It Can Be Such A Hassle!

Whether you’re commuting to work or school, visiting family or friends or just exploring the nearby area, public transport can be an excellent alternative to driving. 

But at the same time, it can also be a very frustrating experience!

As someone who uses public transport to get to and from work, I decided to share some tips and advice from the tech side of things.

So without any further ado, here are 3 tech gadgets I use to tackle public transport…

1. A Decent Set of Noise-Cancelling Earbuds

Catching the train or the bus can be a noisy experience, that’s why if you are planning to use public transport often, I highly recommend investing in a decent set of active noise-cancelling (ANC) headphones or earbuds. These reduce the ambient sound around you allowing you to go about your journey in peace. 

I tend to prefer using ANC earbuds because I can easily store them in my pocket when I’m not using them and they still provide decent sound quality.

At present, my go-to earbuds are the Google Pixel Buds Pro, which not only provides a decent level of noise cancellation, but they sound great and support multi-point Bluetooth. This means that when I’m working on my iPad and a call comes in on my Pixel 7 Pro, I can take the call without disconnecting my earbuds.

When on the train, I tend to either listen to Spotify, a podcast or an audiobook. Listening to podcasts allows me to stay up-to-date with the world of technology, the news as well as people’s views and opinions.

Whenever listening to audiobooks, I tend to listen to the ones focused on personal development, so I do tend to pick up a lot of tips and advice to make me a better person. 

Spotify on the other hand provides me with a great way of just switching off and enjoying the stunning views of the countryside.

My Everyday Commute Carry

2. My iPad 

I commute to and from work by train, and the journey roughly takes an hour each way. I find that 1 hour, is the perfect time for me to do something productive. I mean, if you times that by 2, that’s 2 hours for productivity, which is quite a lot.

That’s why I use my iPad Pro to write blog posts, edit videos and even write scripts on the train. It provides me with the perfect way to get away from all stuff going on around me.

I also use train journeys as an excuse to learn new skills. I’m currently subscribed to Pluralsight which helps me stay up to speed with the latest IT skills I need to stay up to speed with my career. I’m also subscribed to Skillshare which helps me learn other things, such as becoming a better writer or creating better videos.

My Go-To Apps

At present, my go-to app for writing blog posts is Ulysses. It provides a great way of writing blog posts and then publishing them to WordPress directly, which when on public transport can be a blessing, particularly when you have limited internet access.

One of my favourite features in Ulysses is Revision Mode, which allows me to check and proofread my post before publishing it. I find this feature extremely useful as we all make mistakes, especially when using smaller keyboards that you’re less used to using.

From time to time, I tend to spend the commute editing videos for my YouTube channel, I mean I can get a lot of video editing done in those two hours I have to spare during the day.

I’m actually quite new to Luma Fusion, but I find it incredibly good on the iPad. In the past, I used iMovie and VN, both of which are great apps, but I guess I wanted something a little bit better and Luma Fusion fits the bill perfectly.

For writing YouTube scripts, I tend to use Notion which I currently use for managing my side hustle and content. I’ve recently purchased the Creators Companion template by Thomas Frank and find it incredibly useful.

Why I Moved Away From Notion – 1-Year Update

3. Amazon Kindle

From time to time, it’s just nice to read a good book. I’m currently reading Atomic Habits by James Clear on my Kindle. I currently have the base model which I purchased back in 2016, so I’m in need of an upgrade but saying that it still works perfectly fine.

I like reading books on the Kindle because overall it feels more natural. I don’t really like reading books on the iPad and on my phone because my eyes tend to strain, but they don’t on the Kindle.

Reading books tends to be something I do on the morning commute to work as in the evening I often feel tired or more inclined to do actual work such as video editing or writing blog articles.

But reading a book in the morning, especially when it’s on self-development tends to set me up well for the day ahead. 

When reading books on the train, I tend to listen to pre-made work playlists on Spotify. That combined with my active noise-cancelling earbuds really helps me switch off from the hustle and bustle of a busy train.

6 Awesome Gadgets You Need For Your Work Bag!

Summary

To summarise this article, these are the 3 tech gadgets I tend to make with me on my commute to and from work. They really do make the commute more bearable and productive.

When planning my week on Sunday, I tend to consider the things I will do during these commutes in advance, but I usually leave these time slots as optional in my calendar, unless I know I have to work on something in particular. This allows me to choose the task I do based on how I feel in the mornings and evenings before I start the commute.

Do you use public transport? What are the 3 things you take to make your journey more bearable? Let us know in the comments!