You should be using iPhone Shortcuts
So while I'm an avid mac and iPad user, I have always been an android phone user. Odd I know, but I absolutely hated the iPhone. It wasn't until a few years ago, when I made the switch to iPhone because there was a deal and it just made sense and now I'm stuck. Maybe stuck is the wrong word, but here we are. I have to say I hate smartphones and I'm still not sure how the iPhone works. I just learned about creating stickers a few weeks ago(!) And I don't have my phone connected to my mac or iPad because I don't like being connected 24/7. Butttttt... I discovered iPhone shortcuts and it is the best thing known to humanity at least in the tech space. Or at the very least, I was very excited when I discovered it and the best place to learn about it was Reddit, because that's where you go for all of life's answers. After a multi-week deep dive of vegging on the couch with Skinny Pop (original) trying to understand shortcuts, I am pleased to announce that I have a very rudimentary understanding of how it works. It can do SOOO much and now I downloaded a whole bunch of shortcuts from random strangers on the internet and while I'm sure my phone now has a bug, I am pleased to announce that I am more or less set-up with a whole bunch of cool automations.
First things first, I am not a morning person and my alarm hates me or I hate my alarm every morning. I leave my phone on the kitchen table and when my alarm goes off, I slither out of bed to switch it off and then voilà(!) my first automation of the day goes off. It tells me the date, the weather, and then reads my calendar for the day. How amazing is that?! I haven't quite figured out the voice yet, so it's standard Samantha in her great monotone robotic voice. My other shortcuts has a british guy, but I can't remember his name.
At 10AM, another shortcut goes off telling me to eat breakfast. But it doesn't stop there, because I'm incapable of coming up with breakfast ideas in the morning even though I more or less eat the same thing everyday, I have it tell me that it's time for breakfast and give me ideas like: I can boil eggs, have some avocado with lemon pepper, etc. My all time favourite is when I'm in the car and every time I unplug from Car Play it asks me if all my windows are closed. (I will say, this one doesn't always work and it sometimes goes off while I'm still driving so you can see me yelling at it. Maybe I shouldn't yell...) My greatest fear in life is if it rains and my car windows are open and it pours. Odd I know, but when I was a kid, we left the windows opened once and then the car forever smelled like water mold. Funny how all of life's problems and triggers stem from childhood.
Anywayssss I won't bore you with all the details of all my shortcuts, but just a few more. When I'm near Trader Joe's my grocery list opens automatically. When I'm at the airport, my Priority Pass automatically opens, when Uber eats is opened, it asks me, "Are you really going to order?" Shame is a strong trigger and I sometimes go into the kitchen with a tail between my legs to cook instead. When I tap my business credit card from Apple Wallet it triggers me to take a photo of my receipt and then saves it in my 2024 receipt folder.
Okay I'm done.
Basically shortcuts has taken over my life and I'm not mad about it, except at 9:01PM when it asks me to reflect on my day and I'm too exhausted to do it. If you have an iPhone and and can manage to afford to hoard an entire new library of digital assets not unlike what my office currently looks like, I highly recommend - 10/10.
