Every once in a while, I like to share the freelancing tools, apps and resources that make my freelance life easier, smoother and more professional. This is especially the case now I’m a working mum and time is limited. Here are my favourite freelancing tools of 2016 so far.
There are a couple of affiliate codes below, but I only recommend what I myself love – and in the case of the subscriptions/paid items, I do pay for them myself.
Cloudpress
Cloudpress was an Appsumo deal I picked up earlier in the year, and went on to build my coaching website with. It’s one of the best website builders I’ve tried, allowing very quick and easy drag and drop functions to create a professional result.
Teachable
I’ve been using Teachable for a while now to create and host my Freelance Lifestyle School courses, and I love how they’ve taken on all the suggestions put to them in the Facebook support group to constantly improve. The introduction of drip feed content in particular has been a real bonus. If you’re looking to start out in online courses, these are my recommended provider.
Instapage
Instapage is another page builder I’ve loved using recently, especially for webinar landing pages. Again, it’s simple to use, free for your first page and works well with WordPress.
Receipt bank
One thing I’ve been determined to do this year is get on top of my finances. Receipt Bank has certainly helped on the business front. Every time a receipt lands in my inbox (which is where most of my receipts come, whether they’re hosting and domain bills or Facebook ads), I forward it to my special Receipt Bank email. They then process it, categorise it and add it to my FreeAgent account. Much, much easier than printing them or adding them manually.
Blinkist
I have a real addiction to buying business and self-development books, but rarely find the time to finish them. Blinkist was another Appsumo buy. It takes popular non-fiction books and summarises them into 10-15 minute audio or text summaries. So you can pick up the main takeaways, and then decide if you want to get the full book anyway.
Clear Calm Space Community
It’s been really important for me this year to get to a better state of organisation. At the start of the year I joined Lisa’s Clear Calm Space Community program, and have made big strides in decluttering my home. Lisa tackles a new area each week, and suggests small, daily tasks to chip away at it. I still have a way to go, but it’s amazing the difference removing physical clutter can make to your mental wellbeing.
Also, it means I’m not quite as worried that my son will swallow something he found under the sofa.
Mastering Money Management
While we’re talking about organising, I’ve also been tackling my money disorganisation. During my pregnancy, I was unable to work much due to being really unwell (yup, to all those who say “you’re pregnant not ill”, you can be both!) my accounts slipped and I had to pop a tax bill on a credit card. And then I let it lapse past its 0% period. To be honest, my approach to money needed a big shake up. Joining Jen Turrell’s Mastering Money Management community was the start of pulling my head out of the sand and making some long-term, grown up changes. Jen’s advice is realistic, easy to implement and takes out the fear around money.
What freelancing tools, apps and resources have you found useful so far this year?
