Maximizing Productivity: How Betterthistechs Can Save You 10 Hours a Week

Let me be honest with you. I used to wear my busyness like a badge of honor. Having ten tabs open, responding to emails instantly, and constantly switching between apps felt like being productive. But at the end of the day, I was exhausted, and my actual important work was still sitting there, untouched. The truth was, I was busy, but I was not productive. There is a profound difference between the two.

This all changed when I stumbled upon a concept, and later a platform, that reshaped my entire relationship with technology: Betterthistechs. Now, you might be wondering what exactly Betterthistechs is. Is it an app? A philosophy? A website? In my experience, it is a bit of all three. At its heart, Betterthistechs is about one simple idea: using the technology you already have in a smarter, more intentional way to get more done with less stress.

In this article, I want to take you on a journey beyond the basic “betterthistechs article” you might find in a quick search. We are going to explore how embracing the principles behind Betterthistechs can fundamentally rewire your work habits, save you a significant amount of time—I believe 10 hours a week is a conservative estimate for many people—and finally make your digital tools work for you, instead of the other way around.

The Productivity Problem: Why We Need Tools Like Betterthistechs

Before we can talk about the solution, we need to understand the problem. Why are so many of us feeling so overwhelmed by technology that was supposed to make our lives easier?

The issue is not a lack of tools. We have more project management apps, communication platforms, and note-taking software than ever before. The problem is context switching and digital friction.

Context switching is the mental cost of changing tasks. Every time you stop writing a report to check a Slack message, then jump to your email, and then try to return to the report, your brain has to re-load the context of what you were doing. Studies have shown that this can cost you up to 40% of your productive time. You are essentially creating traffic jams in your own mind.

Digital friction is all the tiny, annoying steps that stand between you and completing a task. It is searching for a file in a messy folder structure. It is manually copying and pasting data from one spreadsheet to another. It is filling out the same form over and over again. Each instance might only take a minute, but over a week, these minutes add up to hours of wasted time and mental energy.

I remember a specific task I used to dread every Monday morning: generating a weekly performance report. It involved logging into four different analytics platforms, screenshotting charts, copying numbers into a Google Sheet, and then formatting it all in a Google Doc to share with my team. The process was monotonous, error-prone, and consumed the first two hours of my week. It was the definition of digital friction. I felt like a human robot, performing tasks that a simple script should be able to handle. This was my breaking point, and it was what led me to seek out a “betterthistechs article” with a more radical solution.

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Streamlining Your Workflow: Core Betterthistechs Principles

Betterthistechs is not about learning one specific hack. It is about adopting a new mindset. Once you internalize these core principles, you will start to see opportunities for optimization everywhere.

The first principle is Automation. The goal of automation is to remove yourself from repetitive, rule-based tasks. If you can define a clear “if this, then that” trigger, you can probably automate it. This does not require being a programmer. Many tools now offer user-friendly automation features.

The second principle is Centralization. Our attention is fragmented across too many apps. Centralization is about creating a single source of truth. This could be a master dashboard, a primary note-taking app that everything feeds into, or a project management tool that aggregates notifications from other platforms. The fewer places you have to look for information, the faster you will find it.

The third principle is Simplification. This involves ruthlessly evaluating your tech stack. Do you really need three different messaging apps? Are you using all the features of your expensive software, or would a simpler, cheaper alternative do the job? Simplification is about reducing the number of tools and the complexity within each tool.

Let me give you a personal example of applying these principles to a common problem: reading and saving articles for later.

My old, messy method was: see an interesting article on Twitter -> open it in a new tab -> forget about it -> eventually have 50 tabs open -> feel stressed -> hastily bookmark it in a generic “Read Later” folder -> never look at it again.

My new, Betterthistechs-inspired method is automated, centralized, and simple.

1. Automation: I use a free tool like Pocket. With one click from my browser toolbar (or by sharing a link from my phone), the article is saved.

2. Centralization: Pocket is now my central reading hub. I don’t have articles saved in browser bookmarks, emailed to myself, and in a notes app. They are all in one place.

3. Simplification: The Pocket interface is clean and distraction-free, making the actual act of reading more pleasant and focused.

This is a small example, but this same three-principle approach can be scaled to almost any aspect of your digital life.

Advanced Automation: Making Your Computer Work For You

This is where the real magic happens and where the time savings become substantial. Once you are comfortable with the basics, you can start building powerful automated workflows, often called “Zaps” or “Applets,” using tools like Zapier or IFTTT, which act as bridges between your different apps.

Let us return to my Monday morning report nightmare. Here is how I solved it using Betterthistechs principles and automation.

I discovered that each of the four analytics platforms I used had a way to automatically export data via email on a schedule. I set them up to send a CSV file to a specific Gmail label every Sunday night.

Then, I used Zapier to create a “Zap.” The trigger was: “When a new email arrives in that specific Gmail label with an attachment.” The actions were: “Take the attached CSV file, and add its data to a specific row in a Google Sheet.”

I created four of these Zaps, one for each data source. Now, every Monday morning, instead of spending two hours manually collecting data, I open my Google Sheet and it is already populated with the latest numbers. The entire process, which I now just review and add brief commentary to, takes me less than 15 minutes. That is a saving of over 1.5 hours every single week from just one task.

Another powerful automation I use is for my freelance work. Whenever I finish a design in Canva, I used to have to download it, go to Slack, and upload it to the client’s channel. Now, I have a Zap that automatically detects when a new design is published in a specific Canva folder and posts it directly to the corresponding Slack channel for me. It is a tiny thing, but it removes a 30-second friction point dozens of times a week. These small automations compound into significant time savings.

Real-Life Case Studies: How I Use Betterthistechs Daily

Theory is great, but real-world examples are what make it stick. Here are two more detailed case studies from my own life.

Case Study 1: Taming the Email Monster

My inbox was a constant source of anxiety. Newsletters I never read, social notifications, and important client emails were all mixed together. My “betterthistechs” solution was a multi-layered approach using Gmail filters.

• Step 1: Automatic Triage. I created filters for all my common noise. Any email from “Facebook” or “Twitter” containing the words “notification” is automatically labeled and archived, skipping the inbox. Any newsletter I’m subscribed to gets a corresponding label and is also archived.

• Step 2: The “Client First” Rule. I created a filter so that any email from my key clients’ domains is automatically marked as important and given a star. This ensures that when I open my inbox, the most critical messages visually stand out immediately.

• Step 3: The One-Touch Philosophy. When I process my inbox, I touch each email only once. I read it and then I decide: delete it, archive it, delegate it, or turn it into a task in my project management tool (I use Trello). This prevents the buildup of “I’ll deal with this later” emails that clutter your mental space.

This system probably saves me 30-45 minutes of email management per day.

Case Study 2: A Flawless Morning Routine

I wanted my mornings to be calm and purposeful, not a frantic scramble. I used smart home technology, a core part of the Betterthistechs ecosystem, to automate my physical environment.

• 7:00 AM: My smart lights in the bedroom gradually brighten to simulate a sunrise, a gentler way to wake up than a blaring alarm.

• 7:05 AM: As I get out of bed, a motion sensor triggers my Google Nest Hub to display the day’s weather, my first calendar event, and a news headline.

• 7:10 AM: When I walk into the kitchen, another motion sensor turns on the under-cabinet lights. My smart kettle has been scheduled to start boiling water at 7:09 AM, so it’s ready for my tea.

• 7:15 AM: A smart plug turns on my coffee maker.

This automated routine removes a dozen small decisions and actions from my morning, conserving my willpower for the important decisions later in the day. It makes me feel like I am living in a well-oiled machine, and it sets a positive, productive tone for the entire day.

Integrating Betterthistechs with Other Apps for a Seamless System

The true power of Betterthistechs is unlocked when your apps talk to each other, creating a cohesive system rather than a collection of isolated tools. Think of it as building a super-app from the apps you already use.

Here is a look at my core “Productivity Stack” and how they are integrated:

1. Trello (Project Management): This is my brain. Every task, idea, and project lives here.

2. Gmail (Communication): Integrated with Trello using the “Email-to-Board” feature. I can forward any email to a special address, and it becomes a card on my Trello board. This is perfect for turning client requests into actionable tasks instantly.

3. Google Calendar (Scheduling): Connected to Trello using a power-up. Any card with a due date automatically appears on my calendar, so I have a unified view of my time commitments.

4. Slack (Team Communication): Also integrated with Trello. I can create Trello cards from within Slack messages, and I get notifications in specific Slack channels when a card moves to a “Done” list on Trello. This keeps the whole team in sync without extra meetings.

5. Pocket (Reading): As mentioned, my central reading hub. It is isolated by design, to keep my focus narrow when I am reading.

This interconnected web means that information flows automatically to where it needs to be. I am not manually updating statuses or copying links. The system works in the background, and I am free to focus on the deep, creative work that actually moves the needle.

Conclusion

Embracing the Betterthistechs philosophy is not about becoming a productivity robot. It is about the opposite. It is about using technology to reclaim your time, your focus, and your mental energy so you can spend them on the things that truly matter to you—whether that is deepening your work, spending more time with family, or simply relaxing without a nagging feeling that you forgot something.

The journey does not have to be overwhelming. You do not need to automate your entire life in one weekend. Start small. Pick one repetitive task that annoys you this week—maybe organizing your downloads folder or scheduling social media posts—and find one “betterthistechs article” or tutorial to help you solve it. When you save that first 15 minutes, you will feel a spark of empowerment. That spark is what will fuel you to tackle the next inefficiency, and the next.

Before long, you will have clawed back those 10 hours a week, not by working harder, but by thinking smarter. And that, in my opinion, is the ultimate form of productivity.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: I’m not tech-savvy. Is Betterthistechs too complicated for me?
A: Absolutely not. The core principles are simple, and many modern tools are designed with non-programmers in mind. Start with the built-in automation features in apps you already use, like Gmail filters or smartphone shortcuts. The learning curve is gentler than you think.

Q2: Doesn’t setting up all these automations take a lot of time?
A: It does take an initial investment of time. This is often called an “investment phase.” However, you should think of it like this: if a 30-minute setup automates a task that takes you 15 minutes every day, you will break even in just two days. After that, it is pure time savings. Focus on automating your most frequent and time-consuming tasks first for the biggest return on investment.

Q3: What if I become too reliant on automation and it breaks?
A: This is a valid concern. The key is to document your key automations. Keep a simple list of your most important “Zaps” or workflows. For critical business processes, always have a manual backup plan. However, most automation platforms are remarkably reliable. The risk of a minor disruption is far outweighed by the hundreds of hours of saved time.

Q4: Are there any free tools to get started with Betterthistechs?
A: Yes, many! Tools like Zapier, IFTTT, and Trello have generous free tiers that are perfect for individuals and small teams to get started. Your phone’s built-in “Shortcuts” app (for iOS) or a third-party app like “MacroDroid” (for Android) are also powerful free automation tools.

Q5: How do I convince my team or boss to adopt this approach?
A: Lead by example. Start by implementing these ideas in your own work and track the time you save. When you can show your boss concrete data—”I automated the weekly report and now save 1.5 hours every week”—it becomes a much easier sell. Propose a small pilot project for one repetitive team task rather than a full-scale overhaul.