There’s a ton of noise out there about “must-have” tools for creators, but these are the ones I actually use and recommend. Some links (but not most) are affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you sign up (at no extra cost to you). I only share what’s genuinely worth it.
Writing & Content Creation
Medium: Medium is where I earn most of my income. It’s where I share stories and test content ideas. It’s $5/month for full access plus access to the Partner Program. (You need to be a member of the Partner Program to earn money there.)
(Convert)Kit: This is where I send out my weekly Intellectualists newsletter. I started at Kit, switched to Substack, and am now happily back with Kit. While Substack was free, free isn’t always worth it.
Gumroad: Gumroad is where I host my products. If you have ebooks (or want to create ebooks), Gumroad is a simple-to-use and free marketplace I highly recommend.
Creating Graphics
Canva: Canva is an easy-to-use design platform that allows you to create beautiful graphics for your social media, blog, website, print graphics, presentations, and more!
Midjourney: This is how I create my graphics for my Medium articles. Some people are very against using AI for images, but I use it (most of the time) because I can prompt it to get exactly what I want.
SnagIT: I’ve been using SnagIT for many years. It’s a great little tool that makes capturing screenshots a breeze. Here’s a little sample of a screenshot I grabbed from my Medium account:
Communities
Wealthy Affiliate: I’ve been a member of Wealthy Affiliate since 2009! What was once an educational platform to learn about affiliate marketing, has turned into so much more. They have tools and training on everything you need in the digital side hustle space. Plus, they have a huge community, domain purchasing, and web hosting.
→ Sign up for Wealthy Affiliate.
Inner Circle: This is the place to go to discuss simple, but effective, ideas for Medium, Substack, email marketing, and creating digital products.