Sam Dickie is a product manager and maker based in Scotland. He is currently a Senior Product Manager at Softr, a powerful no-code web application builder.
He also publishes Creator Club, a monthly newsletter community with over 4,000 passionate digital makers and creators sharing fascinating content scoured from across the web.
What’s in your workspace?
Macbook Pro M1 2020 (work)
Macbook Pro Intel 2017 (personal) | still going strong and great for my multi display setup unlike the 1st Gen M1 chip
Samsung HD 27inch curved monitor x 2 (cheap but does the job)
Headphone hanger
Cork mat - IKEA (SUSIG)
Ikea Desk (SKARSTA) love the size and the ability to hide all my cables in the tray underneath.
IKEA chair (LÅNGFJÄLL)
Apple Magic Keyboard - love the tactile feel of this keyboard but also eying up a mechanical keyboard too.
Apple Airpods Pro (2nd gen) - I was a late adopter to the AirPods but totally onboard now.
Old table leg modified into a pen holder - I love this look of this piece. It was my grandparents.
Old brass Nigerian bowl i use for candles
Gove LED stripe lights (connected to Google Home)
Google Home Mini with wall mount - I recently went all in on our smart devices round the house and love that I can control all my lights, heating, camera etc from one app. Adding some automations too is a game changer.
What software is most important to your daily work?
Notion
Cron
Slack
Softr
Webflow
Revue
Spotify
Raycast
Airtable
Zapier
Figma
Jira
Stoop
How many times do you take breaks throughout the day?
Whenever my puppy needs to go to the toilet which currently seems to be every 30 mins. As much as it can be difficult it’s been a great reminder to take a break from the desk.
Where did you set up your home office and why?
We recently bought our first apartment during lockdown last year and with us both working remotely we looked for somewhere with a generous second room we could convert into an office for us both.
For years i basically had a super stripped back setup, consisting of only a MacBook and pair of headphones. I nerded on desk setups for years, however, whilst living in London at the time we knew we would be moving back to Scotland shortly and didn’t want to buy any furniture, however, this temporary wait turned into 7 years. When we eventually moved back and bought our new place i decided i was going to create my dream setup. Creating a space that you look forward to spending time in is really important to me given the amount of time i’m in-front of a screen.
How do you make/keep working remotely fun/tolerable?
I’ve been working remotely for the past 4 years and found it so easy for the most part. However, during lockdown i struggled and some serious felt cabin fever. So when lockdown eased I decided i would try a co-working space to mix it up a little. I tend to go once a week.
I also like to take advantage of working in different locations from time to time. Be that Airbnb’s, parents houses, or working with friends at their their place.
How do you keep the work-life balance?
I’m still figuring this out. At times i think i have it mastered and other times i feel i still have a lot to learn.
My passion is very similar to my full-time job, therefore, it bleeds into my life at times.
For me having a side project provides an element of escapism and a means to creatively express myself without any constraints.
Other hacks i have found helpful which i’m pretty strict about are turning notifications off at the weekend (Slack, Email), not working weekends, just my own personal projects, finding hobbies that aren’t similar to work, regularly working out and getting outside.
