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It goes without saying, but 2020 has been an unpredictable year with a lot of ups and downs. I had no idea where I’d end up in December, but I have to say, career- and pathwise, I feel I’m in a better spot now than I was 12 months ago.
A lot of this has to do with mindset and goal-setting, but there is another factor that made this rough year run just a little bit more smoothly.
The following are the best products I purchased in 2020 that eased the major transitions within my life. Hopefully, the items listed below will give you insight on what to gift the writer in your life this holiday season.
Punch Studio Guided Gratitude Journal
In February, about a month prior to the lockdowns going into effect, I made an impulse purchase that became one of my most pivotal decisions in 2020.
I purchased a guided gratitude journal from Winners (think TJ Maxx in the U.S., TK Maxx in the U.K) and it helped me immenselt in a year where I would see myself working from home, furloughed, and then eventually let go from my position as an administrative assistant.
I wanted to make an intentional habit out practicing gratitude, if not daily, then at least on a regular basis, and the Punch Studio Guided Gratitude Journal really facilitated with this. Not only were there sections where I could record things and events in my life for which I could say I was grateful, but there were also areas where I could make journal passages and record events as they occurred as lockdown and emergency measures descended upon Canada.
The gratitude journal will stand to become an invaluable time capsule of my time spent before and during COVID-19, and I hope to make it an annual purchase in order to keep tabs on my emotions and mental health. And speaking of annual purchases….
Orange Circle Studio Agenda Planner
Every year I purchase an agenda planner. I was eager to get a headstart in planning for 2021, so in November I purchased a 17-month planner from Orange Circle Studio.
Orange Circle Studio carries easy-to-use, minimalistic agendas with a simple design and allows you to keep track of your year in a monthly or weekly format.
I especially like the Abstract style planner I purchased from Indigo because it lays out each month in a horizontal weekly format, which is how I am used to viewing my week since my days of using a planner back in high school.
For those who aren’t quite ready or eager to shell out $50 on some of the more designer planners or bullet journals hawked by the planner influencer moms on Youtube, Orange Circle Studio is a great option to get started on your path to getting organized.
And right now, you can save 25% off planners until December 24 if you purchase online from Indigo.
Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus
There was lot of lead-up to me making this somewhat extravagant purchase, and had I known I would be furloughed in June, I likely would have held off a bit. But I honestly don’t regret buying the Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus.
I was spoiled by some old-model Happy Plugs I previously purchased and could no longer do the wired audio route. When they broke and I became disappointed and disillusioned with a more expensive pair that failed on me in just a few months, I decided to take the plunge and splurge on the Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus when they were on sale at Best Buy.
Why did I opt for the buds over, say, the AirPods? Well, as I mentioned in a previous post, my iPhone went kaput the previous winter, and since I opted to replace it with a Samsung branded smartphone, I thought I would do the same with my listening accessories.
Honestly, I don’t know how I lived without them. It’s so freeing to be able to do the dishes or some other chore and not have to worry about a cord or having to hold the phone during a call. They’re a bit on the pricier side, but they’re incredibly sturdy (I’ve dropped both the buds and the case like a million times and haven’t broken either yet) and the sound quality is decent, as they are an in-ear style. Highly recommended.
Lenovo Flex 14 2-in-1
My HP laptop was on its last legs. It had served me well these past 7 years, but the writing was on the wall. Its performance slowed to a crawl, it had to be tied to a power source, and it began to spontaneously turn off due to either overheating or some viral malady my antivirus software was detecting or cleaning.
Despite not working full-time during the lockdown, I became to take my writing career more seriously, which meant taking on a lot more paid writing gigs. Many of these gigs came with a deadline attached, and it soon came to a point where I couldn’t rationalize or tolerate the inefficiency of my old laptop.
Therefore, after many months of painstaking research, I finally narrowed down my choice in a new laptop: the Lenovo Flex 14.
I had been a loyal consumer of HP products since I was a teenager, and purchased their line of laptops and printers. But with my next laptop, I wanted something that would complement my identity as a professional writer.
The main selling point for me would be in the device’s keyboard, and ease of its use. I had found the flat, stiff keys of my previous HP laptops unsatisfying and wanted a change of pace. Clearly, I did not have the budget for an Apple Macbook, so I began my search for a more cost-effective alternative.
This led me to Lenovo and its line of affordable options. I was already familiar with the brand through my previous job’s work computers, so it only helped to re-affirm my decision. The style of the keyboard is one of its best features, but what really sets the Lenovo Flex 14 ahead of the pack is its ability to be used as a traditional laptop as well as be folded into a tablet or placed in tent mode for video and streaming purposes (the tent style is my personal favourite for pulling up recipes from Pinterest or watching Twitch livestreams. I’m not much of an e-reader person, but tablet mode does come in handing for browsing through online issues of Writing Magazine as well as capturing accurate e-signatures for writing contracts). Right now, get $119 Off 14″ IdeaPad Flex 5 2-In-1 laptop with AMD Ryzen 7, 8GB Memory, 256GB SSD, Now $641!
And those are my best purchases for 2020 that I hope will serve me well in 2021. What are some of your purchased items that got you through the year? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!