Recently I had the pleasure of getting my hands on a new device, the P1C GPS SmartWatch. Though it’s not one of the most celebrated smartwatches on the market today, I decided to test its limits and fully incorporate it into my life. The goal was to see if it made any significant impact on my admittedly sporadic lifestyle. After a week of daily fitness tracking, daytime scheduling, and evening alerts, I soon realized that not only was this unheralded watch an undoubtedly awesome find, but you can effectively use wearables to build your life and your brand. Here’s how.

Create a routine.

One of the most important aspects of building anything is creating a routine that you can follow. I use Google Calendar to help me stay on top of my daily tasks as well as my assignments and personal projects. I find that scheduling everything, from workouts to recreation, makes productivity much more efficient. I was relieved to discover that I can easily sync my Google Calendar and task manager to my watch and do away with the phone checks. This allowed me to stay on pace with my routine every day, and not be tempted by the other applications on my phone like social media and Flappy Bird.

Stay active. The first part of my daily routine is usually my morning workout. A great way for anyone looking to get their day started on the right foot is to get some form of workout in first thing in the morning. While this approach may not be for everyone, it certainly helps me not only get the blood flowing in the morning, but also get at least one workout out of the way before the trials of the day give me a reason to pass on it.

Remain consistent. After my workout, it’s on to attack the day. I try to get my most important short-term projects or tasks finished (or at least started) before 4 pm. For me, 4 pm is the sweet spot for me to transition from non-stop worker bee to dreamy creator. It’s great to be able to focus without worrying about the time flying by and utilizing my wearable did that for me. I don’t want to stop to smell the roses until 4 pm and now I have a device to snap me out of my zone when it’s time to.

Get organized. High levels of organization and focus are key to building a brand, and sticking to scheduled time frames allows for maintaining consistency. It gives you scope and allows you to set mini goals throughout the day. Using smart tech to organize these goals gives you a better idea of how much time your daily goals truly need to be routinely attainable.

Multi-task effectively.

These days, being able to successfully multitask may be the most challenging part of staying on track toward any goal. No matter what type of personal targets you have, you’ll find that moving toward more than one goal at a time is necessary in today’s fast-paced and demanding society. One issue that I have, is that I find myself constantly checking my phone throughout the day to review my schedule, which can quickly become a distraction. I was able to gain some control over some of my distractions by creating alerts, putting down my phone, and holding myself accountable for completing the tasks I set for the day. Over time, this made me a much more effective multi-tasker.

Create alerts. Creating alerts will help you stay on point. I like to remind myself 15 to 30 minutes before my next task so I have some time to mentally switch gears if I need to. I’ve also experimented with using this time to respond to text messages, emails, or simply decompress before getting started on the next thing. Only create alerts for the tasks that absolutely need to be done (decompression counts!). Keep them simple and always follow through. Remember that you’re always in control, so if you do decide to skip an alert, put it behind you and move on. However, don’t make this a habit. Create alerts and stick to them.

Put down the phone. Your mobile device can be your greatest asset or your worst enemy, depending on how you use it. Wearables allow you to put the phone down and get to work. While I did use my watch to screen calls and read texts, it didn’t allow me to answer calls or reply back, so it kept me from straying too far from what I was doing. For me, this was a good thing because, after all, I’m trying my best to stay on task. I was able to stay aware of any messages I was receiving, and when I finally finished, or my time was up, I was able to move on to responding.

Create accountability. Truth is, if you want an excuse not to stay on track, you won’t find it using this technology. That’s because regardless of the activity, I never actually needed to remove my watch. Not only was it useful in monitoring various activities, like counting how many hours I was sedentary at my desk or tracking sleep patterns at night, but it’s also waterproof, holding up in the shower and during sweaty workout sessions. It looks great when getting dressed for evening nights out on the town, and plays its usual part in reminding me that it’s time to wind down for the night (yes, I created an alert for that). Aside from the occasional docking to charge, there is literally no reason to take it off.

Monitor your progress.

All in all, the reason wearables are a powerful tool in helping you build your life and your brand, is that it allows you to passively monitor your progress without having to consciously micro-manage the details. For me, I found that reviewing my progress at the end of the week gave me enough freedom to confidently follow my schedule and enough data to make changes going into the following week.

Sync with other apps. I was thoroughly surprised with the compatibility of my third-party watch. The fact is, whether you’re using the most expensive brand on the market or utilizing more affordable options, today’s wearable tech is meant to be compatible with popular management, messaging, and activity applications. So building a schedule by utilizing the tools you already use shouldn’t be an issue.

Stay connected. The most impressive part of this new smart tech is that they are designed to stay on and connected all day long. The battery life of my P1C watch never died on me despite helping me monitor and manage my entire day. Not only did it prove to have long battery life, but it was easy to charge while I removed it to shower, and on some days go to sleep.

Make adjustments. Making adjustments is a key part of evolution. As you take steps to further grow your brand or your career, you’ll need to continually make adjustments to your daily life. Whether these slight changes are wake-up times, morning routines, lifestyle habits, or workflow, each minor adjustment is meant to reinvigorate the spirit and spark creativity so that you can continue to attack your goals with enthusiasm.