Overview

Life Growth HQ is a complete client and project management system designed for freelancers and agencies. It brings together everything you need to run your business: client management, invoicing with online payments, project boards, time tracking, expense logging, and a branded client portal.

The system has two main parts:

• HQ (your admin dashboard) -- where you manage clients, create invoices, track projects, log time, and run your business.
• Portal (your client-facing site) -- where clients log in to view invoices, pay online, check project progress, download files, and communicate with you.

Logging In

Navigate to your HQ URL and enter your email and password. If you have forgotten your password, click "Forgot Password" on the login page to receive a reset link by email.

Dashboard

The dashboard gives you an instant overview of your business. At the top you will see four key metrics:

Metric	What It Shows
This Month	Total revenue received this calendar month
Outstanding	Total value of unpaid invoices, plus count of overdue ones
At Risk	Value of overdue invoices that need attention
Unbilled Time	Value of tracked time not yet invoiced

Below the metrics you will find a 12-month revenue chart, your current revenue goal progress (if set), quick action buttons, overdue invoice alerts, and recent client and invoice lists.

Clients

The Clients page shows all your clients in either a card view or a list view. Toggle between views using the icons at the top right.

Adding a Client

1. Click Add Client at the top right.
2. Enter the contact name (required), company name, email, phone, and address details.
3. Set an hourly rate if you bill by the hour.
4. Choose which payment gateways this client can use (Stripe, GoCardless, Square) -- these determine which payment options appear on their invoices in the portal.
5. Add tags to categorise clients (e.g. "VIP", "Retainer", "One-off").
6. Click Add Client to save.

Editing and Deleting

Click the pencil icon to edit a client, or the bin icon to delete. Deleting a client does not remove their invoices or payment history.

Client Profile

Click on any client name to open their full profile. This shows tabs for:

• Overview -- contact details, tags, total revenue, health score, invoice and activity history.
• Portal -- manage portal users, files, content pages, notifications/messaging, and quick links for this client.

Health Scores

Each client has a health score from 0-100% calculated automatically based on payment history, last contact date, and outstanding invoices. The Health page groups clients into three tiers:

• Healthy -- Score 60%+. Paying on time, regular contact.
• Needs Attention -- Score 40-59%. May have overdue payments or lack of recent contact.
• At Risk -- Score below 40%. Significant overdue payments or no contact for a long time.

The system also generates recommended actions such as "Send a payment reminder" or "Schedule a check-in call".

Invoices

Invoices are the core of the billing system. Each invoice has one of six statuses:

Status	Meaning
Draft	Created but not sent to the client yet
Sent	Emailed to the client, awaiting payment
Partial	Client has paid some but not all of the total
Paid	Fully paid
Overdue	Past the due date and not yet paid
Refunded	Payment has been fully refunded

Creating an Invoice

1. Click New Invoice.
2. Select a client and currency.
3. Set the issue date and due date. You can use the quick buttons (Net 7, Net 14, Net 30, Net 60) to auto-calculate the due date.
4. Add line items with descriptions, quantities, and unit prices. The total calculates automatically.
5. Optionally add a payment schedule for milestone-based billing (see Payment Schedules below).
6. Add any notes that should appear on the invoice.
7. Click Create Invoice. It will be saved as Draft.

Invoice Actions

Each invoice in the list has action buttons depending on its status. Common actions include preview, download PDF, duplicate, edit, and delete. Status-specific actions are covered in the sections below.

Sending Invoices

To send a draft invoice to your client:

1. Click the Send button on a draft invoice.
2. Review the invoice details and the client's email address.
3. Optionally write a personal message that will be included in the email.
4. Click Send Invoice.

The client receives an email with the invoice summary, your personal message (if any), a PDF attachment, and payment details. The invoice status changes to Sent.

Payment Reminders

For sent or overdue invoices, click Remind to send a payment reminder email. You can include a personal message. The system tracks how many reminders have been sent for each invoice.

Payment Schedules

For larger projects you can split an invoice into milestones. Each milestone has a label (e.g. "Deposit", "Phase 1", "Final Payment"), an amount, and a due date.

1. When creating or editing an invoice, click + Add Milestone in the Payment Schedule section.
2. Add labels, amounts, and due dates for each milestone.
3. The total of all milestones must match the invoice total (a warning will show if they do not match).
4. Save the invoice.

When the client pays via the portal, the system automatically charges only the next pending milestone amount. Once all milestones are paid, the invoice is marked as Paid.

Recording Payments

When a client pays outside of the online gateway (e.g. bank transfer, cash, cheque), you can manually record the payment:

1. Click Record Payment on a sent, overdue, or partially paid invoice.
2. Select the payment method (Bank Transfer, Cash, Cheque, or Card Manual).
3. Enter the amount. If it is less than the remaining balance, the invoice moves to Partial. If it covers the full balance, it moves to Paid.
4. Optionally add a reference number and notes.
5. Click Record Payment. A receipt is generated automatically.

Credit Notes

Credit notes let you issue a credit against a paid or partially paid invoice, which can later be applied to reduce the balance on another invoice.

Issuing a Credit Note

1. On a paid or partially paid invoice, click the Credit Note icon (document icon).
2. Enter the credit amount (cannot exceed the invoice total) and a reason.
3. Click Issue Credit Note. It will be auto-numbered (e.g. CN-0001).

Applying a Credit Note

Open the Credit Notes sub-tab below the invoice table. Click Apply on an issued credit note, then select an unpaid invoice for the same client. The credit is applied as a payment, potentially changing the invoice status to Partial or Paid.

Voiding a Credit Note

Click the X icon on an issued (unapplied) credit note to void it. Voided credit notes cannot be applied.

Refunds

To return money to a client:

1. On a paid or partially paid invoice, click the Refund icon (money icon).
2. Select the refund method. For invoices paid via Stripe, you can choose "Stripe (automatic refund to card)" which refunds the money directly to the client's original payment method via the Stripe API.
3. For other methods (Bank Transfer, Cash, Cheque), the refund is recorded manually.
4. Enter the amount, reference, and reason.
5. Click Record Refund.

If the total refunded equals the total paid, the invoice status changes to Refunded.

Recurring Invoices

Set up invoices that repeat on a schedule. Create a recurring invoice template with the client, line items, and frequency (monthly, quarterly, etc). The system will generate new invoices based on the template when triggered.

Quotes & Estimates

Create professional quotes that can be sent to clients for approval. Quotes follow a lifecycle:

Status	Meaning
Draft	Not yet sent
Sent	Sent to client via email with a unique link
Accepted	Client accepted the quote
Declined	Client declined (with optional reason)

When a client views the quote via their unique link, they can accept or decline it directly. Accepted quotes can be converted to invoices.

Deposits

You can set a deposit percentage on any quote. When the quote is accepted:

1. A Deposit Invoice button appears. Click it to generate an invoice for the deposit amount.
2. Once the deposit is paid, a Balance Invoice button appears to generate the remaining amount.

The public quote page shows the client a payment schedule breakdown so they can see the deposit and balance amounts before accepting.

Projects

Projects use a kanban board layout with customisable columns. Each board represents a project.

1. Click New Board to create a project.
2. Give it a name, choose a colour, and optionally assign it to a client.
3. Add columns to represent your workflow (e.g. To Do, In Progress, Review, Done).
4. Add tasks to columns (see Tasks below).

The board selector at the top lets you switch between projects. Each board shows a progress bar based on how many tasks are in the final column.

Tasks

Tasks live inside project board columns. Each task can have:

• A title and description
• A priority level (Low, Medium, High, Urgent)
• A due date
• An assigned client
• Labels for categorisation
• Comments from team members

Click any task card on the board to edit it or view its details.

Time Tracking

Track how long you spend on client work. There are two ways to log time:

Live Timer

At the top of the Time page, select a client and description, then click Start. A red timer bar appears at the top of HQ showing elapsed time. Click Stop when done. The time entry is saved automatically.

Manual Entry

Click Add Entry to log time after the fact. Enter the client, description, duration in minutes, date, and whether it is billable.

Billable vs Non-Billable

Mark entries as billable to track unbilled time. The dashboard shows total unbilled value. You can select multiple unbilled entries and mark them as billed once invoiced.

Export

Click Export to download a CSV timesheet filtered by date range and client. Useful for client reporting or accounting.

Expenses

Track business expenses by category. Each expense has an amount, description, category, date, vendor, and can be linked to a client. Categories are customisable with colours. Use the expense list to see totals, filter by category or client, and understand your outgoings.

Revenue Goals

Set monthly, quarterly, or annual revenue targets. The dashboard shows a progress ring for your current goal, and the Goals page shows all goals with progress bars. Goals are automatically updated as invoices are marked as paid.

Cash Flow

The Cash Flow page provides three key views:

• Summary metrics -- expected income, this month's revenue, outstanding invoice count.
• Aging report -- breaks outstanding invoices into Current, 1-30 days, 31-60 days, and 60+ days overdue brackets with totals and invoice counts.
• Outstanding invoices list -- every unpaid invoice with client, due date, days overdue, and amount.

Reports

The Reports page shows business performance for any date range you select:

• Total revenue, total hours, and active client count
• Revenue by client with visual bars
• Monthly revenue breakdown
• Client time and revenue summary table with averages

Leads

Track potential clients through a pipeline. Leads can come from your website contact form (via the API) or be added manually. Each lead has a status (New, Contacted, Qualified, Proposal Sent, Won, Lost), contact details, source, and value. Move leads through stages as you progress the relationship.

Activity Log

Log all client interactions -- calls, emails, meetings, notes. Each entry has a type, client, title, and description. Filter by type or client. This builds a history of your relationship with each client and feeds into health score calculations.

Calendar

A month-view calendar showing task due dates, invoice due dates, and other scheduled items. Click any date to see the details. Navigate between months using the arrow buttons.

Client Portal

The portal is a separate branded website where your clients can log in to:

• View and pay invoices online
• See project progress on kanban boards
• Download shared files
• Read content pages and resources you publish
• Exchange messages with you
• Manage their notification preferences

The portal uses your company branding and provides a professional client experience.

Portal Users

Each client can have one or more portal login accounts. To invite a client to the portal:

1. Open the client profile and go to the Portal tab.
2. Click Invite User.
3. Enter the person's name and email.
4. Click Send Invite. They receive an email with a link to set their password and activate their account.

You can activate, deactivate, resend invites, or delete portal users from the same tab.

Messaging

Two-way communication between you and your clients:

Sending a Message

In the client profile Portal tab, click Send Notification. Enter a subject and message. The client will see it in their portal Messages section and receive an email notification (if they have not opted out).

Client Replies

Clients can reply to messages directly in the portal. Their replies appear in a chat-style thread. You will see a red pulsing badge in the notification list showing the count of unread replies. You will also receive an email notification.

Replying from HQ

Click any message in the notification list to open the thread. Type your reply and click Send Reply. The client will be notified by email and see your reply next time they visit the portal.

Files & Resources

Share files and content pages with clients through the portal:

• Files -- Upload documents (PDFs, images, spreadsheets, etc). Clients can download them from their Files page.
• Content Pages -- Create rich HTML content pages (guides, documentation, strategies). Clients see these in their Resources section.
• Quick Links -- Add external links with descriptions that appear on the client's dashboard.

Online Payments

Clients can pay invoices directly from the portal using the payment gateways you have configured:

• Stripe -- Credit/debit card payments via Stripe Checkout
• GoCardless -- Bank transfer and direct debit payments
• Square -- Card payments via Square

The available gateways depend on what you have selected for each client. The portal shows a "Pay Now" button on unpaid invoices. For invoices with payment schedules, the button charges only the next pending milestone amount.

When payment is received, a receipt is generated automatically, the invoice status updates, and you can see the payment in the invoice record.

Settings

Configure your company details and system preferences:

• Company Info -- Name, email, phone, address, website, logo, VAT number
• Bank Details -- Bank name, account number, sort code (displayed on invoices and the portal)
• Invoice Settings -- Prefixes for invoice numbers, estimate numbers, receipt numbers, credit note numbers
• Currency -- Default currency for new invoices
• Payment Gateways -- Stripe, GoCardless, and Square API credentials

Team Members

Add team members who need access to HQ. Each user has a role:

Role	Access Level
Admin	Full access to everything
Manager	Limited administrative access
Member	Basic access only

You can invite users by email (they set their own password) or create them directly with a password. Users can be activated, deactivated, or deleted.

Payment Gateway Setup

To accept online payments, configure at least one gateway in Settings:

Stripe

Enter your Stripe publishable key and secret key. These are found in your Stripe Dashboard under Developers > API Keys. The webhook URL for payment confirmations is configured automatically.

GoCardless

Enter your GoCardless access token and select the environment (sandbox for testing, live for production).

Square

Enter your Square access token, application ID, and location ID. Select the environment. These are found in your Square Developer Dashboard.