This 30-Second Desktop Adjustment Can Prevent Daily Neck Strain

Avoid chronic pain with this simple fix to your workstation.

Published May 25, 2024

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Updated May 25, 2024

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If you find yourself spending a lot of time sitting at a desk and staring at a monitor, it’s important to think about the ergonomics of doing so — and not just in regards to your chair.

Sitting in one place for long periods of time is already rather unhealthy, and it can be even worse with poor posture.

Fortunately there is one extremely easy thing you can do to improve the ergonomics of your workstation, and it takes all of 30 seconds of your time.

Make sure your monitor is the right height.

To be in the right zone, make sure the top of your screen is at eye level.

An improperly setup screen can cause neck strain. External displays are often too high and laptops are too low — especially when they’re on your lap. To be in the right zone, make sure the top of your screen is at eye level.

laptop on a stand — If you use a laptop without an external monitor, make sure you get yourself a stand that can raise your computer to the right height.

For a monitor that is too high, you can either lower it as much as you can, then raise your chair to match. If you use a laptop, either as a standalone device or secondary monitor, prop it up with a stand — or, even cheaper, a stack of coffee table books.