Boost Productivity with Quality Tools

The right tool really can make all the difference! No one knows this more than our craftsmen and service professionals. The right trowel; quality brick; quality scaffolding, well built; and in my world, a fast computer with a clear screen! Not only do these components make the best end result, we find ourselves more efficient, more productive, and enjoying our work!

So what do you splurge on? Trucks? Quality Boots? A camera system? Great (and multiple) monitors? The latest cell phone? These are all great, but we have a question for you: How many hours a day do you spend typing on your computer and using your mouse? Or your chair?

If you work on a computer, chances are you spend a lot of hours every day typing and clicking away. The keyboard and mouse become your main tools for interacting with your email, contracts, reading bids, running reports, even checking your bank, submitting your draw requests, sending proposals, and the list goes on!

Although you might be ready to invest in the computer itself (which we applaud!), what about the keyboard and mouse? What about the chair you sit in all day? For me, the speaker I use for meetings, both for my comfort as well as yours when we’re on a call. How about the desk? The shape, the height, access to files, and surface area all matter.

You might think that spending money on a good keyboard and mouse, a quality chair and desk, even monitor stands might not be worth it. Given the amount of time you spend with them, we think your comfort, health, and efficiency are worth the investment. Here are a couple of things that are worth considering.

We actually have a standard when it comes to the keyboard and mouse; we use (and recommend) the MX series from Logitech. We’ve been using the MX Keys keyboard and the MX Master 3S mouse for a while now. All new team members will receive one, and anyone with other equipment has already been swapped out. I even have a handy case for my mouse for when I travel. We spend the majority of our day typing on our keyboards and using the mouse. Having quiet, quality tools makes us more efficient, comfortable, less fatigued, and we don’t annoy anyone in meetings with the clicking sounds!

The wireless feature means we don’t have to deal with cords or batteries. I charge my mouse every now and then with the same charger I use for my cell phone. The mouse connects to multiple devices and has keys and buttons that can be customized with shortcuts. And I have to say that the scroll is really zippy!
Recently I purchased an Uplift desk. With Chris’s help, I also have some well-designed shelves, monitor arms for the various sizes and shapes of my monitors, and even a laptop monitor arm to keep the surface area of the desk completely available.

What about your chair? I’ll bet you spend a lot of hours in it. Larry loves his chair; the mesh structure is comfortable, supportive and cool. Some of the techs have chairs designed for gamers who spend countless hours sitting in them; a ‘game’ changer!

Quite a few headsets and speakers (I love my Jabra) have technology that blocks ambient noise, which reduces stress during meetings. For our team members that prefer headsets, a comfortable headset is definitely worth the investment.

I also have a super-fast charger for my phone and ear buds. It’s wireless, so I can put the devices on the charger throughout the day and have a fully charged phone for my evening activities.

So what tools do you work with the most during your day? Is it time to consider some upgrades? Your comfort, efficiency, and productivity are worth the investment. The right tools for the job, including yours, can make a HUGE difference. How can we help? – CMW