Pretty good summary of the situation, @MitchWagner. That I had enough apps to need a complicated system like this should tell you everything you need to know. 
However, the funnier part of this is that the indy app that I used in this complicated fashion itself ended up on the chopping block. (In fairness, I use it occasionally, but mostly everything has been migrated out.)
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Kind of like the woman who authored Netflix’s aggressive policy of laying off underperforming or unnecessary employees, who was herself laid off.
Pfft. Wait’ll you try to keep up with the hardware.
But seriously, I had the same existential dilemma last year. I decided that I’d start with just the Apple stock apps. I gave them a chance for a good couple months and then I went from there. To be totally honest, I seldom need more. I found that for me, Apple mail is more than fine, the notes app is perfectly serviceable, Reminders are much improved and you can use them for most basic task management, and the calendar is perfectly fine too–especially as a shared one with other family members who have their own Apple ID (shared notes and tasks also work great). Really the only augmentation I do in my life is I use Due because it nags me in ways I want and need to be nagged, I use Ulysses and Day One for writing, but only because that’s my main thing (and I am seriously considering giving AI Writer a try to replace Ulysses because subscriptions suck), and I use Things for task management only because I’d already paid for it and it seemed dumb not to use it. And that’s about it. Takes care of my world.
Oh, I should say that I also pay for Office365, but that’s entirely work-related, and I don’t use it outside of that. I need Word because everyone uses it.
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In the moments of my life where I overdo it with apps, I’ll find myself searching entirely the wrong service =) So I’ll spend 5 mins searching for “Project X” in Trello and then realize I put it all in Todoist.
This is why I finally threw in the towel a few years ago and decided that, except for some unfortunately necessary exceptions, I don’t use anything unless my data is stored as plain text files. Export doesn’t count — I want the app to be able to use my existing text files in their existing location.
Most of the exceptions:
- apps can use databases behind the scenes to add functionality, but my data needs to be in plain text;
- spreadsheets — I have ambitions to rely on csv, but so far it isn’t really practical;
- contacts and calendars — I use Mac and iOS built-in apps for this; I’m consoled by the fact that vcards, at least, are just text (and I’ve written scripts that create new ones from scratch, so I’m convinced I could go the other way if necessary);
- PDFs — I hate them, but unfortunately they’re a necessary evil;
- images — but I use Markdown to embed them in documents;
- ephemeral items like tasks — this is a relatively new (and tentative) accommodation; I mostly use and like TaskPaper, and right now I’m often just using todo.txt files in project folders using vi or nano, but I’m willing to accept that someday I might have to go back to a Todoist or similar, at least during really busy periods;
- collaboration.
It takes a little extra work, but not much. And I never have to export/import files when I try a new app, or worry about losing access to something (tried to open a PC Microsoft Word file from 2002 on a Mac recently? It’s awful). I can even use multiple apps at the same time with the same data.
Clever apps help:
- nvUltra, The Archive and/or Obsidian (which I’m just exploring) for notes on the Mac;
- MultimarkdownComposer, BBEdit, and FoldingText for longer documents;
- CriticMarkup for marking/tracking changes in documents;
- Marked for viewing and converting documents;
- TableFlip for formatting tables on the Mac (when I don’t need the calculating functions of a spreadsheet);
- 1Writer and Editorial for iOS notes;
- imdone (a recent discovery) for kanban on the Mac — I’m using this to track projects, a little like MacSparky’s OmniGraffle dashboard;
- Takspaper, taskwarrior (command line) or just a text file in vi for tasks;
- NotePlan for calendar and daily tasks;
- Drafts for note, calendar and contact creation, but I treat it like a scratchpad — once I’ve used an action to send something to the right place, it’s gone;
- Drafts, Scriptable, Shortcuts, Toolbox Pro and Data Jar to automate document creation and data logging on iOS;
- KeyboardMaestro, TextExpander and Hammerspoon (really powerful) to automate note creation, templating and so on on the Mac;
- Mermaid.js for simple charts and diagrams (just exploring);
- Deckset for Markdown presentations;
- blot.im or any number of static site generators to put a blog on the web using markdown files, if I ever really get my own blog going.
Writing it out like this, it seems like a lot. But I started with just a few of these tools and gradually added others. And I can’t stress how much easier it is that they all use the same core data — some folders of markdown files.
It helps that most of what I do is words or numbers (and I can use Python scripts for a lot of the numbers). If I worked with video, audio, or graphics more, I’d have to make a lot more exceptions.
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If we couldn’t laugh we’d all go insane.
I think my wife has said those very words, “it sure seems like you’re using a complicated way to simplify your life.”
She just doesn’t understand!
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I think the short answer to the question “How do these guys use so many apps?” is contained in the phrase “these guys.” Not a knock; just a reality.
In addition to the great thoughts already offered, things have changed a bit with MPU hosts. When Katie Floyd hosted (as someone who was a very active user but didn’t do this to “pay for her shoes”), there was, in my opinion, quite a bit more balance on this. Likewise, before David hung out his own shingle, the space in his life for the infinite pursuit of apps seemed more limited.
Even then, MPU still did what it said on the tin—power users!—which always brings with it more convolution than the average bear. And this isn’t a knock on where the podcast is now, per se, but expansiveness is the name of the game these days (Would you like More Power Users? We can do that!).
My listening habits have changed accordingly: it’s still a great resource and an enjoyable listen, but I’m way more picky about when and how often I tune in, and on which topics. MPU was once a weekly staple for me, but have too many limits and need too much focus in my life to drink from the fire hose indiscriminately now. I’ve changed, MPU has changed, and we’re both still good for what we do now…which isn’t exactly what we did before.
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I agree with so many folks that have said that basically you should look for the combination that works best for you. I think I fall somewhere between the “less is more” and the “I try everything” contingents. I tend to want separate apps for separate types of work. For instance, I do most of my writing as an academic in Ulysses because the way it is set up really clicks for me. But then depending on where that writing goes, it might get exported to Wordpress, Microsoft Word, Google Docs, a PDF, etc. But I journal in DayOne because I like the layout, the ability to easily insert photos, and I want to keep my garden and personal journals in a separate place. Academic research, and materials for the classes I teach, tend to get placed into DEVONThink because it has the best search, but I don’t like taking notes there, so I use OmniOutliner, which I find really helpful. The point is, I have evolved a workflow with apps that work for me. When I have a problem that these apps don’t solve, or don’t solve as elegantly as I like, I think about some of the things I have heard on MPU or other podcasts I listen to (which I enjoy for their own sakes - not necessarily because I feel compelled to go out and try all the new apps they mention), and give something a try in hopes of finding a new fit for what wasn’t working. I rarely tear everything down. It’s more like gradual migration when something no longer works well or I start a new type of project that would be better served by a new tool.
It’s been interesting to read how others approach this same issue, so thanks for starting the conversation.
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I tend to agree with you hear and I have thought that several times. I do realize that their job is to try things and report back to us. The shows where they talk about productivity apps or things such as task management involves them trying several different things. Whereas I think Steven has a consistent workflow that he has used for years and seldom deviates from it, David is much more adventurous and seems to go full send on new stuff pretty easily. I guess when you try something to report to us, the listeners, as much as he does it tends to find a way into his heart and workflow. I think my most expensive take on this is Omnifocus vs Things 3. Like so many people here, I tried one for a while, saw the other and said “oooooo so pretty!” And then went back and forth a half dozen times. Should I just get one and stick with it? Absolutely! But there in lies the problem that I use one for a while and I find an itch that the other scratches so well and I go back. The monetary cost is $150-$200 total I have spent on both of them and then the time cost of moving back and forth. I can easily see how David and Steven can find themselves in this same back and forth war of what to use. At the end of the day, it is simply nerd probs. If anyone is curious… I am currently on Things and trying so hard to stick with it!
I’ve certainly had similar thoughts, not just about David but about many people who produce this kind of “enthusiast” content. But I haven’t had a difficult time understanding that I don’t need to worry about over-complication in anybody’s life other than my own.
And I think David does an above-average job of making it clear how invested/experienced he is in anything he discusses on his podcasts. If he were giving two “expert” talks — one about Obsidian and one about meditation — I know which one I’d be more likely to attend.
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I can relate to the desire to try lots of apps. I love to try new apps. I have a core set that I depend on, but I often try new apps to see how good they are and how well they fit the way I think. Since trying new apps is fun for me, I don’t really have any problem remembering where I put things. It really is about what you enjoy and what works for you. I work with lots of people who are not interested in trying new apps or workflows, and that’s okay. They have tools that work for them and just want to get their work done so they can go do other things they enjoy more.
I do all the testing and let them know what I find out. Those that see some potential benefit ask more questions. This is basically what David and Steven do for lots of us in the MPU community, and I am very happy they do it for me.
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Just coming back to say I’m trying Obsidian at the moment 
I don’t see it as an Evernote replacement, but as the YouTube pundits seem to say lately – it’s a place to store MY THOUGHTS, not the thoughts of others. So yeah, lets add one more app to the pile. =)
@Brianford9676 and I have A LOT in common. I’ll try an app, love it, but then see a shiny new one off to the side that does feature X my current app does not. I’ll buy the new app, jump ship, and then in two weeks go to use feature B and the new app doesn’t have it – but the old one did. Then I screw around on the web researching what other people’s experiences and opinions are while putting most of my thoughts on the backburner because I’ve now clouded my judgement from stewing about it and the cycle continues.
That’s part of what led me to start this thread. Listening to David and Stephen (while great) – it’s like I’ve been sober for 3 weeks and they’re trying to sell me vodka. 
I also relate to @grooms – the show is no longer a weekly staple but a “who’s on right now?” kind of deal.
Current app subs for those interested in the level of my addiction:
- Ulysses
- Office 365
- Evernote
- Todoist
- Castro
- Pocket Casts
- Calm
- Unread
- 1Password Family
- Backblaze
*Just bought Reeder 5 for Mac also.
Now – to replace Ulysses with iAWriter…or to go back to Pocket Casts from Castro (not likely, I’m loving Castro but ask me in a week), or maybe go back to Headspace after Calm expires.
Ugh!
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