On one of the online forums I participate in, one of the members posted the following question:
Let’s talk technology for a moment…I use MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and iPhone 11 for work and personal. They go with me and my FFP everywhere.
Now, I see some using the Note 10 and Surface Pro. I’ve been researching and feel like those two devices could possibly replace the 3 of mine.
Anyone used those devices? Looking for any feedback. I am a huge Apple person but looking for max productivity with less if possible.
Here was my response:
Like you, I’m an Apple person. I have a 16″ MacBook Pro, an iPad Pro, and an iPhone 8. A lot of my work involves helping people be more productive and, in my opinion, Apple products do that best. They are more reliable, work seamlessly together, and with each OS release they get better and better. I am at the point now where I leave my MacBook Pro home most of the time and just take my iPad. It does 90% of what my MacBook will do, especially now that iOS 13 allows me to use an Apple keyboard and mouse. And with OS 14 coming out in the fall, the iPad will be even more powerful.
OK. So the last paragraph is my biased approach to this. I truly think that a lot of productivity depends on what platform you have gotten used to using. I was a PC person until 10 years ago when someone gave me a Mac. It took me a while to get used to it, but I’ll never go back to a PC again. Having said that, productivity is less about technology and more about how you plan and organize your workflow. Any system will work if it’s designed properly. I can (and have) created productivity systems with no technology — completely on paper — and they work extremely well.
My recommendation is that we all focus on the productivity workflow first and then see how we can best accomplish an efficient workflow using the available technology we have. Technology should be our servant, not our master. Technology has a place in our lives but being productive starts with creating a manual workflow that accomplishes all we want it to do — and then seeking ways to employ technology to make it even better.
