12 Everyday Tech Hacks That Help Me Do Less 🎯
Most people use tech to stay busy. I use it to do less.
Here's a rundown of the everyday tech hacks that make my life run smoother and smarter, from iPhone shortcuts to a water pitcher that genuinely changed my habits.
1. Double Tap on the Back of Your iPhone 📱
This one's not new, but it's massively overlooked. You can set your iPhone to trigger an action whenever you double tap (or triple tap) the back of it.
For me, that action is opening SuperWhisper, an app that transcribes what I'm saying and structures it into a format like an email or a text message. Genuinely handy.
💡 How to set it up: Swipe down to search, type "double tap", and choose a shortcut to trigger when you tap the back of your phone.
2. NFC Tags Around the House 🏷️
NFC tags are cheap (I picked mine up for about $8 to $9 on Amazon) and stupidly useful. Stick one anywhere and you can program it to trigger an action whenever you hold your phone near it.
I've got one at my desk. Holding my phone against it:
- ✅ Switches my focus mode to reduce disruptions
- ✅ Starts playing my focus soundscapes
I've also got one by my front door. When I hold my phone against it on the way out, it starts my house alarm. Loads of use cases here depending on where you place them.
3. Shortcut Automations at Bedtime 🌙
This one's an absolute gamechanger. When I put my phone on charge at night, it automatically:
- Turns off my lights
- Switches on my house alarm
- Starts sleep tracking
- Plays a sleep soundscape
All four things happen from one single action. Genuinely worth setting up.
💡 How to set it up: Open the Shortcuts app, go to Automations, create a new automation, scroll down, and select "Charger" as the trigger.
4. Buffer for Staying Social Without the Scroll 📊
If you want to stay social without being glued to social media apps, Buffer is probably your best bet. Connect multiple accounts (I've got Bluesky, Threads, and X hooked up) and post to all of them at once instead of switching between apps.
You can also schedule posts ahead of time and check your analytics in one place. It's free if you're only connecting free accounts, which is all I need.
5. Motion Sensors for Hands-Free Lighting 💡
The Philips Hue motion sensor is dotted around my house, mainly in the bathrooms and kitchen. Walk in, lights come on. Walk out, lights go off. No switches, no worrying if you've left a light on.
The brightness even adjusts depending on the time of day. But my favourite use is at the bottom of my stairs: every morning when I walk down to make coffee, it triggers music on my HomePod in the kitchen. Small thing, but it sets the mood for the day.
You'll need an Apple Music subscription for the music trigger. Set it all up in the Home app under Automations.
6. Roborock S8 Max V Ultra 🤖
Most people have a robot vacuum these days, but the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra stands out because of its AI obstacle detection. It actually avoids stuff on the floor instead of getting jammed on it, and tells you in the app what it's dodged.
It also mops, and the dust bin means you barely need to empty it for three or four months. It's on the pricier side, but if the hassle of cheaper robot vacuums annoys you, it's worth it.
7. Notion's "/me" Meeting Notes 📝
This is one of my favourite recent finds. Type /me on any block in Notion and it starts recording your meeting, then automatically transcribes and summarises it into clear actions and a meeting overview.
You never need someone to manually take minutes again (just make sure you get consent from everyone in the meeting). It even works for virtual calls coming through your computer speakers, and the accuracy has been consistently spot on.
8. Raycast Instead of Spotlight ⚡
Raycast replaces the built-in Spotlight search on Mac, and it's infinitely more powerful. I use it to:
- ✅ Turn my lights on and off
- ✅ Search Apple Notes without opening the app
- ✅ Convert currencies and check time zones
- ✅ Do quick maths
- ✅ Manage my clipboard
- ✅ Pick emojis while typing
- ✅ Move and manage windows
- ✅ Add to-dos to Things 3 without opening it
Completely free, and one of the quickest ways I get things done every day.
9. Actually Unsubscribe From Emails ✅
This one sounds basic, but so many people skip it. Scroll to the bottom of any email you're not interested in and hit unsubscribe. You only need to do it once per sender.
Do the work now so you're not constantly interrupted by junk later. That way, when an email does land in your inbox, you know it's worth your time.
10. Readwise for Your Second Brain 🧠
If you read a lot of books or articles, Readwise is well worth the subscription. Highlight things on your Kindle or in the Reader app, and everything gets stored automatically.
From there, you can export your highlights to Apple Notes, Evernote, Notion, Obsidian, and more. It's pricier at over $100 a year, but if you store a lot of digital information, it saves you from digging through old articles trying to find that one quote. I genuinely live by this one, and no, they're not paying me to say that.
11. CleanShot X for Mac 📸
Second best app on this list after Raycast. CleanShot X is a capture tool I use constantly:
- 🎬 Every screen recording in my videos is captured with it
- 📸 Screenshots with annotations, backgrounds, and text
- 📋 Copying unformatted text from places you can't normally select text
- 🗂️ Keeps recent screenshots persistent in the corner of your screen so you can manage them later
It's a one-off cost, and if you think it'll improve your workflow, it's worth trying.
12. The LARQ Pitcher PureVis 💧
Saved the best for last. The LARQ Pitcher PureVis cleans your tap water so it tastes close to bottled water, and it's one of the most transformative pieces of tech I've bought in years.
It uses a two-step process: a nano zero filter to remove that horrible tap water taste, and PureVis UV technology to keep the water clean while it sits in the pitcher. Running costs are low too, replacement filters cost about $20 and last a couple of months, and it needs charging every 2 to 3 months.
It's stopped me buying bottled water every week, saved money, and cut down on plastic waste. If you don't drink enough water, this genuinely solves that problem.
Over to You 💬
That's everything I use to automate the small stuff and free up headspace for the things that actually matter. Got a hack of your own? Let me know.
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