Select Page

My Creativity & Productivity Tech Stack +non-tech, too

Creativity and productivity. Professional-types tend to see them as two separate things. I certainly used to.

 

Being creative doesn’t always feel productive – probably because creative tasks start out messy and sometimes even aimless. And our daily list of productive to-dos doesn’t often include time for “messy and aimless” creative activities.

But when you’re leveraging thought leadership marketing for your brand (aka content creation, public speaking, etc.), you need tools and practices that help you be both creative and productive for your business.

In my role as a communication coach & influence strategist, I help my clients behind-the-scenes to build habits and systems that allow them to be both creative and productive. The trick is to come up with creative ideas for your message and brand, and have systems in place for you and your team to quickly follow through on them.

 

If you’re looking for wanting to do exactly that, here are some of my personal favorites when it comes to habits, tools, and workflows for being productive with your creativity:

Moring Pages Practice

My regular readers know how much I love Morning Pages. This practice packs a punch for both creativity and productivity. I share in this article how I use morning pages and why I find it SOOOOOO beneficial.
 

The short version:

You need to give yourself the time and space to clear out your “head junk” so that you can find clarity. It’s great for problem solving and being creative.

 

Voice Messages
(Telegram)

Voice Messages for Creativity
 

Long road trips. Walks in the park. Showers. That’s when some of my best ideas pop in my head. And in those moment, I record a message to myself to capture the idea. (Well, technically, after the showers).

 

Of course, recording the message isn’t enough. You also need a process for you and/or your team to review the recordings, pick out the gems, and take the good ideas into production. (That’s the productive part to creative ideas and voice messages.) Ideally, your systems empower your team to take the ball and run with it so that the next steps require little to no involvement or effort from you.

 

Are you wanting to take your Thought Leadership Strategies
to the next level? My team and I can help!
We help relationship-driven entrepreneurs turn creative content
ideas into successful strategies that scale. 

I love love how voice messages help me be more productive with asynchronous conversations. They’re the next best thing after actual conversations.

 

With voice messages, I’m able to stay up to date with my clients and stay in touch with friends and colleagues around the world without the coldness of emails and texts. Thanks to voice messages, I’m able to build deeper relationships and maintain a larger network. Plus, bouncing voice messages back and forth among awesome people tends to spark creative ideas. And it’s certainly productive for a relationship-driven business like mine.

 

I mainly use Telegram for 1-to-1 conversations, but it also has plenty of 1-to-many features like groups and channels so that you can stay connected with even larger groups of people, too.

 

Transcription Tools

Do yourself a favor and get those voice messages transcribed! Use transcriptions as a springboard for content ideas, sales funnels, etc.

 

Transcription tools are becoming more and more common. If I need to transcribe a larger file, I use Temi. But I’m using Temi less and less because Telegram and Slack offer AI transcriptions. And I have no doubt that ClickUp will be right behind them soon enough.

 

Speaking of ClickUp

ClickUp

Holy. Grail.

I use this for ev-er-y-thing. Project management, CRM, daily tasks, …even meal planning!

 

I could go on and on about ClickUp (and some day I might). But for now, I’ll just leave it at this. If you’re in the market for a project and task management tool, this gets my full recommendation.
 

Screen Recording Tool
(Loom or Clickup)

Loom (and now, also ClickUp) lets you record your screen with voice over and webcam options. Screen recordings are great for talking through creative ideas while showing examples. I often send screen recordings when I have copy and design edit requests – like when we updated our brand recently. (Oh, you haven’t seen the new site yet? Well, mosey on over and check it out!)

 

Time Tracking

It’s a game-changer when you know how long it ACTUALLY takes you and your team to finish tasks and projects. ClickUp‘s time tracking feature works great for my needs.

Mindmapping
(Miro)

I love mindmapping out ideas, project plans, and workflows. Using Miro + my iPad mini has been a dream come true. Plus, their templates make idea generation and organization that much easier!

 

Honorable Mentions

  • Notability
    This one is new to me, but so far, I’m a fan. It’s recoding feature pretty dope. You can record while taking notes. The app syncs your notes with the recording so that you can listen to what was being said when you took that note.
  • LoFi Playlists or Brain.FM
    When I need to get into a creative/productive flow, that’s what’s playing.
  • HabitMinder (iPhone widget)
    I am my most productive and creative when I’m supporting my body. And to help me do that, I use the Habit Minder to log daily healthy habits – like workouts, hydration, meditation, etc.
  • Other Healthy Habit Apps
    Bodbot (workout creation and tracking), Down dog (yoga awesomeness), MyFitnessPal (nutrition tracking) and Waking Up (the best damn meditation app I’ve ever used)

Life is just a little bit better when you’re getting stuff done and having fun while you do it! I hope you find some new favorites in this list that help you be more creative and productive in your business.

 

Happy Influencing!

Sharí Alexander - Influence Speaker & Coach - Headshot

Sharí Alexander
Communication Coach & Strategist 

P.S. Here are a few other ways I can help you increase your influence, whenever you’re ready.

1. I’m putting out a lot of great tips on LinkedIn and Instagram.

2. Grab a FREE copy of my Mindreader Blueprint. It’s the step by step guide for finding your influential message.

3. I do one thing better than anyone else…help industry speakers and subject matter experts* leverage their communication strengths and build strategies that: 1) educate their target market, and 2) increase sales.

If this is you, we should probably have a conversation.

*I especially excel when an industry topic is “boring,” “technical,” “visionary,” “complicated,” or “difficult to explain.”

Previous

Enter Your Email & We'll Send the Mindreader Blueprint Right Over!

Enter your best email to get your free copy of The Mindreader Blueprint

You have successfully sent your request for The Mindreader Blueprint! In a few minutes, check your email to download your copy and enjoy!

Let's Do This!

To join the waitlist for the Influence Momentum Challenge,
enter your best email address
and we will send you details on how to get started!

Welcome to the Challenge! Expect an email with more details! Be sure to add shari@shari-alexander to your "Safe Subscriber" list so you're sure to get all the details about our next upcoming challenge!

Make Your Sales Calls Easier
with this at-a-glance Roadmap!

To download your copy of the Sales Call Roadmap,
enter your best email address
and we will send it right over!

You're on your way to better sales calls! Check your inbox with more details! Be sure to add shari@shari-alexander to your "Safe Subscriber" list so you're sure to get the Roadmap and all the helpful tips!

Enter Your Email & We'll Send the Celebration Cheat Sheet Right Over!

Enter your best email to get your free copy of The Celebration Cheat Sheet

You have successfully sent your request for The Mindreader Blueprint! In a few minutes, check your email to download your copy and enjoy!

The Mindreader Blueprint

Enter your best email to get access to your copy of The Mindreader Blueprint

You have Successfully Subscribed!