January 24, 2009
My grandmother knew about this productivity tool, so I knew about it from about age 6. I just never implemented it systematically. This has cost me untold inefficiency.
She did her work and her reading in an easy chair with high arms. She used a lap board. The lap board rested on those arms. She could do her paperwork in that chair.
A lap board is a thin piece of lightweight wood with a half circle cut out, where your stomach fits.
I owned a lap board just like hers, but I never used it much. I had a desk. I did not have my own high-armed easy chair. At college, dorm rooms had desks. That is what I used.
That's fine if you always sit at a desk. But what about when you sit down to read in an easy chair? It's hard to take notes. You can't easily write in the book's margins. The book sits in your lap. That's OK for novels. It's bad for everything else.
What about working with your portable computer? Most of the time it's at your desk, as if it were a desktop. The thing is portable, right? Move it when you move. Don't put it in your lap. The manuals for notebook and tablet computers warn you not to do this. So, use a lap board.
When you read a book, keep a note pad next to the book on your lap board if you do not take notes verbally with a lapel mic or headset and Naturally Speaking.
A desk is a more efficient place to work, but if you enjoy a break by reading in a chair, use a lap board. I find that the lap board helps to keep me from wanting to doze off. It keeps me focused on my work.
I bought one for $20: $10 for the board and $10 for shipping. I don't know when I lost my old one. Probably in 1959. I should have replaced it as soon as I got out of a dormitory.
Here is the one I bought.
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