I use the app Fantastical as my primary calendar app, which has a feature where it will put an icon in your Mac’s menu bar with the meeting link for your next online meeting, whether that meeting uses Google Meet, Zoom, or another service. You simply click the icon in the menu bar on your Mac to join the meeting, rather than opening your calendar to find the link.
With most of my meetings taking place in Google Meet, I prefer to use Google’s Chrome browser rather than Safari, which is normally my default browser for other tasks. I have found that Chrome performs better with Google Meet, I am assuming because Google optimizes for Chrome. Since I prefer to keep Safari as my default browser, I previously would manually copy the links to Chrome in order to open my meetings in that browser.
This icon opens my next meeting in Google Meet.
In addition, when meeting via Zoom, the meeting links would send me to a Safari window that asked for permission to open the link in Zoom, rather than directly opening the Zoom app.
The app OpenIn solved both of these problems for me. Once it is set up, the app opens links in your preferred browser automatically based on your preferences. To get started, you set OpenIn as your default browser. In the app’s settings, you identify the types of links for which you want a specific browser to open, and then specify which browser or app should handle those links. For example, any Google Meet link that I click on will open in Chrome rather than Safari. By providing OpenIn with the relevant portion of the link, in this example any links with “meet.google.com,” you can then indicate which browser should be used to open each type of link.
The app OpenIn is available in Setapp if you are a subscriber, or you can purchase it in the Mac app store.
I wrote a post about my startup routine earlier, and would also like to share my shutdown routine. While I use my startup routine to orient myself for the day and get started, I use my shutdown routine to ensure that I capture tasks from my notes taken earlier in the day and that I am able to focus fully on personal projects and my family in the evening. Like my startup routine, I set up my shutdown routine as a daily repeating task in Things, with each of the steps listed below as subtasks. I complete my shutdown routine before heading home from work each day, as well as at the end of the day on weekends, although my shutdown is abbreviated on the weekend since I am not closing out work tasks.
My shutdown routine task in Things, which repeats daily.
Here is my shutdown routine:
Review my calendar – this gives me time to review the current day’s meetings and activities, and to preview the next day’s schedule
Set Up Schedule for Next Day – I set up my schedule for the following day, essentially a daily agenda, including the meetings that are already scheduled. For the time between meetings, I indicate either “Work Session” or list a specific project or task I would like to focus on. This schedule goes in Things in the notes field of a project called “Daily Planning – Weekdays.” For those of you familiar with block scheduling, this is similar to that approach.
Save Today’s Schedule to DEVONthink – I keep each day’s schedule as a Markdown file in DEVONthink in case I need to look back at a certain day later, or if I want to review my daily schedules as a reflective activity in the future. I use the app PopClip for this, which allows me to simply highlight the text and select DEVONthink from a small popup window. The app then sends the schedule to DEVONthink as a new Markdown file.
Journal About My Day – I keep a set of prompts for my weekly journal in another project in Things, again in the notes field. During my weekly review at the end of each week, I copy this over to the journaling app Day One. Having it in Things allows me to quickly add to it throughout the week, both during my shutdown as well as throughout the day, without having to open a separate app.
Clean Up Inboxes – I process any paper and digital notes, including flagged notes in DEVONthink (I will address how I take notes in DEVONthink in a future post).
Review Things List for Tomorrow’s Tasks – when I review my task list for the next day, I evaluate whether it is realistic and reschedule or drop tasks as needed.
Check Email for Time Sensitive Items– this helps me avoid surprises the next morning.
Close Out Open Windows / Programs – this ensures that I add any finishes touches to open documents and save them before closing each program. This also provides an opportunity to review any open tabs in my browser, in case I was partway through a task or a bit of research and was interrupted.
Pause and Decide What’s Next – I let my mind settle and decide my next action to transition to home and family time. This might be making dinner or picking it up on the way home, running errands, etc. In addition, this is a time to pause and practice a few moments of mindfulness to ensure that I transition to family time ready to be fully present. This pause was inspired by Kourish Dino’s course “Being Productive: Simple Steps to Calm Focus.”
My shutdown routine helps me end the day closing open tasks and feeling settled about the following day. While some days are so hectic that I do not get to my shutdown, I usually find time to get it done. In fact, I often schedule it during the last thirty minutes of my work day. When I am able to complete the shutdown, I end the work day feeling settled, knowing that I will be ready to go the next day. If you use a similar strategy, please let me know in the comments or send me a message.
A key element of productivity is the ability to quickly locate both project support and reference materials. When it is difficult to find key files, or when we cannot find them at all, work can become frustrating and we end up wasting time either searching for an important file of recreating it. Having a consistent filing system can be a big help in this area.
File Categorization and Storage
For project support material, I store nearly all of my documents electronically on my Mac in DEVONthink, and they are synced so that I can access them on my iPhone using DEVONthink To Go.
Within my filing system, I keep project files separated from reference files, leading to four main categories of files: Home Projects, Home Reference, Work Projects, and Work Reference. I organize these materials into two distinct DEVONthink databases, labeled “Home” and “Work,” to maintain separation between personal and professional files.
Project Folders
I name each project folder with the same name as its corresponding project name in Things, my task manager of choice, and include the timeframe of the project as well (Spring 2023, for example, or specific dates for events). For active projects, I add a “.” at the beginning of the folder title so that I know the title refers to an active project when I am searching for folders in DEVONthink. For example, if I am working on an internship program for students in the Fall, the project folder would be named “.Internship Program – Fall 2024.” For ongoing projects without a specific end date, I label these as ‘AOF’ for Area of Focus.” I use this naming convention for both work and personal projects.
At the top of the notes section in Things for the project, I store a link to the DEVONthink folder for that project, so that I can quickly find notes, PDF files, and other resources related to the project. I use the app Hookmark to create links to the folders in DEVONthink. If I need to share files with others at work, I may have a Google Drive folder link for the project as well. Once a project is complete, I remove the “.” at the beginning of the folder title and move the folder into a project archive folder within either the Work Reference or Home Reference folders, depending on whether the project was a personal project or a work project.
Here is an example project in Things with links to project folders in DEVONthink and Google Drive.
Reference Folders
In addition to project folders, reference folders play a crucial role in my filing system. I use reference folders for items that need to be kept on file, but which are not supporting actionable projects. For example, my Home Reference folder contain files like bank statements, receipts, bills, my kids’ school registration documents, and so on. The Work Reference folders contain files related to the various grants I manage, organizations that I interact with, data on the schools I support, key documents that I reference often, and more. Within the Home Reference and Work Reference folders, I have set up subfolders for these various documents, named by topic.
Notes
In addition to keeping PDFs, spreadsheets, and other documents in DEVONthink, I also keep my notes in DEVONthink. This allows me to have all relevant notes and documents related to a project or area of focus in one place.
For notes, I use a specific naming convention so that they are easy to find within each project folder. Each set of notes is named “notes – yyyy-mm-dd – topic.” The notes then naturally appear together in order within the folder, making it easy to find them later when I need them. This naming convention ensures that notes are easily retrievable and are organized chronologically within each project folder. When I initially set up my notes, I flag them within DEVONthink to be sure that I capture any next actions from the notes when I process them daily. I also use consistent naming conventions for other types of documents to make them easy to find.
This screenshot shows how using a naming convention for emails, notes and other documents can help organize the files within a folder.
Paper Files
When it comes to paper files, I only keep documents that absolutely must be kept in a hard-copy format, such as those requiring a wet signature or original copies. Anything else is scanned and saved within DEVONthink. If I have to keep files for any length of time, I use manila folders and print labels for them using a P-touch Label Maker. With these labels I also use the same name as the project from my computer files and task manager. If there are paper documents that I need to keep on file for just a short time, I keep them in a folder at the front of my file cabinet titled “Reference” and indicate in the task or project note that the document is waiting there until I need it.
Using an Inbox
As files are coming in, I find it helpful to have an inbox for each area where I store documents, including for my computer filing system, DEVONthink notes, and physical paper. For example, if I just have a one or two page document, I use the scanning feature within the Files app on my my iPhone to scan these documents into an iCloud folder called “Inbox,” and those documents automatically show up in the same inbox folder on my Mac. When I use our Fujitsu ScanSnap scanner at work, the default folder is also the same inbox, and I have also set it up as my default downloads folder in my web browsers, Chrome and Safari. Each day, I set aside a few minutes to process the inbox and make sure that files are put in the right location. Having both digital and paper inboxes ensures that I do not miss important documents, and that documents are easily retrievable later.
As mentioned above, in DEVONthink, I initially flag any new notes for projects and process my flagged notes periodically to move any relevant tasks to my task manager. Once that is done, I remove the flag.
Conclusion
If you have not already done so, I recommend taking some time to develop a filing system with consistent naming conventions, as well as a process for organizing your files. Implementing consistent naming conventions and an organized process for managing your files can significantly streamline your workflow. If you work with a team, you can do the same thing using Google Drive, Dropbox, or your cloud file storage provider of choice. It is a great feeling to be able to find what you need quickly and easily when you are working on a project, and being organized can keep your day running smoothly. Please share your own experiences and tips in the comments section.
Scott Reindl 