Your Workflow Management Tool Isn’t the Problem
It's Monday, you open your emails, documents and multiple other platform tools, and you are now suddenly tired go in hoping for clarity but end up even more overwhelmed than when you started.
Most of these tools can help and are great. But only if they’re set up in a way that makes sense for how you actually work. Otherwise, it's just a prettier version of your stress.
The tool isn’t broken. The setup is.
Take ClickUp for example. It's brilliant. But also a bit ridiculous when you're first in there. Spaces, Lists, Docs, Goals, Dashboards... it can feel like you're trying to fly a spaceship when all you needed was a pushbike.
And that’s why most people open it, poke around, close the tab, and say “I’ll sort this out later.”
Start with what you already know
Forget the fancy features for a minute. Just map your day-to-day into it. Think clients, jobs, tasks. Keep it simple.
For example:
- Space: Client Work
- Folder: Website Projects
- List: ACME Website Redesign
- Tasks: Kickoff call, wireframes, copywriting, review
Add a couple of statuses like “Waiting on client” or “Needs review” and suddenly it’s not so scary. It looks and feels like your actual workflow, not someone else’s idea of how you should be working.
You don’t have to use every feature
This is a big one. Just because the tool has goals, whiteboards, docs, widgets, or some AI thing doesn’t mean you need to use them all.
Use what solves a real problem. Leave the rest. Add things as you grow into them. Not before.
AI can help, but don’t let it take over
Most of these tools are starting to add AI features, or you can connect external ones like ChatGPT or Make.com to do some of the grunt work for you.
Here’s how I’ve seen AI actually be useful in the real world:
- Creating quick task descriptions or project outlines
- Auto-sorting or tagging notes
- Summarising meeting recordings
- Linking tools together so you’re not manually copying info between them
- Turning voice notes into structured tasks or updates
But the AI won’t fix a messy setup. It just makes the mess faster. So get the base right first.
What’s one part of your process that feels clunky?
Start there. Just that one bit. Set it up properly. Use the tool to mirror your workflow instead of trying to reinvent how you work.
Once you’ve got that sorted, the rest is easier to build out.
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