Novice seeking advice, how do you indie/solo dev guys manage your time and productivity to stay clear on what to prioritize and deliver faster ?

Well when I'm working on my own, I keep a physical to-do list. That way I can avoid getting lost in tangential bugs and I get that sweet feeling of success when I can cross off an item

Depends on the context of your work. Overall, any number of project management apps.

Client work:
If you're just starting out, keep office hours and stick to them. A simple, free to do list app that allows you to separate projects will help. Asana, TeamworkPM, etc. A free support desk solution will keep client emails organized. Help Scout, Freshdesk and TeamworkPM are all options here.

Other projects that involve multiple users / a user base:

A development planning tool; clubhouse and trello are both free options. Support desk options above will work here as well. User feedback / user voice within your app that integrate with your other tools.

It really depends on the type of work you are doing. Staying organized always makes this easier to identify where your time is best spent each day.

I don't.

@darkcode trello is amazing.

Not sure if you were looking for just apps but to stay productive I always code the easiest stuff first and drink loads of coffee. I think it's also important to never take people at their word when they say asap or that they need something done immediately. I had that problem when I was first starting out until I learned to say no and that it'll be a while. Oh and always add extra time to how long you think something will take for a buffer.

All great advice. Avoid using numbers in timescales for changes, unless you're 100% sure about them, especially if a customer is expecting to be billed based on that estimate. Better to say "shouldn't take too long" or "I'll need to check" or whatever and then figure it out. If they want accurate estimates, you need to research first, even for seemingly simple changes. I found this with big projects, that a change I expected to take, say, 15 minutes, took two hours because I'd forgotten how the app did certain things. Customers will be happier to accept estimates when you show that you're accurate with them. Also, deliver any bad news first and ASAP. If you're gonna be late with something/think you are, let the customer know ASAP, so they can plan around it. Plus, make sure you bill 50% of a project up-front, and don't code a single line till that's paid and cleared. Then, bill the last 50% and make sure that's paid BEFORE final handover. Don't accept 30 day or other "terms".

@darkcode thanks ! Will look Into the tools you mention, it looks promising

Thank you all for this collection of good advices !! Gonna try to put that in place

@GreatNespresso Don't beat yourself up if you can't do them all, or it all seems overwhelming. Concentrate on the important things first. Rome wasn't built in a day. All the best!