Entrepreneurs are obsessed with finding the next app or widget that’ll give them an edge over their todo list.

First up, let’s establish the honest truth: The very act of downloading productivity software or a todo list is most often a form of procrastination.

What matters is consistency. If you’re going to use a system, you’ll need to commit to it so that it’s use becomes a habit. So choose wisely. 

Full disclosure: I haven’t tried every productivity solution on the market. These are real reviews of the systems I have used for long term periods – sometimes years. Why these systems and not others? Simply because these are the ones I’ve used. That means that they’re all reasonably effective, otherwise I wouldn’t have stuck with them.

The second disclosure is that I’ve designed a productivity philosophy (not to-do software!) that pairs with a low cost accountability coaching service. This is very different to the solutions I review below, but it’s worth disclosing anyway.

Let’s get to the reviews…

Things for Mac/iPhone/iPad – Culture Code

Things was a part of my daily routine for years. I used it for everything from tracking client invoice cycles to keeping track of my “oh-I-should-do-that” brain farts.

Things is a great, versatile to-do manager with all of the features that have come to be expected as “default” in the to-do list game. Plus, it has one of the best looking user interfaces around.

The problem with Things is that it only has the features you’d expect by default. Things doesn’t surprise. It doesn’t offer up any startlingly effective solutions, or clever “try this” tips that boost performance. If you’re an entrepreneur looking to turn over a new leaf with your effectiveness, Things will just sit there looking back at you until you choose to use it.

Great software, but definitely designed by coders not entrepreneurs. I dropped it when I hired an assistant and realized we couldn’t share/sync tasks between team members.

The Pomodoro Technique 

Not actually a software system, but a timer in the shape of a tomato. In fact, you can do this without the official timer. It’s that simple.

The Pomodoro Technique is a time management system for people who already know what they should be doing. It basically splits your day into twenty five minute sections. By timing yourself as you work for a specific twenty five minutes, you’ll become more focused and less prone to distraction.

The technique follows a philosophy I generally approve of: By emphasizing a powerful focus on short bursts of high intensity work, it encourages entrepreneurs to be more mindful of how and when they get “in the zone” and when they don’t.

The downside is that this isn’t really a system, beyond the core concept. There’s no real notion of what goes into a “Pomodoro” (a base unit of 25 mins of time/effort) or how to adequately plan for their use.

I find the system very powerful when I’m working on busy-work that requires little creative input or depth. Once you start doing “thinking work”, it’s pretty much impossible to measure your effectiveness with Pomodoros and the system gets abandoned.

This is a good, useful technique and perhaps worth augmenting into existing your task/workflow system.

Reminders for Mac/iPhone/iPad – Apple 

This is one of the simplest to-do list apps around, but with a couple of powerful features like geo-tagging (set a reminder to pick up milk as you physically pass the store!) and the benefit of being built right into everything Apple.

I actually use it pretty successfully as a day-to-day task manager, to translate actions from the massive chaotic storm of hypothetical todos to “What-I-want-to-do-TODAY”. Very similar to the post-it note system I advocate, but without the paper.

Simple is good, but it’s a two edged sword. This is not a business productivity program and doesn’t try to be. Good for people who literally need to be reminded, not motivated.

Action Method – Behance

This is very much task management for business. I set it up for my team and, honestly, used it while I was working on my own productivity solution at Commit Action. Yup – we project managed Commit Action with Action Method!

That said, it’s since been abandoned. For all the bells and whistles of Action Method, it lacks intuitive ease-of-use. Creating new tasks is complex, requiring several clicks and really, they’re competing with the pen and paper next to my laptop.

Action Method will frequently inform you that you’re “doing it wrong” and not adding a new task correctly, or accepting a task from a delegator correctly. As an entrepreneur, I call the shots – I don’t need an overgrown to-do list telling me to categorize things better.

That said, I do appreciate the other helpful tips included. The Behance team has obviously cottoned on to the fact that the tool alone won’t help people get more done – so they’re providing tips on how to think about using the software, too.

We need to see more of this. Action Method is a good start.

Getting Things Done – David Allen 

This is the holy grail of productivity systems. A to-do list app, with a philosophy on HOW to set to-dos tied in.

My first exposure to Getting Things Done was years ago and the philosophy has never entirely left me. When I do take the time to plan my week ahead, I’ll still group tasks according to GTD principals.

Most importantly, David Allen calls entrepreneurs to translate every “thing” that has your attention into concrete next steps – ruthlessly eliminating the fluff. We need more of that.

My criticism is that the software itself is expensive, bloated and not all the intuitive. The truth is, if you *get* the GTD system you can do it yourself on paper a lot easier than using the software system. And one can’t help but feel that Allen knows this. After all, he designed the system for paper initially. The smart phone apps came later and it shows.

What is wrong with all these productivity software/systems? 

There is one thing missing from all of these systems. It’s an ingredient that has been proven time and time again to get “stuck” entrepreneurs up and moving again. Most importantly, it’s the ingredient that brings you back to the to-do system when you fall off the bandwagon.

You guessed it: Accountability.

In ten years time, I think every single todo app will have some form of accountability built in. There’s no way it can be ignored, because accountability just works. 

When your ambitions are given the gravity of external accountability, they turn into results. 

That’s why I created the Commit Action program. It isn’t a to-do list, but a coaching and action tracking system that pairs entrepreneurs with a real human accountability coach.

What’s crazy, is how affordably we can deliver all this. Thanks to leveraged technology and a powerful, psychologically-sound productivity philosophy… Commit Action is available for just $299 per month.

Plus, we throw in a monthly webinar where I deep dive into the business psychology that boosts profits. Our Q&A videos get you the answers you need to your business dilemmas.

Commit Action has been so successful, creating so much boosted productivity for our entrepreneur customers, that we’re gearing up for a big re-launch. Prices are getting re-jigged and all this week you have the chance to be grandfathered in at the old, lowest possible price. 

Commit Action isn’t a replacement for a to-do app, or system. However, when you couple it together with one of the ones above, or even a pencil-and-paper system, it’ll revolutionize your business output.

There are just 4 days left to get in on Commit Action (click here) before it vanishes, in this form and at this price, to be re-launched to wider audiences.