Hi again ,
Ever had your entire career plan flipped upside down overnight? 🙋🏻♀️ Been there, done that, 0/10 wouldn’t recommend.
In 2020, I was working a cushy marketing job at a tech company, a job I actually loved and probably would’ve stayed in for years. Then, out of nowhere, I got furloughed (ok, not really out of nowhere, there was a global pandemic and I worked in events 😑).
I had no idea if/when I’d ever get that job back. I was stuck in limbo, spiraling in uncertainty, and to make matters worse:
- My savings? Not great (thanks, student loans 🙃).
- My confidence? Shattered (I didn’t realize how much I tied my self-worth to my job).
- My career options? Unclear (Who was hiring in the middle of a pandemic?!).
At first, I spiraled. But then, something unexpected happened.
My then-boyfriend (now husband) had been working on a few projects with my now co-founders, and they brought me in part-time to help out. When the idea of launching a newsletter for busy professionals came up, they asked me if I wanted to own the project.
I had zero experience running a newsletter.
I had no clue what I was doing.
But at that point, I had nothing to lose.
So I said yes. And I figured it out along the way.
🔥 Action > Perfection
Like starting any new job, I went through all the “What Ifs”:
- What if I suck at this?
- What if no one reads it?
- What if I totally fail?
But I didn’t have time to wait until I felt ready—I had to take messy action.
And here’s what I learned:
- Confidence comes from action, not the other way around.
- You don’t need to be an expert, you just need to start.
- The right tools make all the difference.
When I was overwhelmed, I turned to systems and tools to help me stay organized, plan ahead, and actually execute. Here’s what helped me the most:
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🛠 The Tools That Helped Me Build The Assist (& Alts If You’re Looking for Options)
⚡ Project & Workflow Management: monday.com & Notion
If your to-dos live in emails, DMs, docs, and 47 open tabs, you’re not alone. Staying organized while juggling everything is a challenge, but these two tools make it manageable:
- monday.com – Best for scaling teams needing structured workflows, automation, and collaboration.
- Notion – Best for startups & individuals who want a flexible, all-in-one workspace for docs & brainstorming.
Tip: Skip the guesswork—our monday.com startup guide will have you up and running in no time.
Alternative: ClickUp – A flexible project management platform with customizable workflows, dashboards, and automations that help teams manage complex projects in one place.
👩💼 HR Software: Rippling
Managing payroll, benefits, IT, and onboarding across a growing team can turn into a logistical mess fast. Rippling brings it all into one platform, so you're not juggling five different tools to run HR.
Tip: If your team is scaling and your current HR setup feels disconnected, look for a platform that combines HR, IT, and finance so nothing falls through the cracks (Rippling handles all three).
Alternatives:
- EasyLlama – Best for pinpointing exactly which compliance trainings your company is legally required to have, with a free personalized report in minutes.
- BambooHR – Built for small & mid-sized teams looking for simple, effective HR management.
- Gusto – Best for automating payroll, benefits, and onboarding all in one place.
📌 Visual Planning & Content Mapping: Miro
Some things just make more sense when you see them. When I’m mapping automation workflows or designing a new reader experience, I need color-coded mind maps, flowcharts, and sticky notes, which is what makes this tool straight-up the bomb: Miro.
Best for: Visual thinkers & teams who need collaborative brainstorming, mind maps, and flowcharts.
Tip: Some of my go-to Miro templates? Our Weekly Wins Planner & our Pay Raise Planner.
✨ P.S. If your brain freezes at a blank board, we’ve got you. This guide walks you through Miro without making it a whole thing.
Alternative: Trello – Best for kanban-style task tracking; good for smaller teams or simple project boards.
📊 Forms & Feedback Collection: Typeform
Feedback fuels The Assist—from readers, team members, and partners. I needed a tool that made collecting responses seamless (and not painful to fill out).
Best for: Interactive, engaging forms that don’t feel like boring surveys.
Tip: Ditch putting full forms on your site. We tested it—quiz formats usually outperform. Plus, you can use conditional logic in Typeform to personalize responses and boost completion rates.
Alternative: Zoho Forms – A solid, budget-friendly option for basic surveys and data collection.
💰 Invoicing & Expense Management: Xero
Ideal for small businesses needing strong accounting and expense tracking.
Best for: Tracking invoices, expenses, and overall cash flow.
Tip: Automate invoice reminders so you never have to chase payments manually.
🌍 Website Hosting & CMS: WordPress
When we needed more flexibility to scale, we switched to WordPress; its customization, SEO power, and long-term control sealed the deal.
Best for: Scalability, customization, and long-term SEO control.
Tip: Save time with WordPress plugins—from SEO boosters like Yoast to drag-and-drop builders like Elementor (we use both!), there’s a plugin for almost everything, just don’t go overboard or it’ll slow down your site.
Alternative: Unbounce – Perfect for marketers focused on landing pages & conversion optimization.
💬 Team Communication: Slack
Email threads? No thanks. Keeping a fully remote team in sync without drowning in emails is critical, which is why I rely on Slack daily.
Best for: Fast, organized team communication with channels, direct messages, and app integrations.
Tip: Create a #wins channel to celebrate small and big victories, it keeps morale high and your team engaged. And don’t forget a #pets channel, nothing de-escalates a “per my last email” moment like a cute puppy pic 🐶.
Alternative: Google Chat & Microsoft Teams — Great if your team already lives in Google Workspace or Microsoft 365.
🎨 Design & Visual Content: Canva
Not a designer? Same. But I use Canva because I still need graphics for newsletters, social posts, and even polls, without spending hours in Photoshop.
Best for: Quick, easy design with drag-and-drop templates.
Tip: Use Canva’s Brand Kit to keep fonts, colors, and logos consistent across all designs.
Alternative: Adobe Creative Cloud — Great if you want more customization & advanced design tools.
At the end of the day, the right tools don’t just make work easier; they make it possible to scale, stay organized, and keep your sanity intact. These are the ones that helped me take The Assist from an idea to a 7-figure newsletter, and I hope they help you, too.
✅ Coming Up Next
Tomorrow, I’ll share how we built a team with zero-experience hires and the systems that keep us running smoothly.
Until next time,
—Joanna
P.S. Don’t go at it alone—join Smart Girl Society, our Circle community! 🚀 Join here to connect with ambitious professionals, swap career advice, and get exclusive AI resources you won’t find anywhere else. |
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