Google Apps + Chrome Efficiency Pro Tips

Anyone who knows me knows I really stress being able to play a computer like an instrument (and if you think you can, then prove it).  Us geeky types are in front of our computers for 12+ (often 16+) hours per day, so every loss of efficiency translates into a huge cost in time -- and time is the most precious asset of any hardcore entrepreneur.

One thing I've done is to really customize my Google Apps email pane, with functionality from Rapportive (THANK YOU for the Highrise raplet, guys!), Boomerang, TwitterGadget, Gmail Auto BCC, Labs custom keyboard shortcuts, Send & Archive, etc.  I've also found some great Chrome extensions, including 1Password, Bit.ly, Awesome Screenshot, and by far my favorite -- a Basecamp text auto save extension that saves what I've written in Basecamp when the page is closed.

You might also like my blogs on playing a computer like an instrument, cloud app + vanity URL, and switching to Gmail from Mail.app.

Here's what my email pane looks like, with a detailed video below that walking you through how I use everything.

My favorite feature?  The awesome picture of my wife, of course!  If I'm going to be looking at email for hours each day, I might as well make it enjoyable!  I just replaced the standard Gmail logo with a custom image.

Anyone who knows me knows I really stress being able to play a computer like an instrument (and if you think you can, then prove it).  Us geeky types are in front of our computers for 12+ (often 16+) hours per day, so every loss of efficiency translates into a huge cost in time -- and time is the most precious asset of any hardcore entrepreneur. One thing I've done is to really customize my Google Apps email pane, with functionality from Rapportive (THANK YOU for the Highrise raplet, guys!), Boomerang, TwitterGadget, Gmail Auto BCC, Labs custom keyboard shortcuts, Send & Archive, etc.  I've also found some great Chrome extensions, including 1Password, Bit.ly, Awesome Screenshot, and by far my favorite -- a Basecamp text auto save extension that saves what I've written in Basecamp when the page is closed. You might also like my blogs on playing a computer like an instrument, cloud app + vanity URL, and switching to Gmail from Mail.app. Here's what my email pane looks like, with a detailed video below that walking you through how I use everything. My favorite feature?  The awesome picture of my wife, of course!  If I'm going to be looking at email for hours each day, I might as well make it enjoyable!  I just replaced the standard Gmail logo with a custom image. >

Hyper Efficiency 2.0: Updated Lifehacker Tips

Three years ago, I wrote a blog post on being hyper-efficient on a computer -- or to put it another way, being so good on a computer that you play it like a virtuoso on a musical instrument.  So much has changed in my daily workflow that I realized it was time for me to update that post.

The first order of business is that you can't improve what you can't measure.  So if you're serious about being able to use a computer with the speed and zeal of Dash outrunning a flying saucer, first you need to find out how fast (or slow) you are today.  Go over and take my GeekSpeed challenge.  See if you can break the 1 minute mark.

If you can't, then here are some of the things to focus on to make the 8+ hours per day you spend in front of your computer much, much more productive: