How to become more productive using Momentum Dash for Chrome
Recently I have been experimenting a lot wit improving my workflow and getting more productive. Today I would like to showcase an interesting Chrome extension called “Momentum” and how it helps me to become a more productive software developer.
What is Momentum?
Momentum is a (Chrome only) extension that replaces the default Chrome tab with some sort of dashboard. The dashboard contains weather, a beautiful background image from a curated feed and most importantly: a daily todo you can set. You can read more about it, on their website:
After using it for a week, I was immediately hooked and decided to purchase a plus subscription (just $30 per year):
How does Momentum help me?
Lets first look at my Momentum dashboard for today:
You probably noticed that I don’t use a normal clock, but a weird % clock. This percent sign stands for how much of my work day has passed yet. This makes you really think differently about your time. I used to think: “oh it’s only 1 pm, I still have plenty of time left.” After using Momentum I started to think: “wow I’ve already spent 40% of my time and not accomplished much.” You can of course set the clock to display the normal time.
The thing I like the most of the plus subscription, is that I can change the start or end times for the clock. The standard version is locked at 9:30~17:30. I have multiple occupations: I’m a student, work as a software developer and also have my own company. For example when I go to my regular job, I set the clock to my work times. In the evening, when I allocate time to work on school assignments or my own clients, I reset the clock.
Another feature I really like, is the automated synchronisation with Wunderlist. I can create tasks on my other devices and they automatically show up in my Momentum dashboard. Momentum picks the top task from the list and sets it as my daily focus. As you see, today it’s writing this article ;).
When I schedule time to work on my school assignments, I switch the todo list I want to see and Momentum changes my focus accordingly:
Lastly the countdown clock at the top motivates me to do something useful. My summer vacation just started and apart from catching up on a few assignments, I won’t have school until September. I have a lot of plans for the summer, such as experimenting a lot with content marketing and social media. The countdown clock shows me how much time I have left to execute this plans and motivates me to make each day count.
Conclusion
Overal I can conclude that Momentum provides a nice way to inform you of the work that needs to be done. By having a constant reminder of the work that needs to be done, you are less likely to slack off and more likely to getting things done. I’v enjoyed my purchase so far and I encourage you to do the same.
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