LinkedIn is a critical tool for managing contacts. Think of this as a proverbial online rolodex that tracks people instead of emails and phone numbers. A person’s data changes over time but if they are on LinkedIn the connection remains. It also serves as an inspirational tool. You can look up the profiles of people in your extended network and see what education, classes, skills, and positions led them to that point. You can then start obtaining those things to get yourself on the same path. NOTE: I have the paid access to linkedin.com

This is the most expensive and most controversial recommendation on my list. I have been using dragon naturally speaking for many years. I have a love and hate relationship with the product. Where I can use it (i.e. install it and have a quite place to write) it is amazing. I finished most of all my college papers with this and credit my fast competition to this tool. Also I am dyslexic and cannot spell. This software fixes both of these options. If I ever get a full office to myself and can use this at work the world needs to look out. I highly recommend this tool. NOTE: In the course of my use of this software I have spent around $1000 total for all version and microphones to increase accuracy.

Wave is the basic accounting that you need as an ultra small business or a consultant. Use this first and if you outgrow it and have to move to the very expensive QuickBooks later then it is no problem. Wave gets better every year and adds more and more features. I use this for several of my small businesses

Shoeboxed is a North Carolina based document scanning company that takes basically any paper you get for your business and scans it with OCR and human oversight to ensure it is accurate. On the basic plan you have to upload the documents by taking a picture but on the higher plans you can just put them in pre-paid envelopes and mail them in for processing. This is an amazing tool if you need more things scanned than just receipts and invoices like what is now included in the free Wave accounting software. NOTE: I use the paid version of this for some of my businesses

This product I have used because I use Google for the personal side. This is the business version. Now that Office 365 has come out I am starting to think of moving my services over to that and may change this recommendation for office productivity and email on a budget. Microsoft Office was always expected on top of this and that moved the needle to thinking Office 365 may overtake it.