My 7 Office Essentials
The first two months of February are all about love so - this year - I want to love up on you and pour into your cup!
Starting a business can feel expensive - trust me, I know. I started my own company in the middle of the pandemic, and before that, when I was living in NYC and couldn’t make ends meet, I started working as a multi-level marketer.
Maybe you just started your business, and you’ve paid a bunch of start-up costs like legal paperwork or website fees.
Maybe you’ve just shelled out a couple of hundred dollars on a starter kit to sell a product that you love.
Maybe you’ve been working your business for a while, but January is a little slow for you, and you’re trying to make ends meet.
Whatever the case may be, I understand how frustrating it is to want (or need) so many things to see success in your business that you feel like you can’t afford.
I’ve compiled a list of my seven must-have office essentials from Amazon, and I’ve kept them all under $30 each! Not only will these things make your life easier, but they will save you time and physical pain. I like to think of it this way - if you were to purchase all 7 things on this list right now, it would only cost $131. I understand that can feel like a lot for some people right now. Still, when I think about how much time I spent trying to work my way around having these things or how much physical pain I was in without them, I would have considered skipping a night or two out with friends and purchased them so much sooner. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small percentage from qualifying purchases, but these are all items that I have purchased and currently own, use, and love!
So here they are, my 7 Office Essentials you can purchase on Amazon:
I resisted purchasing one of these for so long. I thought, "my photos are fine," and they were just that - fine. But I was wasting so much time to get them to a place of being "just fine" when I could have been making them effortlessly awesome. Without a tripod, I was always trying to balance my phone on something to get a good angle or stand in an awkward position to get my whole body in the camera - we've all seen those: the post-workout, bent in half, head near the camera so you can see the whole body - so unnatural. Without a ring light, I was subjected to only taking photos at a certain time of day and near a window. Let the day get away from me and forget it. Purchasing this tripod, ring light combo has not only improved the quality of my photos, but it SAVES ME TIME, and that is my most important resource.
This is something I absolutely cannot live without. I had one of these before they were cool because my friends worked for the company. With iPhones being so gigantic these days, it’s almost impossible to do anything with them without two hands. Putting one of these on the back of my phone is another way I’ve improved my photo quality.
This is such a lifesaver for me. I have tons of tools to organize myself on a monthly, weekly, and daily basis, but putting one of these on my desk saves me so much time. I put my appointments and nonnegotiables on my desk calendar, so it's right there for me to see. When someone asks me, "can you do this time?" I look down and say 'yes' or 'no.' I've recently started adding big deadlines on there, too, so it's at the forefront of my mind at all times. That way, I don't get to the deadline and say s**t because I don't have enough time to do something.
There are certain things our bodies should not do, and staring into blue light 24/7 is one of them. Blue blockers are nonprescription glasses designed to block all the junk light that our bodies absorb daily. I used to get headaches all the time, my eyes were heavy and tired, and I wasn’t sleeping well at night. I started wearing a pair of these during my screen time, and all of those symptoms have stopped. Bonus - this brand sells these in packs of 3 different colors so that you can switch them out for photos or match outfits.
Laptops are great on the go but - ergonomically - our bodies are not meant to sit at a laptop all day. Whenever possible, your eyes should be level with the top ⅓ of your computer screen. I purchased this laptop stand (in pink) and the following two items to make my desk more friendly to my body. Now, I know you may be thinking that these aren’t necessary - if you have the laptop, that’s all you need. No, it is not. After months of working on my laptop only, I started noticing severe pain and fatigue in my wrists, forearms, and my right shoulder from constantly using my trackpad during graphic design work. I’m not saying you shouldn’t use your laptop - I’m saying there are ways to enhance your laptop experience so that you don’t look like Quasimodo.
When your laptop is up on the stand, you won’t be able to type on it naturally - which is the point of purchasing the stand. This Bluetooth keyboard allows you to sit and type ergonomically why your laptop is on the stand.
Again, this is so that you can work from your laptop while your laptop is on the stand. Though, I do use this mouse even with my laptop on the go. It’s truly better for your shoulder than using the trackpad, so I try to use it instead of the trackpad whenever it’s convenient.
Like I said earlier, these are my 7 Office ESSENTIALS but I like to have a few things on my desk that bring me joy as well. Stay tuned for part 2 where I disclose my 7 Home Office Treats!
In the meantime, I would love to continue helping you fill your own cup this season. Click here to join my free Facebook community, the She Shines Social Society, where I help female entrepreneurs and MLM babes shine on social media.
