As you can imagine, after sharing over 40 tools and resources with you thus far in Season 3, coming up with my Top 5 Favorites was tough.
My Top 5 favorite tools and resources
But what excites me most about this post is that the tools and resources I’m about to share with you are ones I use every – single – day. I’ve also included quick video tutorials of HOW I use each of these tools so you can see them in action!
Workflowy: A note-takers best friend
You’ve heard me mention it more than a few times: Workflowy is my notepad of choice and it contains just about any and every ‘note-to-self’ I’ve had in the past 3 years.
Because it can take time to get the hang of how Workflowy functions, I created the video below to show you how I leverage Workflowy. And trust me, even this video doesn’t dive into all the things you can do with this incredible tool.
Workflowy is free, but you can upgrade for additional functions and customizations. I’ used the free version for a couple of years and just recently upgraded to support the team who created one of my favorite tools ever!
Boomerang for Gmail: My peace of mind
The hugest benefit of Boomerang is that it gives you peace of mind that you’re not dropping the ball. If you’re like me and you love to plan and put deadlines on tasks and projects, then Boomerang will save you enough times that you’ll be willing to pay anything to keep it in your toolkit.
Lucky for all of us, it’s only $5 / month.
Check out the video below to see how I use Boomerang, and at the very least, sign up for the free version so you can experience its awesomeness!
Asana: My task keeper
With how many different projects, tasks, and to-do’s I have on my mind, I’d be completely lost – and probably super unproductive – without Asana.
Plus, I get to use the platform with my team – to assign others tasks, keep people up-to-date on the progress of certain tasks, and, of course, to keep myself accountable and on-pace for doing the things I’ve said I’ll do.
Asana is free, or you can opt for their Premium version for about $4 / month. I’ve been using the free version for years now and have never felt the need to upgrade.
Check out how cool this tool is…
Skype: My instant chat buddy
John and I use Skype so often that we now have special Skype codes we use for one another. Weird that we Skype one another when we live in the same house, and work in offices that share a wall? Not at all, because it’s how we guarantee that we’re not disrupting one another’s focus and productivity.
Skype is also a great tool for keeping in touch and building upon relationships. For example, I use it twice per month to Skype with my accountability partner; I also use it once per month to Skype with a friend.
As if the above weren’t enough reasons for me to name Skype of one of my Top 5 favorite tools, I also use it to communicate quickly and easily with our virtual team, in addition to connecting with other podcasters for interviews.
You can use Skype for free, or you can purchase “Skype credits”, which allow you to receive and make calls to land lines and cell phones from your Skype account.
Text Expander: A time-saving ninja tool
I call it like I see it: Text Expander is NINJA.
Any text that you type out more than 1 time per week deserves a short code.
What’s a short code?
It’s the letters and/or numbers you assign to things like your email address, your mailing address, your website, your bio – even responses to FAQ’s – that will expand the entire text you want it to with just a few key strokes.
I literally smile every time I use Text Expander because it makes me that happy I’m saving time by not having to type out an entire sentence – or better yet, an entire paragraph – every time I want it to show up.
TextExpander is less than $40 / year (which comes out to $3.33 / month) and is worth 10x that investment. Find out for yourself with their 30 day free trial!
Here’s a video of how I use Text Expander:
More awesome tools, resources and shortcuts
Creating Season 3 around top tools and resources has me obsessed with all things that help me save time and work most efficiently on a daily basis.
Things that I do most times without even realizing I’m doing them are shortcuts I’ve learned over the past several years, and since I wasn’t sure which “category” these shortcuts might fit under, I decided to include just a few of them here.
Command+Shift+T: re-opens the last tab you closed in your browser
Command+Shift+4: take a screen shot of a specific frame (saves to your desktop)
Command+Shift+3: take a screen shot of your entire screen (saves to your desktop)
Right click on a tab to: “pin” or “mute” that tab
Up next in Season 3
It’s hard to believe we’re coming to the end of another season here on Kate’s Take, but I’m fired up for what’s ahead: next, I’m going to dive into the top tools and resources for creating a membership site!
