4 little-known Google Calendar tricks I use to plan my workweek - and save time

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As the default calendar app for a lot of Android phones, Google Calendar is the easiest way to keep track of your schedule. But if all you're doing is adding events, getting reminders about those events, and making sure you don't forget about important birthdays, you're missing out on some huge productivity and time-saving tweaks.

You probably know about Calendar's ability to automatically add Gmail events (that feature is on by default). When you get an email about an event, that event will pop up on your calendar on its own. But the calendar tool actually has several time-saving features that a lot of people miss. Here's a look at how to get more out of Google Calendar.

If you've ever struggled to find a boarding pass while standing in line for a flight or a hotel confirmation number at the front desk, this one is for you. Calendar lets you attach files to any event, so you have your important information ready when you need it.

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If you're planning a trip, you can add hotel reservations, itineraries, and tickets right to your calendar. If you have a sporting event, museum, concert, or attraction reservation on your calendar, you can have your attachments ready to go so you don't have to dig through your email when you're in line. For work purposes, you can easily access reports attached to your next scheduled meeting.

I used this during a trip to New York City, where my wife and I kept tickets for museums and attractions attached to the overall event entry. It meant no searching through Gmail while standing in line.

To add an attachment to a calendar event, first upload that attachment to Google Drive. Once it's there, go to the event on your calendar, tap the edit button on the top right corner, and look for "Add Google Drive attachment."

Are you over trying to coordinate schedules for an appointment or meeting? Instead of a series of back-and-forth emails, use Calendar's appointment schedule feature .

This feature lets you create a booking page of available times, and people can select the spot that works best for them. When someone reserves a spot, it's removed from the availability list and added to the calendars of both parties.

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