Five workstation tweaks worth more than any new chair

A new chair is rarely the answer. A correctly set up old chair almost always is. These five adjustments cost nothing and take a working morning to apply across a small team.

One — raise the screen until the top of the monitor sits level with the eyebrows. Two — pull the keyboard close enough that the elbows hang at the side, not in front. Three — let the lumbar curve actually meet the chair's lumbar support; most people sit two inches forward of it. Four — drop the chair height so the feet rest flat, and add a footrest if they cannot. Five — move the mouse to within a forearm's reach so the shoulder is not constantly working to hold the arm out.

Each adjustment on its own feels minor. Together they redistribute load away from the small stabilising muscles that quietly tire across an eight-hour day. The feedback we hear most often after a session like this is the same: "I did not realise I was doing that." Comfort is the quietest kind of care.