I bought a new computer recently and have been quite pleased with it. In addition to the benefits mentioned in my prior post, it is lightning fast and having a large desktop screen makes it infinitely better to use. The only thing I didn’t love about about is that my formerly pristine desktop now had the Mac Mini, a large display, a full-size keyboard, a mouse and cables cluttering up the surface whereas before it was just my laptop and a mouse. I did my best to strap cables together and route them under the desk as neatly as possible. It was better, but still not ideal.
After working like this for a few days, I thought, “I wish my desk wasn’t so cluttered. It would be nice to have a cleaner desktop.”
Then it occurred to me, I can make it this way. After about hour of searching, I ordered a cable management tray, some grommets so I can drop cables directly through the desk and an under-the-table bracket for the Mac Mini. I mounted my surge protecter underneath the desk to eliminate all but one power cable running to my nearby power outlet.
It’s awesome. I’ll post a picture below once I receive the bracket and put the Mac Mini under my desk.
My computer setup isn’t the point. The point is that after living my first 40 years or so with minor annoying inconveniences, I discovered I could generally do something to improve the situation, if not eliminate it entirely.
I discover these small projects quite often. Usually, I make the best and live with with these little inconveniences. Sometimes I’ll do this for years on autopilot because I’m just not thinking about solving it.
Here’s a short list of customizations I completed recently that made a disproportional improvement in my life:
- Had all of my pants and fleece tops altered at the tailor. For $10-$20 each, I now have a custom fit wardrobe that looks great and fits perfectly.
- Installed more smart devices to control fans, lights and dimmers so I can control them with voice commands. It’s like living on the Starship Enterprise.
- Strategically relocated hooks throughout the house in closets, under kitchen cabinets and elsewhere to store items in convenient, unobtrusive locations.
- Patched, spackled, sanded and painted walls and trim that had been dinged up so I no longer have to look at the blemishes.
There are hundreds more I’ve done over the years. Some require next to no effort – just a little thought. Others require a little bit of money and often a few hours watching YouTube how-to videos.
For me, the projects themselves are usually engaging and rewarding. Then as the cherry on top, I’ve made things exactly the way I want.
Boom!