“What productivity software suite has best addressed the challenge of work-life balance in remote settings? How has it helped you and what specific feature would you highlight?”
Here is what 20 thought leaders had to say.
ClickUp’s Custom Views Transform Work-Life Balance
As someone managing Elementor’s digital marketing team, I’ve discovered that ClickUp’s customizable views have transformed how I balance work and personal life. The time-tracking integration helps me notice when I’m overworking, and I’ve set up automations to remind me to take breaks after long screen sessions. The mobile app’s task organization has been particularly helpful – I can quickly check priorities during work hours but hide notifications when I’m spending time with family.
Itamar Haim, SEO Strategist, Elementor
Notion’s Daily Journal Stops Work from Bleeding Home
Notion has been the single most helpful productivity tool for maintaining work-life balance in a remote setting, at least for me. I used to juggle content calendars, client notes, and random task lists across half a dozen platforms. Notion lets me bring all of it into one clean workspace that I can design around how I think. I set up dashboards for each client, with weekly sprints, deadlines, and even mood boards. So by Friday, I’m not scrambling to remember what got done or where things stand.
The feature that changed things for me was the “Daily Journal” template I built. It’s not just for to-dos, it tracks how many hours I worked, what I focused on, and even includes a quick note like “stop at 6 p.m.” Sounds simple, but it’s a self-check I didn’t realize I needed. It helped me stop letting work bleed into evenings just because the laptop was still open. That small shift made a massive difference in how I show up both on and off the clock.
Andrew Peluso, Founder, What Kind Of Bug Is This
Microsoft 365 Creates Vital Work-Life Synergy
I have found Microsoft 365 to be the most impactful productivity software suite for addressing work-life balance in remote settings. Its integration of tools like Microsoft Teams and Planner enables seamless collaboration and effective task organization. For me the ability to schedule and prioritize tasks in Planner, which keeps project timelines clear while ensuring I still dedicate time to family and personal well-being. This balance is vital in my role of running KetieStory, where creativity and strategic focus are paramount. The flexibility and structure provided by this suite have been instrumental in fostering a thriving work-life synergy.
Ketie Zhang, Founder, Ketie Story
Teams Integration Builds Healthier Remote Work Culture
Microsoft 365 has done a solid job supporting work-life balance in remote settings. What makes it effective isn’t just the tools; it’s how they come together to help you work smarter, not longer. For me and my team at HRDQ, the real game changer has been Microsoft Teams. It’s the hub that keeps our communication streamlined and reduces the noise. We’ve been able to replace scattered email threads and constant check-ins with more purposeful conversations and shared visibility. That’s helped us stay connected without being tethered to our screens all day.
The feature I’d highlight is the integration of Outlook’s calendar with Teams. It lets you schedule focus time, see when colleagues are truly unavailable, and helps prevent meetings from bleeding into personal hours. In a remote environment, where the lines between work and home can easily blur, that kind of boundary-setting is crucial. It gives people the permission, and the structure to log off and recharge. I’ve seen it contribute directly to better morale, better work, and frankly, a healthier culture. And in the learning and development world, where burnout can undermine even the best intentions, that balance matters a lot.
Bradford Glaser, President & CEO, HRDQ
Notion Creates Clear Boundaries for Remote Teams
Running a remote eCommerce platform, I’ve discovered that Notion’s flexible workspace has transformed how we handle our work-life balance by letting us create clear boundaries through dedicated workspaces for different projects and personal time. The database feature with filtered views has been particularly helpful – I can quickly switch between work modes and personal tasks without feeling overwhelmed, plus it syncs perfectly across my devices so I’m not constantly checking multiple apps.
Cyrus Partow, CEO, ShipTheDeal
ClickUp Dashboards Prevent Financial Analyst Burnout
I’ve found ClickUp to be a game-changer for managing my financial analysis workflow while maintaining work-life boundaries. Their time-tracking feature helps me monitor how long I spend on market research and client portfolios, allowing me to stick to my planned hours and prevent burnout. What really stands out is their custom dashboard feature – I’ve set up separate views for market trends and personal tasks, helping me switch off from work mode when needed.
Adam Garcia, Founder, The Stock Dork
Basecamp Protects Global Team’s Personal Boundaries
Running FATJOE remotely, I’ve relied heavily on Basecamp to keep our 100+ team members organized without burning out. The ‘Hill Charts’ feature has been amazing for visualizing project progress, letting me check in quickly without micromanaging, which means I can actually disconnect during family time. What I love most is Basecamp’s automatic work hours feature – it won’t notify team members outside their set hours, which has really helped our global team maintain healthy boundaries.
Joe Davies, CEO, FATJOE
Teams’ Quiet Hours Establish Clear Work Divisions
When it comes to remote work-life balance, Microsoft Teams has excelled. I may establish off-work times with its “Quiet Hours” option to avoid receiving communications after hours. It creates a distinct division between business and home life when used with Outlook’s “Focus Time” feature and built-in status indicators. This prevents burnout in a fully remote configuration by making it simpler to actually unplug and recharge. My day is also made simpler by the integration with my calendar and to-do list, which makes me feel more organized and in charge.
Dhari Alabdulhadi, CTO and Founder, Ubuy Germany
Asana Workload View Prevents Global Team Burnout
We run a hybrid team with multiple offices around the world, often collaborating on searches for our global energy clients. Asana is the productivity suite we rely on most, and it’s been instrumental not just for coordination but also in helping our team maintain work-life balance, something that’s critical in the high-urgency world of executive recruitment.
The standout feature for us is the Workload Management View, which gives leaders a clear snapshot of each team member’s capacity. This helps prevent burnout by ensuring no one is overloaded and that tasks are distributed fairly across the team.
As a global company, we also benefit from Asana’s integration with Google Calendar, which shows time zone indicators that make scheduling across regions faster and more respectful of everyone’s off-hours. Team members can customize their notification settings and working hours, so they’re not getting pinged outside of their preferred schedule.
Together, these features help us stay productive without compromising personal boundaries, a balance that’s essential for long-term team performance and satisfaction.
Jon Hill, Chairman & CEO, The Energists
Notion Dashboards Connect Clients and Employees Seamlessly
As a business that has to engage with both clients and employees virtually, Notion has been a life saver! Not only is the site easy enough to use that anyone can get a hang of it, but it also allows for customization. I can build a special dashboard for my employees with all internal tools they need: team information, user guides, etc, that they can refer to and update as they work. At the same time, I have another dashboard for clients as well, through which they can communicate with the team, subscribe, etc. All they need is one link!
Manasvini Krishna, Founder, Boss as a Service
Microsoft Viva Redefines Time Value for Teams
Microsoft 365, particularly through its Viva Insights tool, addresses a subtle but critical issue in remote work: the erosion of mental boundaries. In high-performance environments, it’s rarely the workload that causes burnout — it’s the fragmentation of time. “Focus Time” auto-scheduling doesn’t just reduce distractions; it sends a behavioral signal across the organization that uninterrupted work is not only acceptable but necessary. That single shift encourages teams to operate with more intention and less reaction.
From a leadership perspective, this functionality helped redefine how time is valued. By modeling structured, protected time blocks, it became easier to move the culture away from urgency addiction and toward thoughtful output. Work-life balance in remote settings isn’t about less work — it’s about smarter rhythms. Microsoft 365 enables that by aligning calendars, communication, and cognitive flow in one ecosystem.
Anupa Rongala, CEO, Invensis Technologies
ClickUp Helps Therapists Maintain Mental Well-Being
As a therapist managing multiple client sessions, I’ve found ClickUp’s time tracking and task organization features incredibly helpful in preventing work from bleeding into my personal life. The customizable reminders help me wrap up sessions on time and take necessary breaks between appointments, which has made a huge difference in maintaining my own mental well-being while working remotely.
Aja Chavez, Executive Director, Mission Prep Healthcare
Google Workspace Shared Calendars Protect Team Time
The most dependable resource for preserving work-life balance in a remote setting has been Google Workspace. Its ease of use and integration facilitate the separation of tasks and deadlines. I use Google Calendar to schedule work, breaks, and personal obligations so they don’t conflict. Color-coding and device syncing allow me to maintain accountability without getting overwhelmed. Calendar alerts are more than simply reminders to me, they are boundaries.
The feature that makes the biggest difference is shared calendars. As a leader managing a remote team, I use them to align on availability and protect everyone’s time. It reduces unnecessary check-ins and allows more focus-driven work. I can prioritize personal appointments, movement breaks, and focused deep work without justifying every minute. That prevents burnout.
I also use Docs and Sheets in real time with my team to keep collaboration fluid and low-pressure. We don’t chase perfection in meetings. We get things done where they live, on the platform. That means fewer calls, fewer follow-ups, and more time to recharge. Remote work should offer more control, not less. Using a simple, accessible system to support structure has helped me build a rhythm that supports both leadership and life outside the screen.
Aspen Noonan, CEO, Elevate Holistics
Viva Insights Reclaims Ten Hours Weekly
The suite that’s had the biggest impact on my own work-life balance is Microsoft 365, paired with its Viva Insights add-on. What sold me was the “Focus Time” feature: once you enable it, the tool automatically finds and blocks two-hour deep-work slots in your calendar, gently declines any conflicting meeting invites, and even nudges teammates so everyone knows you’re in uninterrupted mode.
When I flipped it on, I went from back-to-back calls straight through dinner to having at least one solid afternoon stretch free of pings. Those pockets became my “off” time too—no Teams buzz, no FOMO. I still finish work by 6 pm, and I don’t feel guilty shutting my laptop, because I know Viva’s already carved out tomorrow’s focus blocks for me. That single automation—auto-booking and defending your focus hours—has reclaimed nearly ten hours a week and finally given me a clear line between work and home.
Patric Edwards, Founder & Principal Software Architect, Cirrus Bridge
Microsoft 365 Normalizes Breaks Without Judgment
I’ve been particularly impressed with how Microsoft 365 has evolved to support remote work, and it’s had the biggest impact on both my own work-life balance and that of my team. It strikes a strong balance between collaboration, structure, and personal boundary-setting, something that’s essential in a fully or partially remote environment.
One feature I’ve found especially valuable is Outlook’s Viva Insights. It gently flags when messages are sent outside of working hours, suggests focus time, and reminds team members when it’s time to wrap up for the day. These subtle prompts go a long way, especially for recruiters who are often deeply committed to their work and prone to working late even after setting boundaries.
The suite as a whole also reduces the pressure to be constantly available. With shared task tracking, managers can stay informed without having to check in frequently. That cuts down on micromanagement and gives team members the freedom to manage their time independently.
We also make good use of the custom status settings, which allow people to indicate when they’re taking a short break or focusing on deep work. This has helped normalize flexible scheduling and lets recruiters step away without feeling like they’re being judged for it. It’s a small detail, but it contributes meaningfully to a culture that respects both productivity and personal time.
David Case, President, Advastar
Office 365 Cloud Access Enhances Remote Work
With the nature of my job requiring me to be constantly connected and available to clients, it can be difficult to set boundaries and take time for myself. However, I have found that using productivity software suites has greatly helped in addressing this challenge and has significantly improved my overall work-life balance. Out of all the software suites available, I have found that Microsoft Office 365 has been the most effective for me.
One specific feature that stands out is the ability to access all Microsoft applications on any device with an internet connection. This means that I can easily switch between my laptop, tablet, and phone without any disruption to my work. Additionally, the cloud storage feature allows me to save and access all my files from anywhere, making it easier for me to work remotely or collaborate with others.
Geremy Yamamoto, Founder, Eazy House Sale
Notion Dashboard Clearly Defines Work-Life Boundaries
Notion has been the standout productivity suite that truly helped me regain control of my work-life balance while working remotely. What sets it apart is it’s the flexibility. I built a custom dashboard that separates my personal and professional life in a way that makes sense to me, not how a software designer thinks I should work. One side of the dashboard tracks client projects, meeting notes, and deadlines. The other has my personal goals, meal planning, and even reminders to unplug.
One Friday afternoon, I wrapped a hectic week with three overlapping project timelines. Instead of leaving work feeling overwhelmed, I clicked over to the personal tab on my Notion board and saw my weekend plans. That moment was a reset. It reminded me that work ends, and life resumes. That line used to feel fuzzy when working from home. Now, it’s clearly defined, and I owe that to how I’ve tailored Notion to support both sides of my life.
Matt Mayo, Owner, Diamond IT
Teams’ Quiet Hours Guard Family Time
The productivity software that has helped me most with maintaining a work-life balance while working remotely is Microsoft Teams. Before we fully embraced Teams at Keystone, it was far too easy to let work bleed into personal time—endless email threads, scattered file sharing, and late-night pings across different platforms. What changed for me with Teams wasn’t just the chat—it was the ability to centralize everything: meetings, files, collaborative workspaces, even approvals. That cohesion helped me mentally “shut the door” on work at the end of the day because everything had its place and could wait until morning.
One feature that made a huge difference was the “Quiet Hours” setting in the mobile app. I remember setting it up after realizing I was checking messages at 10 PM just because the notifications never stopped. Now, Teams goes silent after 6:30 PM, and I get to actually be present with my family instead of reacting to every ping. It’s a small setting, but it taught me to guard my time—and more importantly, it signaled to the team that after-hours boundaries are okay. For anyone juggling remote work and real life, that’s a game changer.
Brian Fontanella, Owner, Keystone Technology Consultants
Notion Dashboards Give Permission to Unplug
The best productivity tool for work-life balance isn’t just efficient—it’s boundary-respecting.
Notion has been a game-changer for our remote team. Beyond task management, we use it to set shared weekly priorities and document processes—so fewer things require a Slack ping or late-night check-in. The feature that made the biggest impact? Custom dashboards that surface only what’s relevant for the day. It keeps work focused, time-boxed, and out of personal hours.
I’m David Quintero, CEO of NewswireJet. Notion helped us replace chaos with clarity—and gave everyone permission to unplug without dropping the ball.
David Quintero, CEO and Marketing Expert, NewswireJet
Teams Makes Virtual Real Estate Collaboration Effortless
My work often requires me to be on the go, juggling tasks and deadlines. With the rise of remote work, finding productivity software that supports my work-life balance has become essential.
After trying various options, I’ve found Microsoft Office 365 to be the best fit. It provides all the tools I need as a real estate agent, along with features tailored for remote work and better work-life balance.
One standout feature is Teams, which makes communication and collaboration with colleagues and clients effortless. During the pandemic, it’s been especially useful for scheduling virtual meetings, sharing updates in real-time, and even offering virtual property tours to potential buyers.
Zach Shepard, Principal, Braddock Investment Group Inc
