What’s the Secret to Choosing Tools?
- Saket Deshmukh
- Jan 7
- 6 min read
Updated: Apr 15
Selecting the wrong tools can create a range of problems, leading to frustration, inefficiency, and wasted resources. Here are some key issues that arise:
Wasted Time and Energy: The wrong tool often comes with a steep learning curve, which means you'll spend a lot of time figuring out how to use it, instead of getting things done. Even if it eventually serves its purpose, the initial time investment can be significant, and in some cases, the time spent learning it may outweigh the benefits it provides.
Increased Complexity: Tools that are not well-suited to your needs can add unnecessary complexity to your workflows. Instead of streamlining tasks, they end up creating more steps and confusion, which can lead to inefficiencies, errors, or miscommunication.
Lack of Adaptability: A tool that doesn't grow or improve with use can become a burden. You might outgrow its capabilities, or it might fail to adapt to changing requirements. This can result in using outdated or irrelevant features, leaving you frustrated and seeking a replacement prematurely.
Overlapping Functionality: When you choose tools that perform the same or very similar tasks, it can lead to tool bloat—an accumulation of apps and systems that don’t add much extra value. This can make it difficult to manage everything, and you might end up with a confusing array of tools that don’t integrate well with each other, causing disruptions in workflow.
Reliance on Your Brain for Workarounds: If a tool is difficult to use or lacks essential features, you may start relying on your brain to fill the gaps—remembering things it shouldn't have to or handling tasks manually. This defeats the purpose of using external tools in the first place, which is to lighten the mental load.
Ineffective or Unnecessary Features: Some tools come with a lot of extra features that seem useful at first but end up being unnecessary or irrelevant to your actual needs. These extra features can create distractions or make the tool more difficult to use, taking focus away from your primary tasks.
Missed Opportunities for Integration: Many tools are built to integrate with other systems, but selecting a tool that doesn’t play well with your existing software can create silos. Instead of streamlining processes, you end up managing multiple disconnected systems, which wastes time and increases the chance of errors or missed opportunities for automation.
In summary, choosing the wrong tool can lead to inefficiencies, frustration, and ultimately waste both time and resources, making it harder to achieve the desired outcome.
What is the core function of a tool?
We’re overloaded with tools, but end up using fewer because they all do the same thing and come with endless learning curves. So, we rely on our brains for trivial stuff—like using the same password everywhere (even if it's risky) or keeping tons of tabs open to remember things. But honestly, I don’t want to waste brainpower on things like meeting times or to-do lists. That’s what Google and Apple Calendar are for—to free up our brains for the important stuff!
Tools should lighten the load on our brains so we can focus on what matters most.
All tools are useful, but I’m all in for the ones that get sharper with time, not duller!
Take ChatGPT, for example. At first, you might need to ask more specific questions to get the answers you want, and it might take a bit of trial and error. But the more you interact with it, the better it gets at understanding your style, preferences, and the context of your requests. Over time, it becomes a more efficient assistant, helping you with tasks faster and more accurately. In contrast, using a tool that doesn't improve is like trying to have a conversation with a guidebook—it gives you basic answers, but doesn’t adapt or grow with you. And honestly, if I wanted a static conversation, I'd just talk to my parents :)”
When selecting a tool, two key factors to consider are:
Efficiency in Reducing Mental Load: A good tool should help lighten the load on your brain by handling routine tasks, like managing meeting times or keeping track of to-do lists, so you can focus on more important things.
Growth and Improvement Over Time: The best tools become more effective with use. They adapt to your needs, becoming more intuitive and efficient as you interact with them, rather than becoming less useful or static.
Tools I use: I am happy to pay for them
1. Scribe: The "Show, Don’t Tell" Hero
Ever tried explaining a process to someone and ended up wondering if you’re speaking an alien language? Enter Scribe, the tool that documents processes better than your inner perfectionist could dream of. Just click "record," do your thing, and voila — Scribe spits out a step-by-step guide so polished it could double as a wedding speech.
Why You’ll Love It:
Saves Your Sanity: Goodbye, manual screenshots.
Collab-Ready: Your team will finally understand your genius.
Spot-On Accuracy: No more “Wait, what’s step 3?”
With Scribe, you’ll spend less time documenting and more time being the office wizard who always knows the way.
2. MindMeister: For When Your Brain Feels Like Spaghetti
Your mind is a jungle of brilliant ideas. But how do you tame it? MindMeister transforms your tangled thoughts into sleek, colorful mind maps that say, “I’ve got my life together.”
Key Features:
Collaborative Mind Magic: Brainstorm with your team in real-time. (Yes, even Bob in accounting can join.)
Pinterest-Level Aesthetic: Turn your scattered ideas into visual masterpieces.
Works Everywhere: Laptop? Check. Mobile? Double-check.
With MindMeister, you’ll go from “Wait, what was I thinking?” to “Here’s the plan, people!” faster than you can say “brainstorm.”
3. Checker Plus for Google Calendar: The Time Whisperer
Keeping up with your schedule shouldn’t feel like solving a Rubik’s cube. Enter Checker Plus, the extension that makes your calendar your BFF. Need a reminder? Got it. Want to check your day without opening a new tab? Done. Honestly, it’s like having a personal assistant — minus the awkward small talk.
Top Perks:
Glance and Go: No more “Where’s my calendar again?”
Pop-Up Reminders: Because forgetting your anniversary is not an option.
Voice Alerts: Stay hands-free while Checker Plus whispers sweet nothings about your next meeting.
It’s your secret weapon for turning chaos into calm — one event at a time.
4. Momentum: Your New Tab Therapist
Say goodbye to boring browser tabs and hello to Momentum, the extension that greets you with a stunning landscape, a motivational quote, and a gentle nudge to focus on your goals. It’s like a zen garden for your internet brain.
Why It’s Amazing:
Focus Mode: Turns “just one more YouTube video” into “let’s crush this to-do list.”
Eye Candy: Gorgeous backgrounds that make you go “Wow, is that real?”
Customizable Goals: Your browser, your rules.
Momentum will have you feeling like the main character of your productivity story — dramatic sunrise included.
How not to choose tools
Avoid Any Benefit Fallacy
The benefit fallacy happens when you focus too much on the benefits of something, ignoring its downsides or not considering whether it truly solves the problem at hand. It’s like thinking that a tool is perfect just because it promises a lot of good things, without checking if it’s actually a good fit for your needs.
For example, when selecting tools, you might be drawn to a tool because it’s packed with features and sounds amazing on paper. But you might overlook whether those features are actually useful for what you need to accomplish. The tool may offer a lot of benefits, but if it’s too complex, not intuitive, or doesn’t integrate well with your existing tools, it may actually slow you down rather than helping you.
In simple terms: Don’t fall for the shiny promise of benefits—make sure the tool fits your needs and helps you work better, not just fancier.
Final Thoughts: From Chaos to Zen
Tools aren’t just productivity enhancers; they’re lifesavers for anyone drowning in deadlines, ideas, and calendar invites. Whether you’re documenting with Scribe, brainstorming with MindMeister, scheduling with Checker Plus, or finding your zen with Momentum, you’re set to crush your goals.
Give these a try, and you’ll be the office legend who’s always two steps ahead. Got a favorite tool I missed? Drop it in the comments — I’m all ears (and tabs).
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