Ever feel like a clown, standing on one foot, trying to juggle it all while riding the rollercoaster of Entrepreneurship? Yep, I get it. Balance is bullshit. The juggle is real. But there doesn't have to be so much struggle in the juggle.
I've spent years trying to find the right tools and apps to help me keep organized, optimize my time and automate as much of my life as I can. As a Valentine's gift to you, I'm sharing my favorite tools that I use almost daily in my life and business.
#1 - Loom - www.loom.com - Video/Screen Recording
This is the program I used to record this blog post as a mini-webinar (See video at the bottom). It's the easiest tool I have ever used. Great for sending a personal video message in an email, building an online course, educational content, demos and just sharing information with others.
#2 - Cloze - www.cloze.com - Customer Relationship Management tool.
I've tried many many CRM's and at the end of the day, this is my far my favorite of them all. The biggest pro with Cloze is that you do NOT need to manually import any of your contacts information. It does it all for you. Link it up to Social media and now you can stay on top of your clients' social life all in one place. You can build templates, set parameters for when you want to reach out to your contacts and now links with Mailchimp and other programs.
#3 - Trello - www.trello.com - Your Digital To-Do List for all the tasks in your life.
Think of Trello.com as a place to build your To-Do list for all of your tasks and goals. Saying you're going to lose 10 pounds is great and writing it down is even better but with a program like Trello, you can give yourself a list of the tasks that will help you reach that goal, such as:
- Research new gyms or personal trainers
- Decide on a trainer by x date
- Plan to go to the gym 3x/week
- Weigh-in at the end of each week and record your numbers
You get the picture. You can also add deadlines, checklists, images, and attachments. You can also share these boards with your team or your family. You can even use this to help keep your kids organized. This is a free program and you can even use it for free with a team.
#4 - OneNote - Digital Binders/Notebooks from Microsoft
Think of OneNote as a binder or a notebook with different sections. I use this to keep track of different clients. Each client can have a different binder. Within the binder, you can add tabs and then pages within those tabs. Easy to share with your team or client to keep everyone on the same page in terms of the details for programs or projects. EverNote is close second choice in terms of keeping notes in this fashion. I also have been using my Apple Notes on my phone that syncs with my MacBook but it lacks the organization features that OneNote offers.
#5 - Canva - www.canva.com - The graphic designer program for the design-challenged.
I don't knock the importance of having a graphic designer for your business but let's face it, it's not cheap to hire someone to do all of your social media creative and email designs and flyers. Canva is an easy to use tool that lets you design basically anything and everything - from flyers to presentations, to advertisements and social media. It also will automatically resize your designs if you want to use one design in more than one place. SO SMART!
#6 - Calendly - www.calendly.com - Meeting Scheduling without the back and forth.
The program that books your meetings without all of the back and forth. Need I say more. This has been a lifesaver for me. I use the Chrome extension so with one simple click, I am able to send people my link from anywhere. You can add different types of meetings, set up reminders and even take payments if you need to.
#7 - Zoom - www.zoom.com - Virtual Meeting Software.
I've been using zoom for years - the paid version. It syncs with my Calendly so when someone books a time, it sets it up as a zoom meeting that we can both call into. The free version is great but if you want some of the bells and whistles - like your own custom Zoom link with your phone number - then it's worth the splurge. You can also host webinars and group meetings.
#8 - Everything Google - Docs, Pages, Forms and Sheets. I heart Google.
I love using the Forms for Onboarding surveys for new clients as well as polling for some of my other clients. Slides is so much easier to use than Powerpoint and I love the sharing and collaboration that you can do. Also, you'll never lose your work because Google will save it and you can revert back to the last (not sure how many changes but it's a ton) version.
#9 - Slack - www.slack.com - Conversations without Email.
Communication is key and Slack helps you manage communication and projects for your team on the fly. It's like a messenger tool, meets email, meets file sharing and holds your team accountable. You can have different Channels for different clients and can even have private conversations with team members within your group.
#10 - Dashlane - www.dashlane.com - Password Keeper - Never forget a password again.
Dashlane makes it easy to populate passwords for websites and even credit cards for online transactions. I've been using it for years and it's a lifesaver. And it's super secure.
If you're looking for help or guidance implementing any of these tools, book a FREE 15-minute call with me and I'd be happy to guide you through it and share more insights.
Want to network with other AWESOME women at the end of February? (oh, it's also a celebration of my 5-year Business Anniversary (Biz-versary). On 2/26 at 7pm, join me and two of my favorite 'Power Women' for an educational, fun and interactive event at H on the Harbor in Port Washington. Click Here for tickets and more information.