I've been on a kick to minimize my tool usage so that I can spend more taking making and meeting cool people. We have massive software toolboxes available to us... Appsumo alone has a dozen new options every month. Luckily, it doesn't take hundreds of tools to build an empire. The Egyptians did it with nothing more than rope, wood, and stone. Every one of these 12 core tools saves me more than 2 hours each week. ## Descript (8+hrs saved) I use this for editing audio and video with transcripts. It's an incredibly powerful and unique tool that has entirely changed audio production for me. You'll understand the magic the first time you edit all your ahs & ums out of a recording in 3 clicks. ## Obsidian (2+hrs saved) My primary writing, note taking, journaling, and overall 2nd brain app. This is my wiki and journal in one since I added the published version at [GentOf.Tech](GentOf.Tech). Keeping my writing in one place that allows for [[I'm Michael Greenberg|easy links]] has changed the way I think while writing. ## Zlappo (2+hrs saved) Tweet scheduling. This saves me from jumping on every hour of every day to post. ## Beautiful.AI (4+hrs saved) I use this to make presentations and slide shows. It does 90% of the design work for me, so I can focus on content instead. ## Lu.ma (2+hrs saved) Events & Twitter [link directory page](http://lu.ma/got). It's quick and easy to use, catches all my events. Has a newsletter tool built in, but without the embed tools of Revue. Easy event scheduling with an audience that rolls over = easier life. ## Revue (2+hrs saved) Newsletter sending. It got bought by Twitter and is great for tying in tweets & other linked content. I expect a deeper integration with Twitter to come with superfollowers later this year. It also has solid Zapier integrations and team management, which were musts for me. ## Calendly (6+hrs saved) So people can reach me since I'm not on email much. I also use this for one off coaching and consulting sessions since it integrates with stripe. No more email chains for scheduling. ## Headliner (2+hrs saved) I occasionally use this for finishing videos with cards and subtitles. Probably going to switch to Vimeo since it has better hosting integrated and a good enough create tool. ## Swipe Pages (8+hrs saved) I use this to create landing pages and simple websites. They're fast and have good templates. They have a strip integration I'll be using in the future too. ## Zapier (20+hrs saved) This is my primary automation tool. Super easy to use and probably the most widely integrated. ## Slack (8+hrs saved) This is my preferred chat tool at the moment. Discord is too social for much of my work at this point, but I see a future in which I could switch. ## ClickUp (Replaces 10+ Tools) (30+hrs saved) It's my first and last stop for 9/10 of the little tools and apps I used to use. As I build a team around me, it has become the central point for work assignments. I saw a lot people building stuff like this in Notion, so I thought I'd share a few of my tools. 1. [[How ClickUp will save me 400+ hours in 2021|Relationships & Contacts]] 2. [[How ClickUp will save me 400+ hours in 2021|Outreach Tool]] 3. [[AAA1 Podcasting in Clickup|Editorial Calendar/Content Planner]] 4. Content Scheduler 5. Idea Capture 6. Topic Tracker 7. [[How ClickUp will save me 400+ hours in 2021|CRM]] 8. [[Doing Journal|Daily Journal]] 9. Goal Tracking 10. Habit Tracking 11. Shared Inbox 12. Project Management 13. Task Management 14. Reminders ### What's your creator stack like? Roamcult and Notion users need not apply ;)