In the world of freelancing, talent is only half the battle. The other half is all about staying organized and productive to ensure that work is delivered on time and payments are received promptly. With the current cost of living crisis, being efficient and effective in your freelance work is more important than ever. This is where productivity tools come into play, helping freelancers streamline their workflow, increase efficiency, and better manage their freelance ventures.
One such tool that can help spark creativity and organize ideas is MyMind. Designed for creative professionals, MyMind allows users to capture ideas, inspiration, and things they want to read later in one organized place. It also helps in building a searchable personal knowledge base. Content creator Luke Taylor uses MyMind for inspiration and saving anything he finds cool or interesting to read.
For those new to creating brand guidelines, Standards Site is a recommended tool. This system helps in building style guides and brand guidelines easily and quickly, while also automatically exporting assets. Graphic designer Aaron Phelan praises Standards Site for its attention to detail and ease of use.
If you work in Markdown, Obsidian is a powerful knowledge base tool that allows users to capture notes, link between them, visualize connections in a graph view, and publish notes to the web. Graphic designer Rohit Sharma uses Obsidian for productivity and creating knowledge-based systems.
For those struggling to stay on top of their schedule, Calendly is a game-changer. This online appointment scheduling tool eliminates the hassle of back-and-forth emails to find a meeting time by allowing guests to pick a time from your calendar. CG artist Haruko Hayakawa and artist agent Bianca Bramham both recommend Calendly for scheduling meetings efficiently.
Miro is an online collaborative whiteboard platform that facilitates remote collaboration through shared spaces for brainstorming, organizing content and tasks. Haruko Hayakawa loves using Miro for brain dumping and collaborative work with clients.
Notion is a versatile note-taking and project management tool that allows users to write notes, organize information, manage projects, and more using building blocks like databases, calendars, and Kanban boards. It is recommended for to-do lists, notes, and projects by Luke Taylor and independent business consultant Joanie Gorman.
Google Docs is a free web-based document editing application that provides powerful tools for real-time collaboration, document sharing, and cloud storage integration. Designer Sophie O’Connor uses Google Docs for bookings and income management.
Apple’s Notes app is a built-in note-taking application for iOS and MacOS devices that allows users to quickly write down thoughts, append notes, add checklist items, and images. Graphic designer Mike Sullivan finds it to be the only tool he needs for note-taking.
Basecamp is project management and team communication software that provides tools to manage projects, write documentation, and schedule tasks through a real-time group chat platform. Typofonderie uses Basecamp as their main tool to manage all their projects.
Loom makes it easy to record screen and computer audio and share video recordings through a simple generated link for asynchronous communication and collaboration. Freelance 2D motion designer Patrick Gallagher uses Loom to catch up with clients in different time zones.
Airtable is a part spreadsheet, part database software solution for organizing and displaying information in different views with robust automation and integration capabilities. Illustrator Alice Potter uses Airtable to organize larger projects and stay on track.
Apple’s Reminders app is a simple organization app designed to help users create, manage, and track tasks, appointments, and responsibilities across all devices. It helps keep all to-dos centralized in one place. Filmmaker Brett Chapman uses Reminders with Siri to keep track of tasks in the moment.
TouchDesigner is a visual development platform for rapid prototyping of interactive media installations without writing code. Graphic designer Rohit Sharma uses TouchDesigner for creative experiments.
Perplexity is an AI assistant for automated research that saves time by finding the most relevant information from trusted online sources in seconds. Writer Antonella uses Perplexity for research and finds it to be a dream come true.
For talent agencies, Cobbler is a turnkey solution for commission-based talent agencies to manage all aspects of their business in one app. Developed by The Jacky Winter Group, Cobbler is a comprehensive CRM and invoicing system designed specifically for talent agencies.
In conclusion, productivity tools are essential for freelancers to stay organized, efficient, and productive in their work. Whether it’s capturing ideas, scheduling meetings, managing projects, or conducting research, there are tools available to help freelancers streamline their workflow and succeed in their freelance ventures. By utilizing these recommended tools, freelancers can save time, increase efficiency, and ultimately, boost their success in the competitive world of freelancing.
