Unlabeled cables spell frustration
I have written about the sanity saving practice of labeling your cables and cords, but I came across a new approach that is brilliant in its simplicity.
Unplggd posted a great DIY of using bread bag tags – those hard plastic crescents that keep the bag closed and have the “sell by” date on them. Simply write on the blank side what a plug goes to. Take advantage of grilling season and collect hamburger and hot dog bun tags too. A few minutes to do this will save you many frustrating minutes unplugging and re-plugging cords into outlets. (And if you are groping your way through electrical cords, chances are you’re having a hardware problem and not in the best of moods.)
Another idea in the article is if you need two power strips for all of your gizmos, you might want to use one for the things that need to stay connected to power, like your computer, monitor and/or laptop, and use the second one for those peripherals that you can turn off – like printers, fax machines and simple electronics. These can be turned off at the power strip with one click. Save energy and electricity costs for peripherals that are not in constant use.
In the design world simple solutions to complicated problems are called “elegant.” Elegance in a plastic bread bag clip and a power strip. Who would have thought?
My book, The Smarter Home Office:8 simple steps to increase your income, inspiration and comfort was cited in a Geekpreneur article on home office productivity by Sabrina. Learn more about how The Smarter Home Office can help you.
Update: Reader, Jan Whitted of Artbeat – The Creativity Store shared with me the technical name for bread bag tags – “occlupanid” Finally my high school Latin pays off: “occlu” – close and “pan” – bread. To learn more and for a laugh visit the site of Holotypic Occlupanid Research Group.
