Laptops are amazing tools! They are compact and flexible, easy to take anywhere. But with all their benefits, laptops are not designed to be ergonomic. The guidelines for ergonomics call for a separated computer screen and keyboard. Using a laptop creates a trade-off between poor neck-head posture and poor hand-wrist posture. At your home or office, you can add ergonomic tools to improvement comfort; but you can also make your laptop more ergonomic while you travel.

Here are some tips to maximize your comfort and make your laptop more ergonomic:

In Your Office

1. Raise your screen. If you don’t have a docking station, place your laptop on a desk or surface with the screen at eye level. This will allow for ergonomic posture for your neck and shoulders. If your desk seems too low, add a monitor shelf to achieve greater height.
2. Use a separate keyboard. The ergonomically-designed, mini keyboards are a great choice. Most mini keyboards and many ergonomic mice are wireless; no messing with cables every time you sit down.
3. Try a keyboard tray that allows for a negative-tilt, away from your body. The tray will provide the flexibility to maintain a neutral typing posture where the strain on your muscles is minimized. It also opens up your desk space for other uses.

On The Road

1. Find a good chair. Look for a comfortable chair where you can lean back slightly, and where you back is well supported. If you need more support in you lower back, try a rolled towel or sweatshirt, or bring your own portable lumbar support.
2. Place your laptop on your lap. This is the ergonomic compromise when using a laptop – good wrist posture or good neck posture? You are normally better off protecting the small muscles in your hands and wrists. With the computer on your lap, you can maintain a neutral wrist posture; find a good angle where you can keep your wrists straight and your hands and arms relaxed.
3. Angle your laptop screen up as much as possible to minimize the strain on your neck. Just remember that in this position you will need to take frequent breaks to stretch your neck and shoulders.

While many of us enjoy the flexibility of laptops, they also increase concerns about ergonomics. For better comfort and faster typing, bring your own. Setting up your main work space with a mini keyboard or other  ergonomic keyboard and use an adjustable keyboard tray maximize your ergonomic posture. These guidelines can help you make good ergonomic choices while at home or on the road.

Top 5 Favorite {Portable} Products

Here are my favorite portable, and even ergonomic, products.  Why portable, you ask?  Well, if it's good enough to have, it's good enough to have anywhere!  There's no point in loving something and not being able to have it on the road or when staying with friends or family, say for the holidays.

• Travel Sound Machine.  Whether you're struggling to focus at work or just trying to get a good night of sleep on the road, a good sound machine can be just what you need.  I personally love mine for use at home- I both sleep and work form home, so it's handy to have a lightweight, portable machine I can plug in or battery-operate anytime anywhere.  It has proven helpful for our children as well when we're traveling or they share a room.  Like I said,  our travel sound machine is lightweight, very small, has 20 sound options, and comes with easy adapters for any country we can get to.  
• Portable lumbar support.  Once you've found great back support, why not be able to transport it to whatever chair you're using?  Your car, your office chair, your chair at home, an airplane seat, you name it.  Keeping your back in shape and not angry with you is essential.  Thus, having back support literally anywhere you go is priceless for those of us with achey backs.
• iPad bundle.  iPads are awesome until you try to use them for long periods of time- they're just not that ergonomically friendly or comfortable to hold.  They really need a stand of some sort so you don't throw them out of frustration.  Why not make your incredibly portable iPad even better with ergonomically friendly and equally portable accessories such as a carrying case, a mount, and a mini keyboard.
• Wireless mice and keyboards.  Once you're used to a specific keyboard, it's nice to have the advantage of using it all the time and not having to get used to something else while traveling.  Keep your favorite mouse and/or keyboard handy (pun intended) and comfortable wherever you are without the hassle of a cord.
• Mobile stand.  A great mobile desktop you can use from any point in the classroom, conference room, or office.  Okay, okay, so maybe this isn't pocket-sized portability, but for those of us who have ever had to present things or teach from multiple classrooms, this is a fabulous resource for professional presentations and mobile work surfaces.

Portable products like wireless keyboards and travel sound machines can keep you in ergonomic style and comfort no matter where you are!

Every year that dreaded day rolls around, the one where countless expectations go unmet and many a relationship wither away...you know it: Valentine's Day.  Possibly one of the most ingenious marketing ploys ever created, V-day serves as a reminder that we are expected to romance and woo our significant other while the whole world watches.  Even if you are lucky enough to have a girlfriend or husband who really doesn't care about this blessed event, she or he is surrounded by co-workers, if not friends, the very next day, all eager to hear what incredible gift they received or date the enjoyed.  

5 V-Day Gifts You've Never Thought Of