I recommend these items enough that I thought it was worth writing them down, describing them, and linking them. You may have noticed I'm an optimizer — I track every meeting, exercise, and location every day. Well, I've applied a similar level of scrutiny to these purchases, so I've got a few recommendations.

Home

Aerolatte Steam-Free Milk Frother

I'm sure other frothers work, but we have this one and it's great. I use it for two things:

• Morning coffee: I froth cold brew with milk every morning. I add 5g of creatine as well. Creatine settles in a gritty way, but if you froth it with milk, the creatine stays suspended. Way better. I love this drink.
• Protein shake: Don't waste your time with a shaker, fork, or spoon. Froth away, very easy. I like 2/4 milk, 1/4 cold brew, 1/4 water, 1 scoop chocolate protein, 5g creatine, 1 tbsp psyllium husk.

Psyllium husk

For the protein shake above. I use Organic India whole husk fiber and it's incredible.

Small, stackable juice glasses

Durable, cheap, totally good for wine, water, or juice. I have 18 of these Bormioli Rocco ones that I can fit 4 high in my cabinet. They don't break. They dishwash easily. I'm considering buying 18 more to simplify hosting.

Waterpik Cordless Water Flosser

I'm about 4 months in, but I love this thing. My dentist has told me flossing is better, but he also told me "my gums look great." I think it's because I actually use this thing 2x a day instead of trying to remember to floss.

TPOB Electric trimmer to shave

My barber recommended this trimmer to me and I love it. Doesn't catch my skin, tight enough shave, doesn't even really need to be charged? I may have only charged it 3x since purchase on Jan 5th, 2024, which makes some sense because my barber gives 15 haircuts a day and charges his 2x a week.

Note: Weirdly the reddit reviews for this model are bad, so maybe the advice is just get any portable professional trimmer.

Linen sheets

Worth it. I like ours from Parachute. I've heard they tear more quickly than cotton sheets, but ours have lasted more than two years. I'll probably buy them again even if they tear because I prefer them.

Weighted blanket

Excellent on a hot night. Helpful if you're sore or fidgety. I find it helps me sleep. I have the 20lb Napper. I think I read a Wirecutter review and thought it looked high-quality and comfortable. I previously had a cheaper one from Amazon that was also effective, but plasticky and less attractive.

Tech

Office light

Great for video calls and evening work. I'm sure any would work, but I use the Lume Cube Edge Light.

Garmin watch

Rock solid for 5 years. The chargers die quickly, but are cheap. You can even splice a wire to charge in a pinch. (Not recommended)

Opal Tadpole

Mostly for travel, but this thing works way better in low light than the MacBook webcam, so you look more professional even with hotel room lighting.

Travel

Anker GaN Chargers

I like the one with 60W or 100W of power. I travel with 2 USB-C cables, one Garmin charger, one micro-USB cable. Ideally that set is in every travel bag. I always have one in my backpack and it doesn't leave my backpack.

Get like 6 sets of this cable + charger combo and give to all your loved ones. I also fundamentally don't understand not having chargers well placed around the house. Let's solve problems, people!

Arzopa Travel display

If you're traveling for work and you'll be in one place for more than ~4 days, there's no reason not to bring an extra display. These displays are now 4K, light, bright, durable, and cheap enough that I don't care if it breaks (it hasn't). I use this Arzopa monitor.

Aer City Pack

I actually love this thing. I don't love the shape of the refreshed city pack 2 as much, but the one I have fits my travel display, dopp kit, chargers, and is generally great. Strong, strong rec.

Dopp kit

I almost cut this rec, but I didn't have a Dopp kit for too long, so consider this advice to self. As far as I can tell, they're basically all the same. Get one with a few compartments, not too big. Just get something. My aunt got me one for hannukah a few years ago and I stuck with it. Thanks Robin!

Sleeping mask

Pretty useful on planes. My wife has a fancy one, but I prefer cheap ones. I basically find one and use it until I lose it. And the cheap ones fold more easily into your backpack/back pocket for a flight.

Hat

There are a lot of times where you don't want to wear a mask, but you do want to drop the brim of your hat to block out most of the light. I used to not wear hats, but they're pretty useful on the road. I always travel with a hat now.

Shoe bags

Buy three of these, or accumulate for free with shoes if you buy fancy. They're great for laundry, separating stuff, or storing shoes as necessary. As long as they're big enough, any will do.

Clothes

Better Underwear

You're being silly depriving yourself of many pairs of your favorite underwear. Just buy a bunch, replace when bad. I like the SAXX Non-Stop Stretch Cotton ones, although I admit they're unnecessarily expensive.

Celersport Athletic Socks

Same principle. Buy a bunch, replace when stretched out. These low-cut ones are great although the tab at the heel can run thin and then they slide down your foot.

Robert Barakett tee

I wear this shirt in various colors every day. I used to recommend it widely, but my recent orders have slightly varied in size. I think this was related to the limited edition colors, but I can't just say get a $70 shirt if the quality is variable. That said, I do wear this shirt nearly every day and you can buy them for $40 on sale at Nordstrom.

Rhone Invictus Ripstop Shorts

These are my favorite athletic shorts. I have two pairs.

Miscellaneous

AdGuard

Best ad blocker I have tried. I probably won't switch given how positive my experience has been.

BrightIntosh

Make your display brighter, so you can work outside. Pretty simple, solves a real problem.

Keychain earplugs

I was in an accident years ago and get tinnitus fairly easily. Concerts, airplanes, construction. Lots of reasons to want earplugs, but they only work if they're always on your body. I use the Mudeela high fidelity ones. I can't really speak to how much better they are than other earplugs, but they seem to work well enough for me.

Life Hack

Fiverr furniture rendering

It doesn't fit into a list of stuff, but this is my favorite rec to give. Before you move: take dimensions of your new home with pictures. Send this along with furniture you're keeping and furniture you might buy to someone on Fiverr to render out for you. Play with the space before you buy things.