As a slow entrepreneur, I love doing things in my business that simplify life, and make things flow better. In this article, I’m sharing the tools I use in my business as a coach, mentor, and personal brand architect who lives nomadically and travels with one carry-on luggage.
Business Tools of a Digital Nomad
When you read this post, I want you to be open-minded about it. I also want you to remember that we are different people, what works for me might not work for you and vice versa. It’s always a good idea to test, experiment and see how something works for you before adopting it or discarding it.
I’m also a digital nomad, which means I relocate or change homes (AirBnb rental) every 2-3 months. Even during the pandemic lockdown period of March 2020, I was living in foreign land in someone else’s beach villa. These tools make my life simpler as a small business owner and I’m happy to share them with you today.
Day-to-Day operations
Asana – helps our remote team manage projects and keep one another updated and accountable.
Slack – our remote team uses this for more effective communication instead of emails (I hate emails ???? ).
G-suite – we keep all our docs, SOPs, and manage the business inboxes.
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Content Creation
My business is content heavy, meaning I produce a lot of content in the form of blogposts, social media posts, and videos. These tools help me create, edit, and share content on the go.
iPhone 11 – where most of my work happens. I use it to record videos, take photos, create Instagram Stories, IGTV videos, write captions, write blogposts, record podcast audios, as well as edit videos/photos.
Rode microphone – I use this when I’m recording videos, audios for better sound quality. (If I weren’t a minimalist nomad, I’d have at least three giant microphones and a soundproof room to record).
Canva – is my go-to when it comes to creating social media graphics, but also workbooks, PDFs, ebooks etc
Blogging
Notes – on my iPhone. I use this for ideation of my blogposts, which then syncs up to my laptop when I sit to write detailed articles or essays.
Google docs – I use this to write my blogposts in depth.
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WordPress – self-hosted WordPress site using Beaver Builder.
Siteground – we use Siteground for hosting this website.
MacBook Pro – my ‘heavier’ work is done there such as blogging, studying, teaching, or coaching calls with clients.
Airtable – I have my editorial calendar for my blog, newsletters, social media captions in there
Photos & Videos
iPhone 11 – to take photos/videos on the go
FujiFilm XT3 – for most of our photography, and some videos (although we tend to avoid it, because I prefer the ease of recording on my iPhone)
Lightroom CC – to edit photos (it also syncs to my phone, with Mobile Lightroom). I was using VSCO on my phone for quick editing prior to upgrading to Lightroom.
Moyo Studio – membership and my go-to for beautiful photos and mock-ups that I use that match with my palette and slow living aesthetic.
VUE, InShot, Splice – video editing apps to add music, transitions, captions, and more. I tend to do a mix of them all editing directly from my iPhone, depending on my mood. (I tried to use iMovie but find I’m useless at understanding it).
Coaching with clients
Zoom – This is my conference room for coaching my private clients, also used for virtual happy hours or digital salons, guest interviews.
Loom – I use this mostly for training walk-throughs to send to clients.
Airtable – each of my clients have a workspace for accountability and support.
Calendly – for my clients to book their calls with me, and it syncs to my Google calendar.
Google Calendar – for time blocking, and also shows me my coaching call slots clients have booked.
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Course Creation
I’ve created three digital courses over the past year which I made using the following tools:
Teachable – to host my courses. This platform is easy to use, intuitive, and just great.
Zoom – to record my trainings.
Keynote – on my MacBook Pro for the presentation slides.
Email newsletter
FloDesk – CRM provider with beautiful feminine templates. Use my link to get a whooping 50% discount each month.
Passwords
Dashlane – to store all passwords
LastPass – share passwords with team and other contractors
Social Media Scheduling
Facebook Creator Studio – it’s handy to schedule my IGTV videos and my Facebook posts. Often, I’ll simply reshare what I post on Instagram to my Facebook business page.
Planoly – to schedule a month’s content for Instagram
Buffer – really handy to schedule for multiple platforms at once, but the best part for me is the extension you can add to your browser that allows you to quickly repost & share what you’re browsing online to your social media.
Tailwind – for Pinterest (not much used, but definitely something I’ll get serious about later this year).
If you’ve heard of another tool and it’s not mentioned here, chances are it doesn’t add value to my business or I’ve stopped using it. I love using technology to make life simpler, not to have another thing (with a password!) to use.
Now that I’ve compiled all my tools, they seem like a lot, but actually I don’t use all of them on a daily basis. For accounting, I used to have tools for them, but now that I work with Xolo, I use their e-service that helps me create and manage invoices quickly, which also syncs up to my business bank accounts.
I hope this list of business tools is useful for you. Do keep in mind that these are what they’re supposed to be: TOOLS. Not a big deal if you don’t use a lot of them. Do what works for you and makes your life simpler.