As usual this week's issue includes a list of 6 tools and 6 articles that I've never included before in this newsletter. After curating this week's list of tools, I noticed a common theme showed up with four of the tools:
They're described as an "all-in-one" solution of some kind. An 'everything bagel', so to speak.
In some cases, the "all-in-one" description is something I personally add to give you an idea what the tool or platform is about; I want to make it clear that it's not just a one-function app. In other cases, it's right there in their marketing copy.
So that got me thinking:
Different people tend to favour different types of tools, depending on the kind of work they do, the type of environment they're in, and of course the type of person they are. Some like to have a whole slew of one-off tools, each of which do a single thing really well. While others prefer something that's all-inclusive, so they don't have to juggle too many things at once.
Do you prefer your productivity toolset to be an "everything bagel"?
When it comes to which type of toolset leads to more productivity, I think there's a case to be made for both sides.
For example, 15 different single-purpose tools will have an overall much larger learning curve and might lead to more friction when switching among them.
On the other hand, two or three different all-in-one tools might not do as good a job as all the individual ones that do the same tasks. There might also be more technical overhead with an all-in-one solution. Also, it's unlikely that many of the one-off tools will be used very often. Usually even in an all-in-one tool you spend most of your time with a few features. So now you're essentially lugging around more technical baggage for little return.
Again, both of these arguments have merit so I think it all depends on the factors I mentioned. I personally like having lots of tools that each do fewer things, but that's generally because of my personality and the way I like to work. There are definitely people who feel different.
Now on to this week's hand-picked productivity links!
