A Good Desk

Did you know the modern desk dates to 2000 BC?? It was used by ancient Egyptian scribes.? Over the centuries, the desk has evolved, often to keep pace with new technologies.? For example, the steel desks of the early 20th century were designed, in part, to provide better support for heavy typewriters. ???

I’m concerned we’ve gone too far in its refinement.? First, I must confess to an unusual love of desks, especially unnecessarily large, ornate, wooden desks.? Let me ground this in a bit of my personal history.? To this day, the single most meaningful and memorable gift I have ever received was…a desk.? I was 8 years old.? My parents, noting my love of drawing and pretending to be an architect, decided it would be a good thing for me to have my own desk.? They didn’t have much money, but my dad was good at making things.? In the winter months leading up to Christmas, he secretly designed and built me a desk.? When I came down the stairs that Christmas morning and saw a desk standing near the tree, realizing it was a gift for me, I cried.? But I digress.

Recently, I read with some interest that sit/stand desks may not be as healthy as we thought.? It seems that standing too much can have unintended negative health consequences.? Things like reduced blood flow to the brain and circulatory issues.? Also, turns out there is little difference in terms of calories burned between sitting and standing (80 per hour for the former, and 88 for the latter).? Not compelling - - - especially when considering the lack of gravitas associated with the sit/stand desk.? You won’t see one in the Oval Office any time soon.?

Of course, in the corporate world, most of us don’t get to choose our desk (or even if we have one).? But maybe we should.? As I write this, employers and employees remain entangled in a bitter battle over return to office.? It would seem, in many cases, the employees are destined to lose this battle.? Perhaps it’s time to negotiate?? A great desk won’t make your commute less sucky, but maybe it can improve your experience of the office?? No matter what, you must (at least) reject the dreaded bench.? That seems like a good hill to die on.? We could all do worse than a good desk.?

Ask TenantSee Weekly

This week's question: Brokers have suggested to us they have "off-market" opportunities we should consider because they offer unique value - - - what does this mean?

The so called off-market opportunity is mostly a marketing scheme. The broker's goal is to make you think they have access to "special" opportunities that other brokers don't know about, causing you to favor them over others. This tactic was especially prevalent during the decade prior to the pandemic when the market had low vacancy. Then, tenants (at least) had cause to listen. Now, when the market is so over-supplied (35%+ vacant), there is fundamentally no such thing as an off-market leasing opportunity. If there is space to lease, any party serious about leasing it will most assuredly market the space (heavily). The other important thing to remember is negotiating a new lease is not about one site. It's about identifying a number of sites, each of which could work, and running a thorough, multi-round bidding process in which landlords compete for your tenancy. Be wary of the off-market approach. ?????