Meaningful materialism
jasonleow • 30 Aug 2021 •
I’d been window shopping a lot recently for my desk set up. I didn’t used to care about my home desk, because I worked outside so much. Just the basic minimal basics of a laptop sufficed. No stand, no mouse or trackpad, nothing fancy.
But since working from home became the norm a year ago, I’d been making do with my home desk. Using cardboard boxes as work-arounds for a standing desk. Getting cheap foam pads for my wrists. My desk just isn’t set up for long hours of use, and I’m beginning to feel it. The IKEA chair is too low for my back, too warm for my butt. The laptop stand is great still too low. My desk is a mess - better organisation is needed.
And after a year of making do, I’m tired of it all. Besides, investing in the right home office equipment feels like a something that would be meaningful and give back high ROI, especially in terms of my physical health (back, neck, shoulders).
Meaningful materialism. Invest in things that help me make more money.
I like that I’m taking care of my work by taking care of how I work. A craftsman takes good care of his tools. A good craftsman uses the right tools, high quality tools, to produce high quality work.
So here’s some tools I’m considering investing in with my next pay cheque:
• A mesh office chair from Ergotune - cooling for tropical climate, and minutely adjustable for the right height
• I recently bought a seat cushion from Aliexpress that comes with fans built in - great for sitting longer! But still gets warm after about an hour. Considering getting a Moona as a water-cooled seat cushion!
• An adjustable sitting/standing desk, either from IKEA or local brands
• A mechanical keyboard from Keychron (probably the V7) - for better typing experience since I write sooo much (be it code or words)
• A monitor stand to raise the height of my laptop/desktop
• A better microphone, speakers and clip on webcam for Zoom calls/workshops
• Considering paying for subscription for Zoom and Miro, since I spend so much time on them now anyway
• Considering a new desktop iMac and M1 MBP, but likely won’t be possible till later this year or next
What else should I get?
Comments
Agree about mesh chairs… will compare Ergotune with Ergoal, let’s see what the difference is! ;)
What ergo keyboard would you recommend? Got link to a grounding mat?
Grounding mat: https://amzn.to/3mNiciA Keyboard: https://amzn.to/3mNDkoz
Mesh chairs don’t look like they’d be comfortable or supportive, but I am a fan after getting one from Ergoal. I prefer ergonomic keyboards that allow for the hands to rest in a more natural position. Only thing I would add is a grounding mat so you can get grounded while you’re in front of the screen.