Recently I broke down and purchased an iPad.  I always thought they were cool and was envious of friends and co-workers who had them, but I just couldn’t justify purchasing one. It seemed like more of a toy to me.  I have my laptop that I use for both work and entertainment, so why should I spend money on another way to search the internet, play games, pin to boards and keep up with friends on Facebook? Right?

Image source: Apple

Well, about 3 months ago, I decided to treat myself to this very cool “toy.”  And it is, in fact, a great toy, but it has also changed the way I work.  With apps like: Evernote, Penultimate, DocsToGo and Wunderlist, I’ve killed less trees and have become way more organized.  I’ve set a goal for myself to become a “paperless office.”  It will take some time, but I think I will get there.

I’ve replaced my notebooks with my iPad and Evernote.  I take notes in meetings and have all the notes from past meetings right there organized by client. I can share them with other team members that may have missed the meeting. And, the notes instantly sync to my laptop.  I can use Penultimate to sketch out charts or other graphics shown in a meeting and insert them to my Evernote Document.  Or take a photo of information on a white board and include that in my notes.

The To-Do list that used to be on a legal pad with check marks and scribbled status notes is now on my iPad via Wunderlist.  I have the entire Media Department using Wunderlist so I can easily keep up with everyone’s workload and manage deadlines.

My laptop has become more of a desktop computer now, because with DocsToGo I can sync files to my very light weight, fits in my purse iPad and work on them wherever I go. I can create and/or edit Word, Excel and Powerpoint documents on the iPad and then sync back to my computer when I’m back in the office.

So, now I am a new ambassador for this wonderful “toy.”  Because I do play games on it; but, I actually use it most to make my work life easier and more organized.

What are your favorite iPad apps?