What are the 5 tools you simply couldn't do your work without?
This could be related to your industry, or even a side project you're working on.
Here are my 5 (I couldn't function without them):
Grammarly – proofreading my texts, not just posts, but also client communication
ChatGPT / Claude – mostly brainstorming, help with copy, and summarising
Figma – I can put the basic graphics together quickly.
Translator – sounds incredibly old-school, but English is not my mother tongue
Gmail – and not only for communication, but also for storing ideas and sending myself email reminders for posts
What are your five?
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my 5:
1. claude / chatgpt - brainstorming, drafting, thinking out loud
2. notion - documentation and planning
3. canva / figma - design when i need to, mostly collaboration
4. loom - async walkthroughs and feedback, saves so many meetings
5. granola - meeting notes, honestly don't know how i managed without it
the rest of what i rely on daily are platforms not tools so i stopped myself there.
Exstats
Mine is pretty simple, so I won't even share it. However, I'm a bit surprised. Does Grammarly really still make sense nowadays?
@nowaffl I still have Grammarly running, but I really don't know why. I downgraded to the free version at least a year ago, and I turn it off because it's annoying... it actually makes no sense that I still have it running!
Great list! Here are mine:
Fluxerv – my own tool, but genuinely the one I use most. Notes that generate working interactive components with /ai
Claude – thinking partner for architecture decisions
Supabase – I'd be lost without it for auth + database
Vercel – deploy and forget
Linear – keeps my solo dev chaos organized
Would love to know what you think of Fluxerv if you get a chance to try it, Nika! 👋
@mpanpalli good morning Memduh, I’m interested in trying it out. Where can I find it? Thanks.
Love this list! Here are the 5 I absolutely couldn't do my work without right now (heavy on the content and code leverage):
Google's Antigravity – Absolutely changes the game for development. Having AI agents autonomously plan code, run the terminal, and test in the browser saves me hours of manual dev work.
Claude / ChatGPT – Essential for brainstorming, structuring logic, and refining raw ideas into punchy copy.
Canva – My go-to for rapid graphic design. I can spin up polished presentation decks, social assets, and marketing visuals in minutes.
CapCut – Essential for video editing. It makes putting together clean, engaging video hooks and product demos incredibly fast.
OBS – The perfect tool for capturing screen recordings, studio-quality product walkthroughs, and async updates.
It’s all about maximizing output while keeping the tool stack lean!
ChatGPT, Canva, Notion, Google sheets and Loom. If any of those disappear for a week, my workflow gets a lot slower
ChatGPT - chat for brainstorming/ regular searching, codex for coding my own project.
GitHub Copilot - for day to day coding work at company.
Teams - our company chose this for work, I don't really have a choice, outlook the same.
Figma - our UI designer uses this, I need it to check the UI designs(for daily work as well).
Notes(from macOS) - its like my todo list, memo, clipboard, text viewer ...
I mostly work on the backend, so good old IntelliJ, along with some AI plugins, does the heavy lifting (and structures my code just the way I like it—it almost looks like a poem! :)). I also use Docker to keep my local environment clean, Postman for API testing, and Google Calendar integrated with my app to track real-world deployment deadlines.
Claude - half my brain lives here at this point. briefs, emails, brainstorming, even thinking through strategy
Notion - where every content plan goes to either thrive or quietly die
Sales Navigator - cold outreach without it is just guessing
Figma - I can't design but I can at least leave comments in the right place
Google Sheets - boring answer but nothing else lets me track 10 things at once without losing my mind
ChatGPT / Claude – brainstorming and coworking
Google – gmail, calendar and drive
Slack – com
Notion – planning and todo's
ONEbasket – online shopping across stores
If I had to pick five tools that would hurt the most to lose for knowledge work:
ChatGPT – thinking partner, research assistant, first-draft machine.
Claude – long-form writing, document analysis, and nuanced brainstorming.
Gmail – communication, notes-to-self, reminders, and surprisingly good search.
Notion – second brain for projects, ideas, and documentation.
Figma – because being able to quickly visualize an idea saves endless explanation.
Your list actually highlights something interesting: four of the five aren't about creating. They're about reducing friction. Proofreading, translating, organizing, communicating. The less energy spent on mechanics, the more energy available for thinking.