3 Tools To Increase Your Remote Work Productivity

Unlike millions of Americans, remote work isn’t something I’ve become accustomed to due to the pandemic; it is something I’ve been doing for the past couple of years! According to a study done by Standford, around 42% of Americans were working from home FULL TIME. When you are spending that much time working from home, it is ESSENTIAL to have a proper set-up. Insider tip: You need more than just your laptop. When I lived in Bali, I worked for 1 YEAR just using a laptop. It’s possible, but not sustainable long-term. Here are the resources that I use every day when I work from home (or a coffee shop, or a coworking space, etc., etc.).

Laptop Stand

I knew I wanted a laptop stand for a while, but it took me a while to bite the bullet. After 1 FULL year of working remotely, in March 2020 I bought my first laptop stand ($14.99). It was the perfect “starter” laptop stand, especially as I was completely stationary during the pandemic. However, by November 2021 I started venturing out to the coffee shops and co-working spaces and wanted something less, well, clunky. That’s when I upgraded to my Roost Laptop Stand ($89.95). If you don’t want to splash out $90, then check out this similar laptop stand for $31. I love my Roost Laptop Stand because it takes up literally no space, supports my laptop 100% (aka I don’t worry about my laptop falling off of it), and is very adjustable. Also, if you do a lot of video calls, it positions the camera so that you are perpendicular. Laptop stands are very important for your posture and are ESSENTIAL for long-term remote workers.

Keyboard

“But Kaitlin, I already have a keyword on my laptop.” Again, your keyboard on your laptop is a great solution for using your laptop for pleasure a couple of hours a day, but not a sustainable long-term option. Also, if you take my above advice and purchase a laptop stand, you are going to need a keyboard to use with it. Luckily, there are many cheap options. Here’s a similar keyboard to the one that I use ($39.99). It’s Bluetooth and automatically connects to my laptop. When I’m out at coffee shops, I usually just use my laptop’s keyboard, but as soon as I get home or go to a coworking space, I always use this separate keyboard. Using a separate keyboard is great because it allows you to then keep your laptop screen further away from your face, which is better long-term for your eyes. Also, most external keyboards are slanted upward, compared to your flat laptop keyboard, which is better for ergonomics.

Mouse

By this point, I can see everyone rolling their eyeballs and calling me “Captain Obvious”, but hey, I wish someone had given me a simple list like this when I first started out working remotely. And, believe it or not, many people believe that they can just use their laptop mouse pad (I mean it’s already built-in, right?). Keypads on laptops encourage unnatural posture and require too much force to click. Luckily, a mouse is a cheap investment and will help you to finish your work quicker than you would with your keypad. Here is the mouse that I purchased (and it matches my laptop).

Which tools do you use to increase productivity when you work remotely?