When you are used to working in an office, working from home can be a bumpy transition when it comes to technology. We asked our Rocketeers what technology and other items they used in order to make their work from home setup as efficient as in the office. Here are some of their must-have items:
Speakers & Headphones
“Honestly my Apple AirPods have been a godsend as far as Zoom audio goes.”
“Sony WH-1000XM3 and the Google Home Max if you don't care about annoying people and want to play music throughout your house.”
“Bowers & Wilkins noise cancelling headphones. You can’t even hear your anxiety while wearing those.”
“I’m using the LG Tone wireless headphones, really anything wireless is a huge help because I can use them for Zoom meetings as well as for my phone. I like being wireless so I can take a walk around the block at lunch as well.”
“There is also be a good argument for having Alexa or Google Home while working from home. I use mine to set a timer for how long the kids have to wait until they can interrupt me. They are also great for to playing music when the house feels a little too quiet throughout the day.”
MONITORS
“An external monitor is a must have. This might be a boring response, but I have to have an external keyboard, mouse, monitor and a comfy desk chair. While you can work on a laptop from your kitchen table full-time, it’s just not conducive to focusing on your work.”
“Using Apple Sidecar on your iPad is a great solution if your company won’t let you bring home external monitors.”
“You can use your Apple TV or Chromecast to use your TV as an additional screen. I like projecting my phone to my TV so I can free my laptop up for other tasks.
ADAPTORS, HUBS & DOCKS
“The first thing I bought was a mag-safe adapter for my MacBook. I trip over my cord all the time and the adapter makes it not nearly as stressful.”
“A USB-C hub is certainly a necessity for me while working from home.”
“Now that you've got your external monitor, keyboard, mouse and headphones; you'll definitely also want to get a dock. I went with a Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Pro and am really liking it”
“I swear by my Google Wi-Fi, you can control which device gets priority Wi-Fi, so the kids don’t accidentally use up all the bandwidth when you’re trying to be on a call. You can also schedule when kids’ devices can use Wi-Fi to help them limit screen time. But mostly, I got it because its mesh network feature helped us extend Wi-Fi in the far corners of our house, the parts I always find myself heading to when I need a quiet place to make a call.”
DESK SET UP
“I’ve loved having a nice seat cushion. I got a good one from the mattress company, Purple.”
“I saw a photo of Oprah doing some form of video call with her laptop perched on 4-5 books, so it was filming her straight on, instead of from below. I tried it and liked how it worked out.”
“It’s good to test out what you’ll look like before a call. Checking out the lighting (maybe sit by a window) or making sure that the wall behind you isn’t distracting for your team.”
FOOD & DRINKS
“An electric wine opener for red wine. A necessity for being stuck at home”
“A good programmable coffee maker, it makes it much easier to get out of bed when there is coffee waiting for you.”
“A cold brew coffee maker, trying to recreate the Rocket Fuel from the office at home.”
