Gadgets, gizmos, and tools to help make you more productive in business

Growing up in a family of businessmen and women, I always expect my eldest brother to talk about the latest PDA phones in the market.  He showed me his BlackBerry and told me to sell my current PDA and get one for myself.  I refused because I thought it was too simple and didn’t carry the features I needed at work.

That was a year ago.  Now, my work obligates me to be online and available almost 24 x 7.  Mostly being in conference calls or meetings, I’m rarely at my desk answering emails, which means I have to stay a couple more hours at work just to catch up.

I recently found the BlackBerry 8700g and its features changed my mind.  It includes the functionality of a phone, email, web browser, SMS, MMS, integrated address book, calendar, memo book for note taking, and a task list.  I love the fact that the screen is colored versus the boring and professional look of black and white.

Obviously the advantage of push technology is that I can check and answer emails anytime, even if I’m in a meeting.  This makes it more efficient and critical to ensure my colleagues get updates almost immediately.  Colleagues can contact me in case a decision needs to be made but the doors are closed during a conference call.

On a personal note, balancing life and work is still the goal.