on her hard work – lookin’ good girlfriend!

6. Best Parking – ugh … I hate, hate, hate looking for parking in the city.  I will drive around trying to find a garage or lot that is semi-convenient to where I need to go.  By the time I find said lot I am so desperate to just get parked that I will pay whatever ridiculous amount they are charging.  No more!  Now I can use this app to find the most convenient and cheapest (ka-ching!) parking in 60 cities and 80 airports.  #iamaparkingninja… and I am learning to use Twitter better, too (which of course is also an app!).

So that’s it friends – hope it was worth your time!  I would love to hear about your favorite apps that save you time and make your life a little easier….

If you would like to get in touch about the  services design+conquer provides: www.designandconquerllc.com  or kristin@designandconquerllc.com or 610-416-5048

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