Google Calendar – A great productivity tool

I mentioned Google Mail not so long ago and explained how it has really helped me out. Checking all my email accounts from one central place wherever I am is immensely useful. On the same theme, I just have to mention Google Calendars. This is a very simple, easy to use calendar program and I think it can really help anyone.

It is full integrated with your Google account, so you do not need another password or anything like that. By default it sets up a personal calendar for you. Planning your own day and making notes of appointment times, travel plans etc is great. This is nothing new to calendars. The true potential for this lies in the ability to create a number of different calendars and share them.

Keep organised

You can create a different calendar for each project you are involved in. This calendar can be shared with everyone involved in the project. You can even give other people the access level to invite more people, edit events etc. Already this is useful. By having a system like this, any conflicting schedules should stand out instantly!

Keeping different calendars for different projects prevents you from getting too involved with any one project. It allows you to step back and see how much time something is taking up. The world revolves around compromise, and this tool should help you decide where you can compromise.

Shared Calendars

On a more personal note, having your own schedule planned in, and shared amongst your friends makes arranging a get together so much easier. You can instantly see who is in town. Another great use could be to create a calendar with all your family’s birthdays entered. Share this amongst your family and I am sure they would appreciate it. Do the same again for your friends.

Public Calendars

There are loads of different public calendars you might want to add. I am terrible for knowing when public holidays, mother’s day and that type of thing are. So I added a UK public holidays calendar. Now I should be able to keep on top of things. Other popular calendars involve film releases, TV show releases, musicians and bands gig schedules, politicians public appearances (This has to be hot right now following the presidential candidates) and many many more.

There you have it – another great productivity tool that I highly recommend. Give it a shot and let me know what you think. For those who use outlook, I believe it synchronises really well with outlook, but I have not experimented. Let me know if your a Google Calendars fan, and any tips or tricks you have. If you prefer something else, let me know what!