Our Blog

BY Joel Junker

Technology, Travel, Productivity, and the JMO

In our efforts to recruit top JMOs for our client companies, my colleagues Joel, Pete, and I spend a significant amount of time traveling which requires us to be as efficient as possible with our time to maximize our productivity efforts.  We are also looking for ways to improve professionally and increase our knowledge.  I know that may JMOs travel for TDY and for those that will soon be making the transition to business, you may be required to do some travel in your job.  Additionally, for many of you preparing for a transition, you are looking for ways to increase your business knowledge and be more efficient with your time towards your preparation.  I wanted to share some of the more useful apps and websites we have come across that may help you in your endeavors.  This is by no means an all-inclusive list but here are some of the ones we use regularly:

PRODUCTIVITY:

1)  Evernote:  This is a very powerful app and to be honest, I’ve really only scratched the surface.  It is great for note taking but you can record audio notes, snap photos, organize information from multiple sources into one place, save favorite webpages, have RSS feeds sent to it, etc.  It is a one-stop shop to organize yourself and it syncs with your phone, tablet, laptop, etc.  I use it regularly for any notes I need to remember, goals I’ve set for myself, briefings/presentation outlines, etc.  The website is:  http://evernote.com/evernote/.  Additionally, Michael Hyatt has a great blog site where he has chronicled a lot of information about how to use Evernote to its fullest.  Just go to his site, http://michaelhyatt.com/ and in the search box type “Evernote”.

2)  Notability:  Another good productivity tool I use regularly.  I use this app a lot for meetings because you can use a stylus and hand write your notes as well as type them and they are very easy to organize.  You can also save documents to Notability and it will allow you to make notes on them, save them, share them,etc.  You can also link audio recordings to your notes.    http://www.gingerlabs.com/

3)  LinkedIn: Same as the website but the app lets you connect directly to your LinkedIn contacts and has all the same functionality as the website.  With more and more JMOs utilizing LinkedIn as a way to connect to their classmates, other professionals, etc. this is a very useful app.

4)  AnyList:  I use this app a lot for my grocery runs but also for packing for trips or anything else where a list is needed and useful.  It allows you to enter your list and you can check it off on your smart phone, iPad, so you never miss any items.  You can also share the list with anyone else that has the app and if you make an update to the list, they will get the update.

TRAVEL:

1)  Tripit:  This is an invaluable app and website for anyone who travels frequently.  It allows you to consolidate all of your travel plans from air travel to hotel stays to rental cars, etc. in one place. It will automatically organize the information for you by trip/destination and will send you automatic updates if your flight is changed or delayed, gate information, etc.  You can also share your travel information with other Tripit users and can see where your paths might cross during your travels.   The link is:  https://www.tripit.com

2)  Hipmunk:  Another travel app and website that allows you to search for all possible flights, carriers, etc. based on your travel date, starting location and destination.  It is a very easy site/app to use and will quickly and visually show you all the flight times by carrier, price, etc.  One important point is that not every airline is represented, specifically Southwest Airlines to name one.  The website is http://www.hipmunk.com

3)  AroundMe:  This is a pretty useful app that allows you to see what is around you geographically from ATM machines, restaurants, gas stations, hotels, etc.  I use this quite a bit when traveling if I’m in an area I am not familiar and it allows me to quickly find a grocery store, gas station, restaurant, etc.

4)  GateGuru:  This is a handy app that will let you see what restaurants, stores, and other amenities are in any airport by terminal.  It also provides reviews.  It will automatically default to the current airport you are in but you can also search airports.  I use this for airports I am unfamiliar with to save time or if it’s a very large airport to help narrow my search.  It also provides reviews of the different restaurants as well as tips/updates from other GateGuru users who may be flying at that airport.

EDUCATIONAL:

1) TED Talks:   TED.com is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages.  It is a fantastic website to learn more about a variety of topics and there is also an app that makes it easy to access everything from whatever mobile device you have.

2) KhanAcademy:   KhanAcademy.org is a free resource available to anyone. It doesn’t matter if you are a student, teacher, home-schooler, principal, etc.  Khan Academy’s materials and resources are available completely free of charge and cover topics from Algebra to Finance and Accounting to Economics to Biochemistry and History.  They consist of short YouTube videos that are very easy to follow and understand.   We often recommend this website (and respective apps) to JMOs to help them learn more about business, the basics of finance, etc.  

Please feel free to comment below if you have come across some other useful websites and apps!

Rob Davis