Guest Author - Jill Florio

While wading through my pile of items to review from the Living Simply perspective, I thought I would mention how important it is to like your tools.

Whether you are a cook, a construction worker or work from your home office, you need to like your tools. You should like the look and heft of your chopping knife, hand drill or computer mouse, for example. They should fit your hand and become an extension of your limbs.

What do you get from having the right tool? More productivity, less daily frustration from products that don't work for you. Even a minor point of irritation, such as a stapler that too often mangles its staples, becomes a subtle form of water torture....wearing away at you in frustration every time you use it. You should literally LOVE all the things you own and use.

Sometimes the right tools cost more...but not necessarily. My new keyboard is not the most expensive (but not the cheapest either). I picked it because it had features I enjoy and because the size fits my little paws better than any other five or seven boards I'd tested. It is the same with my computer mouse - I went through half a dozen iterations before I settled on the one that feels like a part of me.

The principles of simple living dictate you own only what you need...but along those lines, don't be afraid to own the right tools for the job.

Too often, we try to buy things that are on sale, or are...well...just cheap. This often ends up costing more in the long run. Cheap clothes unravel at the seams. Cheap sleeping bags will not keep you warm when camping. Then you end up buying more products to replace those.

However, expensive products don't always equate quality. Sometimes you are overpaying for the status of having a name brand item.

The key lies in finding quality products at good prices...and in maintaining their quality as you use them. Sharpening your good kitchen knives. Repairing your leather boots and purse straps. Storing your winter coats properly over the summer.

Having high quality things that you own, love and maintain keeps junk out of the landfills, saves you money in the long run, and lets you enjoy a more frustration-free life.