Day in the life of an education consultant, part 1 | 5 Tools that make up my work life

Since launching my S-Corp in December of 2020, I've connected with lots of folks who are currently consulting or want to be in the future and want to trade tips. I've also chatted with school leaders and leaders working at education companies about the tools I use to keep everything together (or together enough).

So, I'm starting a series that highlights a "day" in the life of an education consultant. Real talk: it's no surprise that no two days look alike in this work. So instead of giving you a rundown of my daily schedule, over the next few posts I'll be sharing 5 tools, 4 routines, and 3 moments of joy that make up my work life.

A quick intro:

In case we haven't met, here's a quick intro about me and my work, before I dig into the tools that keep me running! Howdy, I'm Blair! I'm a long-time educator who now works full-time as an education consultant for K12 schools and Educational Technology companies.

My super-powers are helping schools get the maximum value from their EdTech programs to deliver results for kids; personalized learning; and teacher training, support, and development. Wanna chat? Connect with me on LinkedIn or chat with me here.

Tool 5: Calendly

I am obsessed with Calendly in all aspects of my life. I use it for juggling multiple clients, setting up happy hour with friends, and even for virtual Bumble dates (seriously!). If you're not familiar, Calendly is like a little assistant, allowing folks to book time on your Google or Outlook calendar based on when you're free.

There are two big-ticket features of Calendly that help me as a consultant. First is the ability to create secret links, which is perfect if you want one link that has availability into the evening (perfect for friends or a really vital client). I have a "friends-only" link that allows bookings till 8 p.m. -- great for a virtual happy hour or chat sesh.

The second big-ticket feature is an integration with Stripe. As such, I have a link that takes payment and schedules a call for ad-hoc consulting.

Tool 4: Boomerang

The Boomerang extension for Gmail (our Outlook if that's your life) is vital for me. Boomerang offers many email management features that really help me when managing proposals and different clients.

Three of my favorite features are Pause Inbox, Boomeranging Emails, and Boomerang Respondable.

Pause Inbox allows you to do just that: prevent any emails from coming into your inbox for a set amount of time (don't worry, the emails are still safely received, just stored in a spot where they won't distract you). I usually do two hours. That means no phone notifications, no desktop notifications, and a clean inbox. When I unpause, I can run through all emails in a 10-minute burst, instead of stopping each time I get a new email.

Boomeranging Emails lets you send an email out of your inbox for a specific amount of time, or if certain criteria are met. For instance, if you email someone and you want the email to return to your inbox only if that person doesn't reply within 5 days. Or you can have an email you're not ready to deal with come back after 2, or 10, or any number of days. This is perfect for following up with a client that hasn't yet signed my contract or who told me to check in with them in a few months.

Tool 3: Toggl

Toggl is a time tracking tool (they have other tools too to help with productivity, etc.). I use it to track all of the time I work for clients (even those who don't require time tracking). This helps me manage my time and ensure I'm not working too many hours for a client that only has me on the books for 10 hours a week. It's also a nice back-up option if a client ever asks for proof of my working hours.

I even use it to track the hours I'm working to attract new clients, since I aim to spend 5 hours a week doing this.

Tool 2: Google Chrome

Lol, I know. A web browser?! Here's the thing: Chrome now lets you pin and group tabs that have a shared quality. This is perfect for me, since I have a portfolio of clients. And then at the client level, I'm managing multiple workflows or projects. Being able to group by client and/or project makes my tab situation a little less wild.

Tool 1: Todoist

Oh, how I love Todoist. It's a digital to do list, but oh so much more! Since you're adding each to-do item digitally, Todoist tracks your productivity, lets you add a specific project to the task, and even a priority level. Oh, and you can make tasks recurring, such as sending invoices on the first of the month.

There's a lot more to my life aside from these tools, but they do make up a big chunk of my daily work life! What tools do you use? Let us know in the comments!