What things did you purchase that enhanced the quality of your life in 2022?

Home office lighting.

In my home office room (10.5 m²/115 sq. ft), I used to have 4 neutral-white (3000K) LED bulbs of average brightness (450 lm).

I replaced them with the same number of cool-white (6000K), super bright LED bulbs (900 lm). What a difference! It took a few days to get used to it, but I am very happy with the change. I feel much more energized at work.

I sometimes work before bedtime, and I was worried that the lew light would affect my sleep quality, but I haven't noticed any difference in that respect.

A while ago, I read a blog claiming that most people have their light at home way too dim, but I cannot find it anymore. If anyone has some resources on this topic, I would be grateful for a link.

Edit: Fixed the color temperature values, added some bg info.

A "gaming mousepad", which is basically a padded surface that goes over the entire space of your desk where your hands may be. So my hands can be anywhere I want them to be, and still be comfortable. It's always worth paying for ergonomics in my mind, I buy high quality mice and keyboards (the Logitech MX Vertical and the Keyboard.io Atreus/Model 10, though I didn't but them this year), I add aftermarket padding to the arms of my chair, et cetera. You don't have to get stuff that's as expensive as what I listed, I have a pretty severe RSI and need top-of-the-line gear just to function as a programmer typing all day, but don't skimp out on this stuff & end up with an RSI. If you have discomfort, deal with it early. If discomfort becomes pain, stop what you're doing and take a walk. (/PSA)

Various desk decorations, such as an analog clock and a small whiteboard. Making my desk a pretty space makes it easier for me to respect it, and reduces the problem of crap accumulating on it just because it's a flat surface at arm height. When there's pretty stuff, crap makes it look ugly, and this bothers me so I deal with it. Otherwise, it just looks like a place where crap goes, and the crap doesn't bother me. The decorations also break up the flat surface and make it so there's less big, tempting flat space.

An analog kitchen timer. This allows me to time box things without looking at my phone, a recipe for distraction. It also has a rhythm which gently reminds me the timer is running without making me feel too rushed.

A power strip with USB outlets. It's a nice convenience at my desk, but it really shines when I pack my stuff up to work somewhere else, like when visiting family. If I can get access to 1 outlet, I'm good to go, and I don't need to use a bunch of charging bricks to charge multiple devices. I don't have to worry about having to unplug a lamp and then remember to plug it back in when I'm done, or anything like that.

RO Waterfilter and chiller

Coffee Grinder (Niche Zero)

Gym Membership

A TRX clone (for strength training, these are very cheap!)

I rarely buy anything nowadays. It's rare that I find something that really enhances my quality of life.

That being said, a few years ago, I bought noise canceling headphone, and it's very useful in noisy environment.

Also commuting by bike made a huge difference in my quality of life: a 150 euros bike served me well for almost a decade! Unfortunately, it's not possible everywhere. I recently moved to a new city with barely any cycling infrastructure and I find it too dangerous to share traffic with cars.

I purchased a water fountain (the kind you can find in an office) and 4 5 gallon drums and it's been one of my most used purchases ever. Mine is a bottom loader and I think that's important to the usefulness of it.

It's been so successful I know of several other people who have also made such purchases after experiencing it.

It's kind of an odd thing, but so so nice to have. It even heats water, although we turn that functionality off because we also have an electric kettle, but it's something to consider for anyone contemplating such a purchase.