Creators and buying tools

The main question creators should ask when buying tools:

“Will this help me do my best work?”

Here’s how that can show up:

“Does this have enough power? Or too much? Or not enough?”
Over-buying or under-buying doesn’t help your work. Get what’s right, not what’s biggest, and not just what’s on offer.

Example: I spec hardware based on the tasks it’s being bought for, not on ‘bigger is better’.

“Does this open doors for my work or close them?
Some platforms or ‘ecosystems’ seem more eager to lock you in as a consumer than to elevate you as a creator. Be mindful of that when making buying decisions.

Example: I use hardware from various companies, and try to choose ‘platform agnostic’ options when possible, to allow for more open doors than closed ones.

“Does this make a real difference or is it just cool?”
Choose tools based on what moves the needle, not what others think is the hot new thing.

Example: If the fanciest smartphone doesn’t help, get something simple and reallocate funds where it actually matters.

Does this need to change, or is ‘old reliable’ actually better?
I use my desktop computer in almost exactly the same way as I did 15 years ago, because mastery beats shiny.

Example: I do all my writing in Vim because it’s powerful, available everywhere, and isn’t going anywhere. It’s not new or shiny, but it works well for me.

There are no right or wrong answers.

But there is choosing between buying as a creator and buying as a consumer.

They’re different.

Know which hat you’re wearing when going to the checkout.