3 Tools I’m Loving Right Now (That Make My Work Life Easier)
When you’re running a service-based business, things come in waves—sometimes they’re really busy, sometimes a little quieter.
During the slower times, you have an opportunity to take a breath, step back, and look at the bigger picture—to spot what could work better and make improvements that’ll help carry you into the next phase of your business.
It’s a chance to dive into streamlining systems which make things run smoother behind the scenes. Here are three tools I’ve been using lately that are helping me to work smarter not harder.
Bigin CRM – Client Relationship Management
Think of this as a home base for all your client and networking relationships. If you’ve ever had a great conversation with a potential client, then forgot to follow up… or met someone amazing at a networking event, only to lose their contact info—this may be for you.
A basic set up to get you started:
- Create a calendar link so that anyone booking a Discovery Call or Coffee Chat gets added to your contact list automatically.
- Set up a simple pipeline with stages like: Booked a Call → Had the Call → Needs Follow-up → Onboarded, etc.
- Integrate your email and calendar with your CRM so everything stays connected and visible in one place.
And just like that, you have automated a task, you can keep track of all the relationships that you are building and you don’t have to worry about things slipping through the cracks. You can now put your focus on other things needing your attention in your business.
Komodo Decks – Record Your Screen and Create SOPs
I use this tool a lot (be careful not to over use this one, it’s addictive).
When I feel like a quick video will be effective to explain how to do something or give a quick progress update, I’ll use Komodo. It keeps projects flowing and communication channels open. It saves on lengthy emails or unneeded Zoom meetings. Net effect – saves so much time.
Another big time saver is the SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) building feature. When you record your screen using Komodo, it captures you executing a task and auto-generates a visual step-by-step document with Screenshots and Text instructions. You can edit the steps after the recording to clarify or add context.
It is so useful for creating quick tutorials or building repeatable processes without having to manually write everything out. And you can use them for onboarding, training, or documenting backend systems.
ChatGPT – Your Collaboration Tool
You may be weary of AI, it can be scary if you veer off into the dystopian idea that AI is taking over, what will be left for humans to do? Well, I don’t know the answer, for now I use it everyday. I think of ChatGPT as a tool I can collaborate with. My objective is to get it to work with me not against me.
Here are a few ways you can collaborate with this tool:
- Use it to tidy up your writing or get a second opinion when you’re working something out
- Generate HTML or CSS code for customizing a webpage or other techy things that require a snippet of code here or there.
- Use it as your excel (or Google Sheet) formula expert that you consult with to reveal more insights from your data
- Pull the key points from podcast transcripts or Zoom meeting notes – this will save you so much time
There are many ways to use ChatGPT and other AI tools. This is just scratching the surface. How do you like using your AI tool of choice?
What It All Comes Down To
Some many tools, so little time – be selective. Choose the tools that will make a difference by saving you time, resources and stress. Automate managing your relationships with a CRM like Bigin, give quick how-tos with a tool like Komodo and collaborate with a disembodied intelligence that is here to stay like ChatGPT.
Having that just right tech stack can free up time so that your business can serve more people and take you to the next level.
