How has it already been nearly a year since I purchased my Macbook Pro? I honestly can't believe how productive just one device has actually made me, it has made much more of difference than I originally thought it would but I will go more into that next month for the 1 year with the Macbook post.
My Macbook was bought with the intention of me being able to increase the quality and quantity of my blog posts as my previous laptop wouldn't run certain programmes and it took forever to do the simplest of tasks like load a web page which meant I wasn't getting much done but that has definitely all changed now. With my Macbook being mainly for blogging I haven't actually got much downloaded onto it yet as I try to keep what I download in line with the main use of the device that is why 99% of the apps on it are based around helping me with my content and my productivity without causing distractions like it would be if I installed games etc onto it.
I don't actually have much installed on my Macbook just yet as even after almost a year I am still playing about and learning what the device has to offer. I am trying my best to get the most out of my Macbook though so what I tend to do is really look into the apps I plan on installing and sometimes I will download them but delete them if I don't use them as much as I should, this just keeps space free for those apps I am really going to benefit from instead of wasting space on things I am never actually going to use. The apps that are on the device are basically used daily so I am definitely benefiting from having them there and easily accessible as I can jump into them at any time now. Each app I have helps me in its own different way so here are the apps I have installed currently...
Chrome
For some reason I just really can't get on with Safari so after about 3 days of owning my Macbook I ended up downloading Chrome and I am so glad I did. This is definitely my go to browser and using anything different just feels strange. At least with having Chrome I can always be logged into my Google accounts so if I need my calendar, emails or sheets I am just a few clicks away from accessing them without having to enter my details every time I need them which saves a lot of time.
Originally I wasn't going to bother downloading Whatsapp on here as I thought it would be a bit too much of a distraction however, it has probably been more of a benefit having it on my Macbook as it means I aren't having to check my phone all the time when I receive messages. Whatsapp is one of my main ways of messaging and I am in various group chats especially for football content so the fact messages pop up on my Macbook means I can respond to them easily whilst I am blogging away and check to see how urgently a response is needed which is great. It also means I aren't picking up my phone all the time and getting distracted by other social media channels which honestly happens far too often.
Honestly Twitter on my phone is a huge distraction to me and I find myself constantly wanting to check it yet with the Macbook app I find I can control myself a bit more and don't want to check it as often I aren't sure why this is the case but it is definitely beneficial for me. One here I have my accounts logged in so if I think of something to tweet out whilst I am on my Macbook I can do so easily or if I get tagged in something that needs sharing for the football. I mainly seem to check this first thing in a morning, at lunch and just before I come off the Macbook for the day just to make sure there isn't any messages or mentions I have missed. It is nice just looking at it on a bigger screen than my phone sometimes too as my eyesight really isn't the best.
Spotify
This was another one I wasn't too sure about adding but it has actually worked really for me. We have turned the spare room into a bit of an office space for me so I don't have the dual screens at my disposal like I used to, if I want to watch videos whilst working on the blog in the spare room I need to use my iPad, so having Spotify on my Macbook has been great and it also takes away the distraction of watching videos whilst trying to get on with things which has worked surprisingly well. I will simply open Spotify find whatever playlist I fancy listening to that day or which specific artist I am in the mood for listening to and just press play. I can then actually go for hours without having to have the Spotify screen up again as it is just on in the background with what I wanted to listen to that day. It is actually getting me listening to a lot more podcasts too which is brilliant as I am discovering some great ones at the moment.
Skygo
This is definitely a random addition which doesn't really make me productive at all but in a way it does help me with my content. This app is mainly on the Macbook so that I can watch the football no matter where I am in the house which is great when I have posts to write about the games. It has been a fantastic addition as it has meant I barely miss a game and if there are any late night games on (MLS) I can watch them whilst in bed so when the full time whistle goes I simply have to close the laptop and put it in its home before falling asleep. It has also meant I have been able to watch shows I have wanted to wherever I am in the house which is great as I barely watch any TV shows these days it is simply football or YouTube I watch. It makes the lack of TV in the bedroom a whole lot easier as I don't have to miss out.
Lightroom
Lightroom is a new addition that I am really hoping is going to help improve the quality of my content. For so long I have just uploaded pictures straight to the blog but after a fair bit of thinking I want to upgrade the quality of my images so I am going to need some software to be able to edit the images to make them the best they can be especially for my fashion blog & my football blog where the images need to be the best they can be. So far I am just trying to learn the basics of the app so I actually know what I am doing but fingers crossed people see a difference in my content very soon as I finally get to grips with the app.
Notion
Notion is an app I really need to use more as I know I will benefit a lot from it. I love planning and being organised so this app is literally perfect for me I just need to sit down and learn how to use it to get the most benefits out of it. This can be used for creating to do lists, progress tracking and should just help me manage my blogs so much better. I think if I can sit down and learn how to use this it will become an app I use daily and will really help me get back on top of things instead of forgetting things or leaving them until last minute like I seem to have started doing again.
These are the only apps I have on my Macbook but they are perfect for what I require at the moment and for now I am more than happy to only have these ones on my device as there really is no need for me to have anything else taking up space when they aren't really required. No doubt as time goes on more apps will be added as my content changes and I start to work on different types of content, one app I am already planning on adding is Photoshop but that won't be for a while yet. For now though I am good to go and am looking forward to this level of productivity continuing for a whole lot longer.
When it comes to me adding more apps is there any you would recommend me looking into downloading?
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