The free app that could save your business (and your life)

Smartphone apps for business often promise the earth, but in general, £2.49 later you usually realise you have something that just might, at best shave a minute off your hectic day.

However there are smartphone apps out there that can genuinely have a huge effect on how well we work. I have found one such an app and best of all it is free.

The app in question is called ‘heart rate’ and it does one thing only. It measures my pulse.

I put my thumb over the camera and it analyses the tiny fluctuations in skin colour caused by the change in blood flow each time my ticker pumps.

It takes about 15 seconds for the app to calibrate and record and then a couple of beeps later it displays your heart rate. I am currently pumping at a very chilled 65bpm. This is saved in my file so I can look back at my average rates and also record what activity I was doing right before I took by pulse.

Yes I know you could check your pulse using a stopwatch and fingers placed in just the right position on your wrist, combined with a little in-your-head maths; but the phone based monitor, is easier, faster, less obvious and because it sits there on your app list, you may actually remember to use the darn thing on occasion.

Taking a moment to check your pulse is a great way to think about your own fitness and stress levels. I don’t need to spell out why that is important to your business do I?

This nice little app is apparently just the tip of the iceberg. Over the next few years a whole host of personal health monitoring apps will be appearing and we will be actively monitoring a great swathe of aspects our health around the clock via our phones.