How I Organise My Digital Life — My Productivity Tool Kit
The tools and methods I use in my digital productivity toolkit — July 2025
I’ve been consuming a lot of content about how people organise their digital lives lately. I don’t know what it is about this kind of content, but I find it absolutely fascinating.
Not only does it inspire me, but it’s also helped me discover new apps, methods, services—and sometimes products I never even knew existed.
I would even go as far as saying that some of the things I discovered have completely transformed the way I approach my digital life.
So I thought: why not return the favour? It’s about time I shared how I organise my digital life…
The PARA Method
I wanted to start with the method I use to organise my digital life. I use this method for file storage, notebooks and some of the apps I will be mentioning later in this article.
Created by Tiago Forte, the PARA Method is a simple yet powerful system for organising your information. PARA stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives.
- Projects:Short-term tasks you’re working on now
- Areas: Long-term responsibilities you manage over time
- Resources: Useful or interesting things you may find useful in the future
- Archives: Inactive items from the other categories.
While this method works great for me, I’ve actually customised it to create an Inbox area for short-term notes I don’t need to save or for things that I will organise later.
Notion
Over the years, I’ve had a love-hate relationship with Notion, but then I discovered a series of templates that changed everything for me. The most notable was Ultimate Brain by Thomas Frank (Not sponsored).
Ultimate Brain has enabled me to create an organised second brain which helps me keep on top of tasks, projects, notes and more. The template has truly revolutionised my workflow and has helped me stay organised.
At the time of writing this article, I’ve been using the template for almost two months, and it really has made a difference in my life. Since I started using it, I have been on top of my projects, work and daily tasks, something I was falling behind in with my previous system.
For content creation, I also a template by Thomas Frank, I use the Creator’s Companion (not sponsored), which I have been using for well over a year, and it helps me plan and organise ideas on content, a truly game-changing template.
Outside those templates, I use Notion for documentation and project work. For example, as someone who works in IT, I currently use Notion for documentation for my home lab.
Notion Calendar
After purchasing the Ultimate Brain template, I moved to Notion Calendar, as it allows me to see tasks from Ultimate Brain in my calendar without any workarounds.
The app also has a really nice interface and just works well for me.
However, there are a few areas I wish Notion could improve on, the main one is to introduce an optimised version of the app to the iPad, I would also like to see it available on the Apple Watch.
For this reason, I actually use two calendar apps at present. My primary calendar app is Notion Calendar, and on my watch I use the default Calendar app.
I don’t use the calendar on my iPad at present, which is a real shame as it was the primary device I used the calendar app on. I could look into creating a shortcut to the web version of the app. But, if you have an iPad, and somehow you use Notion Calendar on it, please let me know how you do it in the comments!
Reminders
For most things, I’m heavily integrated into the Ultimate Brain template in Notion. However, I only add tasks into it that have an output, I need to keep track of, or if they are part of a project. For tasks that don’t have an Output or I don’t need to keep logged, I simply use Reminders.
I think that the Reminders app is a very underrated, it works incredibly well. I like being able to ask Siri to remind me to do something at certain times. It helps me keep track of the little things, such as remembering which bins to put out or telling me when the washing machine is finished.
I primarily use Reminders for most small, non-project tasks that don’t have an output, such as my shopping list, remembering to pick up parcels from the parcel machine and so on.
I have used other reminder apps in the past, but after using Reminders for a while, I decided to stick with it.
Email and Apps
In terms of email, I have multiple email accounts for various things. Starting with my side Hustle email account, I have a separate email account for my side hustle, and I’ve created mailboxes with their own email addresses within that account for various things such as newsletters, enquiries and so on.
For my Side Hustle email account, I currently use Zoho Mail and their app, which I’ve recently switched to. Based on my experience so far, switching was easy, and I like the interface.
I have a secure email account which I use for any type of sensitive accounts and emails. I exclusively use Proton Mail for those.
I use Yahoo Mail as my spam account. When I say spam account, I don’t mean I spam people with it, I actually use it for signing up to services that I believe may send me spam. For instance, I use it for signing up to email newsletters from shops and so on. I use the Yahoo Mail app for that.
For the next email address types I’m about to share, I use my primary email app, Spark mail. Spark is an app that I moved away from in the past, but ended up returning and paying for premium. In summary, I guess that I misunderstood some of the features, but I was instantly sold on them when trying them out again. If you are a Setapp user, Spark Mail is available through Setapp.
I have an email account for professional purposes such as employment, personal development and anything that will aid my professional life. I am not referring to the email account I was provided with through my employer, it’s simply an email address I am happy to put on my resume. For that, I use an Outlook email address.
Speaking of Outlook email addresses, I also have an Outlook email address I use for shopping, and another one I use for newsletters I actually read.
For my personal email account, I have a Gmail email address and I use for communicating with my friends and family and social media.
I know that this may seem like an overkill, but it’s always worth having more than one email address and to split them into categories.
I am fully aware that several apps offer masked email addresses, but I prefer to remember the email addresses I use. For example, I often use Plus Addressing when signing up to online services. This gives me a unique email address, I can use to receive emails.
This simply works by adding a “+” at the end of my email address, before the “@“ sign. For example, if my email address was firstname.surname@gmail.com, and I want to buy something from a shop I’m going to call Shop A, I can simply put firstname.surname+ShopA@gmail.com, and emails should be delivered to my main gmail address.
Proton Pass
I’ve used many password managers over the years, and I’ve recently switched to Proton Pass, which I’m quite impressed with.
Proton Pass is an open-source end-to-end encrypted password manager that allows users to store and manage passwords, generate 2FA codes, generate email aliases and store notes.
They have a generous free plan available, but because I like the app and some of the features the Pass Plus plan offers, I decided to upgrade.
The free plan, still offers unlimited logins, notes and devices, a password generator, alerts for weak and reused passwords, passkeys and 10 hide-my-email email aliases, which, like I said, is very generous.
I primarily upgraded to get unlimited hide-my-email aliases, dark web monitoring and secure link sharing. If you are interested in checking out Proton Pass for yourself, I am leaving my affiliate link, which will help support my work.
NotePlan
For note-taking, I recently switched back to NotePlan after a long break trying out alternatives including Apple Notes and OneNote.
I like NotePlan due to its simple interface, the ability to see my calendar within the app, and the fact that it uses the PARA method to help keep my notes organised.
I primarily use NotePlan for making quick notes that aren’t necessarily part of a project and for planning my day.
While the Ultimate Brain template in Notion, does have a daily view, it only shows me tasks that I have within Notion, it doesn’t show me the tasks I have outside of Notion.
At the beginning of the day, I like to use NotePlan, to plan my day out in the following sections. I have primary (most important) tasks at the top, then morning tasks, Afternoon tasks and evening tasks.
I add all tasks from Notion, the reminders app and anything else I need to do on that day.
I know that rewriting tasks may once again sound like an overkill, but it allows me to stay on top of everything and remember the tasks I need to do.
Ulysses
Ulysses is the primary app I use for writing blog posts and newsletters. I find it much better compared to traditional word processors as I am able to type using markup, which I find quicker.
I like Ulysses as it offers some useful features built in, such as a proofreader and the ability to publish blog posts directly from the app to platforms like WordPress and Medium.
The ability to publish blog posts directly from the app is a real game changer for me, as I’m not a fan of writing on writing them using web editors.
Bublup
I save countless links to guides and online content that I may find useful in the future. For that, I use an app called Bublup.
Bublup provides a great way of sharing and organising links, notes, files and more. I primarily use Bublup for saving, organising and sharing links. It’s the primary app I use to save links to guides, inspiration, future projects and interesting content. Basically, anything I find fascinating, I save the link to Bublup.
Like with file management and my notes, I’ve organised Bublup into PARA, which helps me easily find things.
Bublup provides excellent ways of sharing, you can either share a folder, which members can comment and interact with (which is great for collaboration) or you can share a Roll, which is a quick webpage created from a folder or a series of folders. As an example, I have a link to a Roll featuring my every day tech carry on my website. I have had other Rolls in the past, such as Recommended Tech, but I am currently recreating them, so I’ve temporarily taken them down from my website.
As a heavy Bublup user who genuinely sees the value the app provides, I decided to join their affiliate program, so if you are interested in trying out the app yourself, I am leaving my affiliate link.
Focus Profiles
When it comes to technology, I’m not one of those brand enthusiasts who think Apple is better than Samsung or vice versa. I appreciate tech for what it is. However, when it comes to work and staying organised, I simply prefer the Apple ecosystem because it works for me. That doesn’t mean I dislike the Samsung or any other ecosystem.
One area where Apple has nailed it with the ecosystem is a feature called Focus Profiles.
Focus Profiles are settings that help users minimise distractions and manage notifications based on current activity. You can also set them to show certain widgets and apps on your home screen, certain widgets on your Lock Screen and watch faces on the Apple Watch.
I’ve set an office profile when entering the office. Once activated, my phone will set the Home Screen I set up for work as my Home Screen, it will also only allow notifications from apps I may need access to while in the office, and it will set my watch face to one I created for work.
If I’m travelling by train, I have an automation that will set my phone Home Screen to one with widgets including the status of my train, as well as any train station notifications and a small departures board widget. I use the UK Live Train Times app and the Trip.com app to gain these widgets. One thing to note is that I book all my train trips using the Trip.com app, which allows me to use the widget after making the booking. Speaking of which, I’m a big fan of the Trip.com app, especially as it allows me to earn points which I can redeem for more travel. That is why I decided to join their affiliate program, so if you are interested in checking it out, I am leaving my affiliate link.
Setapp
Last on the list is Setapp, Setapp is a monthly subscription service I use for apps on my Mac, iPad, and iPhone. I pay $12.49 per month, and that provides me with access to over 250 apps. There is a cheaper subscription available, however, the $12.49 plan gives me access to apps for 1 Mac and 4 iOS devices, so it works really well for me.
I like to think of Setapp as the Netflix of app stores.
Setapp is the primary place I go to when I need a new app for something, and I use quite a lot of apps that are available in the subscription. For instance, I am currently writing this article using Ulysses, which is available on Setapp.
NotePlan, Spark Email, CleanMyMac and many other useful apps are also available through Setapp.
I’ve been a paying customer for over a year and I can honestly recommend it as not only has it helped me save money, but it helped me discover some fantastic apps I wouldn’t have normally even considered. That is why I am leaving my affiliate link. I started with the 7-day free trial, not thinking that I will find any value or renew my subscription, but I’ve now been subscribed for over a year.
Final Thoughts
Over the years, I tried many methods for organising my digital life, but when it comes to organising digital stuff, I find that my adapted approach of the PARA method works best for me.
The PARA method, along with my digital tool kit, has not only ensured I stay organised, but it has also helped me stay productive.
As someone who works a full-time 9 to 5 job, sometimes it can be difficult to stay on top of things, but the apps I mentioned in this article have made a real difference in my everyday life.
For example, Spark Mail has helped me save time when checking my email, Bublup has provided me with a new method of storing and organising links as well as other digital content and so on.
If you found any interesting apps from this article, or if you have any suggestions, please let us know in the comments!
Disclaimer: This article contains affiliate links, which help me earn by linking to products and services. I only link to products and services that I use and can recommend based on my own personal experience. Find out more in my affiliate disclaimer.