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Things I've quit doing at my desk

justinjackson.ca

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Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#21

Post by tesseractive »

_delirium wrote: post #3

#1 (thinking elsewhere, especially while taking a walk) is definitely true for me, but it does require being in a setting where you're allowed to leave the office for a few hours in the middle of the day to go for a walk in a nearby park. In academia or at your own startup, probably not a problem, but many companies aren't very accommodating of people leaving the office for hours at a time.

Back in the pre-smartphone days, I used to take some code printouts and a legal pad -- whatever I needed to reference while I was thinking, and space to write down my thoughts -- and go out to lunch solo at a sit-down restaurant. Going to a separate space where I didn't have either my IDE or any distractions like a web browser seemed to give me better space to think through a problem.

Lunch dragged on for a couple of hours sometimes, but I generally had a flexible enough schedule that it worked ok.

Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#23

Post by darklajid »

poblano wrote: post #6

Has anyone else switched to a standing desk setup? Do you like it?

I built one (from Ikea parts, inspired by a posting on ikeahackers) very recently.

I use it far too short a time (2 weeks now) to say whether it really helps, but it's definitely a change that makes me happy _so far_.

I feel more awake (no 'slumping'). I move a lot, walk in circles and just move away from the machine, when I feel I need to think about something.

Will I keep using it from now on? Only time will tell.. It _is_ definitely less comfortable than reclining in a good chair.. :)

Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#24

Post by karamazov »

electic wrote: post #15

I would also add "drinking" to this list. It's never good to drink anything at your desk.

I disagree - I keep a 24 pack of bottle water by my desk, which helps me stay hydrated. I also have a few cups of tea per day, which I find pleasant and not distracting.

(Unless you mean alcohol, in which case I don't disagree, but it doesn't sound like you do.)

Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#25

Post by icebraining »

TillE wrote: post #18
mhw wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find that too - much of my best thinking in the past has come to me during the walk to the office or back home again. I once took to carrying a dictation machine so I could capture these thoughts because I used to find that the process of arriving at the office, making a coffee, booting up and logging on used to distract me and I'd forget what I'd thought of while walking. My theory about thinking and walking is th…

I suspect it's a mental context switch more than anything physiological. For example, I'm pretty bad at creative tasks when at a keyboard (this was also true in pre-internet times, so it's not a matter of distractions), but sit me down with a pencil and paper and the juices start to flow. It just creates a different state of mind.

For me, often just looking out of the window (we have a nice view on our office) helps a lot.

Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#27

Post by anusinha »

darklajid wrote: post #23
poblano wrote: post #6

Has anyone else switched to a standing desk setup? Do you like it?

I built one (from Ikea parts, inspired by a posting on ikeahackers) very recently. I use it far too short a time (2 weeks now) to say whether it really helps, but it's definitely a change that makes me happy _so far_. I feel more awake (no 'slumping'). I move a lot, walk in circles and just move away from the machine, when I feel I need to think about something. Will I keep using it from now on? Only time will tell..…

Is typing comfortable with a standing desk? Every time I've used a computer at standing height, it's been a little uncomfortable, but they certainly weren't tailored to my height.

Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#28

Post by dmragone »

jaysonelliot wrote: post #2

I would add "Eating" to the list. I eat at my desk all the time, and I really need to stop. When I eat at my desk, I'm generally eating things that aren't that healthy to begin with, snacking unnecessarily, and/or eating too quickly, and doing it in some misguided notion that I'm able to work and eat at the same time. I'm not actually productive at times like that, it just lets me deal with some illogical guilt I fee…

You could always keep healthy snacks are your desk. Right now I'm munching on some plain, unsalted almonds that I keep right next to me, along with some fruit and other healthy things. Let's me keep going without thinking about being hungry.

Re: Things I've quit doing at my desk

#30

Post by zacharycohn »

anusinha wrote: post #27
darklajid wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I built one (from Ikea parts, inspired by a posting on ikeahackers) very recently. I use it far too short a time (2 weeks now) to say whether it really helps, but it's definitely a change that makes me happy _so far_. I feel more awake (no 'slumping'). I move a lot, walk in circles and just move away from the machine, when I feel I need to think about something. Will I keep using it from now on? Only time will tell..…

Is typing comfortable with a standing desk? Every time I've used a computer at standing height, it's been a little uncomfortable, but they certainly weren't tailored to my height.

You really need one customized for you. It's probably worse to have a misconfigured standing desk than it is to have a correctly configured sitting desk.

I use this one that I built for $22: http://iamnotaprogrammer.com/Ikea-Standing-desk-for-22-dolla...

Love it. Use it every day at work, and days when I have to sit all day (Traveling, in meetings, whatever)... I feel AWFUL at the end of the day.

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