You’re busy. Busier than ever, frankly. And even with Google Calendar helping you keep track of those back-to-back Zoom meetings and personal appointments—not to mention family events, errands, and to-dos—staying on top of things is no easy feat.
Thankfully, Evernote can make your work-life balance easier than ever. With the calendar widget in Home, you have your Google Calendar, notes, schedule, and tasks all in one place so you can get the most out of your meetings. Plus, you can get notified when it’s time to take a memo—or be prompted to open up your agenda or meeting prep notes. You’ll never miss another detail again!
We asked some of our Evernote Certified Experts for their favorite tips for integrating your calendars within Evernote.
Prioritize the meetings that matter most
Like most folks, we’re guessing you keep both work events and personal events on your calendar. When it comes to work meetings, it makes sense that you’d want to be reminded of when it begins and be prompted to take or open your notes. On the other hand… taking an afternoon walk or a lunch break? Notes and reminders might not be needed.
You can set up your Google Calendar in a way that ensures you only receive Evernote notifications for certain meetings, like your work meetings or important appointments.
Evernote Expert Stacey Harmon says:
“I only display the Google calendar layers in Evernote that have meetings. That way I don’t get notifications for events that don’t require note-taking, like my lunch break.”
Power tip: Create separate Google Calendars for event types such as work, sports, or family. Then, from the calendar widget in Evernote, click on the three dots in the upper right corner, select “Choose calendars…” and select the calendar(s) you want to see in your widget. Now, you’ll be able to see the events for all the calendars you’ve selected in your widget, but you’ll only receive notifications from Evernote for events from your default calendar (the main calendar associated with that email address), and not the other calendars like for sports or family.
Build focus time into your day
Sometimes it feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day to get all of your work done. A great way to allow yourself enough time to focus on your important work is to set up dedicated Focus Time on your calendar.
Productivity expert Ray Sidney-Smith says:
“Environment and sensory cues are two important factors for making the most of what I call ‘Focus Work’ and ‘Flow Work.’ Environment is how you set up your surroundings, including your tools and supplies. And your sensory cues are all the ways you can tell your body and mind that it’s time to get into this kind of work. You might open the windows, have a specific beverage or enjoy a favorite snack, wear specific clothing or an accessory, play a tailored music playlist, or even use a scented candle.”
By adding Focus Time to your calendar, you’ll be able to take a step back from meetings and interruptions and complete your tasks without distractions.
Power tip: To help you get the most out of your Focus Time, prep a to-do list ahead of time in Evernote. From the calendar widget, click on the ‘new note’ icon on the event, and outline your to-do list in the pre-formatted notes. You can create tasks and notes to remind yourself what you need to work on. When you get the notification that your Focus Time is about to begin, your agenda will open with just one more click, ready and waiting for you to dive in.
Get organized for your personal events
Your personal life might be just as busy, if not busier, than your work life! Sometimes, you might have personal events that call for a little extra preparation, or you’ll want to jot some thoughts down afterward. Evernote can automatically send a reminder and give you an extra moment to double-check if you’ve got everything you need.
Organization expert Deb Lee says:
“These event notifications from Evernote now give me a new way of remembering. These notes can be for anything; maybe things you wish to know or info you have been given on the fly. And then you can always find it quickly since it is linked to an event on your calendar.
One of the best things about the ability to use the Evernote notification for non-meeting events is that you are shaving off time. Those minutes add up, so think about if you need a note for this. It can make a difference in your day.”
Power tip: Prepare for your appointments and events by linking notes to them in your calendar widget. Maybe you’re heading to the doctor and have a running list of questions, or you need to create a shopping list for an upcoming birthday party—you can keep track of it all. When the notification from Evernote pops up to let you know it’s time for your event, you’ll have all the details at your fingertips, so you don’t miss a thing.
No matter what you use Evernote for, calendar notifications can help you crush your work meetings, stay on top of important events, and keep all of your details in one place.
Want to learn more from our Experts? Connect with them below!
- Stacey Harmon – https://www.harmonenterprises.com/
- Ray Sidney-Smith – https://rsidneysmith.com/
- Deb Lee – https://dallisonlee.com/
