ConsultantCafe.com Tech Stack: What Keeps It Brewing Smoothly

It seems a lot of my subscribers are curious about how I run things behind the scenes at ConsultantCafe.com, so I thought I’d put pen to paper and share my tools and a bit about my workflow. I’ll also outline my workflow as a consultant if there’s any interest. Let me know.  

My biggest challenge with ConsultantCafe.com is establishing a consistent and systematic rhythm. I understand the importance of having a well-oiled machine, but at the moment, it feels more like someone flailing in deep water rather than an engine humming smoothly. That said, I’m making progress. Part of that involves developing a workflow that supports creativity, structure, and delivery. 

Tools That Power My Workflow

Ghost

Ghost is the backbone of ConsultantCafe.com. It’s a publishing platform built for writers and creators. I use it to host the website, publish articles, and control the paywall for premium content, as well as manage mailing lists and send mailouts to subscribers.

Payment Gateway

I use Stripe as a secure payment gateway integrated with Ghost for paid subscribers. It handles all the payment methods from around the world. This is important to me as I plan to export ConsultantCafe.com IP to the US and Europe.  BTW, there is interest and a market in India, according to my Google Analytics, which would also be interesting to explore.

Notion

Notion is my second brain. I use it to capture article ideas when inspiration strikes, which can be at very odd times.  I also use it to organise research, write drafts, manage publishing workflows, store AI scripts, and develop future tools for consultants. Watch this space for some unique consulting IP to help my subscribers get ahead as practicing consultants. 

Excalidraw

I use Excalidraw to sketch consulting frameworks in a bullet journal style. The hand-drawn lines give it a blueprint feel, which matches consultingcafe.com branding.

MacBook Air

I have an on-again, off-again relationship with Mac.  Right now it’s on-again.  My MacBook Air, iPhone, and iPad Pro work seamlessly together. It’s a beautiful setup that supports my mobile-first workflow.

Grammarly

Grammarly checks my spelling and grammar. Actually, Hayley, my wife, also adds the human touch to grammar and spelling as she reads all my articles before they get published.

ChatGPT

I use ChatGPT to lightly edit my articles with a script stored in Notion that guides formatting and structure.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics helps me understand how visitors use ConsultantCafe.com. Interestingly, a third of traffic comes directly, and another third from LinkedIn.

Social Platforms

I’m building my profile on LinkedIn and checking out Glassdoor. I’m also thinking about trying Instagram. What do you reckon? Is it worth it?

Microsoft Office 

I use Word and Excel for traditional tasks.

Xero

Xero handles invoicing, subscriber payments, accounting, etc, linked to my bank account.

Building ConsultantCafe.com is a journey. It’s not perfect, but it’s evolving, and for me, that’s what matters. If you’re an early-career consultant trying to find your rhythm, I hope this gives you some ideas. And if you want me to share my consulting workflow, let me know; it’s a whole different beast. Also, if anyone is thinking about taking on a passion project like ConsultantCafe.com and wants some tips and learnings to get started, let me know. I’m more than willing to share.