I don’t have a productivity system. I have a pile of tools that each fix one way my brain drops things. Here’s the pile, what job it does, and where it failed me.
Capture: so nothing lives in my head
Plaud: a voice recorder I talk into on walks and drives. Talking is how I think. The transcript lands in my notes automatically. Plaud Note Pro or Plaud Note
Wispr Flow: dictation on my laptop. I talk instead of type, and it cleans up the mess.
Think: an external brain
Obsidian: my notebook. Wins, lessons, and connecting dots. Not where I track work.
Excalidraw+: my whiteboard. When I’m learning or rehearsing something, a drawing beats a wall of text.
Claude: turns my rambling voice notes into a draft in my words. It drafts; I decide.
Readwise: pulls my book highlights into my notes so reading turns into something.
Do: nudges, not willpower
GitHub Projects: the one record of what I’m working on. Every post gets a date set backward from when it goes out, so I know what’s due today without deciding.
Apple Reminders: one list, every task has a time. If it’s not there with a time, it doesn’t exist.
Apple Calendar: Family life lives there. Helps show reminders and other activities.
Everyday: habit tracker. I tap to log; it never auto-completes for me.
iOS Shortcuts: soft evening nudges (“did you read?”) that ask before marking.
Dad
How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen: acknowledge the feeling first, then redirect. Changed bedtime more than any app. (Amazon link)
What didn’t stick
I built a time tracker in two hours and broke it on day one. It only works if the stopwatch is running. Instead, I just use a physical stopwatch so that I can time myself. And when I forget, I take a note, send it to my AI and update my calendar so that at least it was on my calendar when I do a review later in the week.
The rule underneath all of it: if a tool needs me to remember to use it, it’s going to fail. Each one here works because it catches me, not because I’m disciplined.
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