How to Build the Perfect EDC for You

I spent a lot of time thinking about my EDC and the things that I carry with me every day on the table here I've got some of the things I carry most of the time but from some of the comments I've got on my videos it's clear to me that some people don't even know what EDC is or what it stands for some people are coming for electronic dance music in this video I'm going to go through some Frameworks and kind of how I think about categories of EDC if you're just starting down this EDC path or you want to up your game in terms of the types of things you carry with you so let's get started how's it going folks my name is Marcus welcome back to the channel if you're new here on this Channel I like to talk about technology EDC and anything that can help me live a happier balanced more productive life so starting off one what is EDC EDC stands for everyday carry and that in itself is very ambiguous there's a whole community of people who disagree on what EDC is and in fact in the comments that I have and I guarantee you if you look in this video there will people who disagree with my definition of EDC so for people everyday carry can be what I use which is the things that you carry with you every day uh I think of EDC as something that kind of comes from the center out so there's the things I have on me always like my phone my wallet my bracelet my watch those are things I just always have that's my the kind of core unit of my EDC but then there's the things I bring with me in my backpack if I'm bringing out if I'm going to the office the things I carry in my bag with me all the time I also consider that my EDC then there's the things beyond that the EDC that I when I travel if I'm doing an international flight if I'm going abroad for a couple of days if I'm doing some single bag carry I would call that EDC as well and I happily make videos on the best types of travel and and how to get the most out of your travel with your EDC but even beyond that again if you're going out in the car I have EDC in my truck I've got a bunch of stuff that I consider to be EDC in terms of tools and things I use all the time but at its core it's the things that you carry with you when you're doing the things that you want to do now other people Define it as it could be if you want to have some self-defense aspects as well in terms of using flashlights and tools Etc in different situations to get you out of a tricky pinch and for me that's not really what EDC is about it's more about bringing the things with me that one bring me joy and make me happy two things that do help me in day-to-day things like I'll bring Band-Aids I'll bring a flashlight things like that will actually help me small multi-tools if I get stuck I do like being prepared and being ready but it's not about self-defense and it's not about those scenarios where you might find yourself in a tricky situation I typically don't that's not the type of EDC that I bring so two how do you think about EDC and what are some of the big buckets in terms of the things I carry every day and why I carry them with me so first and foremost let's talk about categories and the first big category is watches I never leave home without a watch I need a watch for my work I need to know where I'm going I've got kids I've got a busy schedule and I'm just not one of those people who's going to take their phone out and look at the time I'm old school and I like having a nice watch and for this I've got a Rolex Submariner I bought this in 2010 when they were a lot cheaper than they are now I did make a mistake in a video recently of saying that it was worth much more than it is I don't know how much they're worth 10K something like that in terms of dollars 12K these days they're an expensive watch for me it's really important because it's something that I wanted for such a long time before I was able to buy it for me it defined a success it really exemplified I had this thing in my head that hard work pays off and if I work really really hard at something and if I achieve something someday I will own this watch and after a period of working for a very long time almost 10 years towards achieving this there was a time when I was able to buy it and when I look at this watch it reminds me of that one of the successes that I've had in the past and it really motivates me to do things future it's also a watch that I love I love wearing it one of the things I really love about it is that it it it it's powered by my movement so it doesn't have a battery in it and and I think there's something really symbiotic about that in terms of one day I'll stop moving and the watch will stop working too and then it will go on to the next owner I have no intention of ever selling this I'm not a watch guy in terms of I have no intention of buying lots of luxury watches this was the one watch for me and it's this specific one on my wrist not all submariners this is my watch there are many like it but this one is mine but back to the title of this video if I was thinking of buying a watch and obviously this is possibly out of the reach of a number of people watching this video I can imagine it was certainly Out Of Reach for me for a very long time what one of the watches that would tick the box for me in terms of it feel like I'd achieving a goal but also just being a great time piece and before I had this roic Submariner I had this tagore professional now I bought this used and it was about €200 at the time I bought it 25 years ago again I've have no idea how much they're worth now but probably not a whole lot more than that in terms of on the used Market it is a fantastic little watch and I loved wearing it now it is much smaller than I typically wear now it is a I like having the bigger Rolex on my wrist it is a little bit smaller but it's an absolutely fantastic watch and you can get bigger watch faces within that two to $300 price range if you haven't worn what I would deem a luxury watch before and you're wearing casos or G-Shocks and things like that which are also great watches I think having a classic time piece on your wrist changes something you new you stand different you look at it differently and I really see the advantage of having one of those and and if you're into it and it's something you strive to have I would say that's probably the first thing I would invest in in terms of my EDC i' just like to take a minute to ask you to like And subscribe to this video I've got a small channel so everything helps the algorithm find me okay back to the content moving on the second thing and it's probably more of a boring thing but I rarely if ever leave home without my phone I've got an iPhone 15 Pro I work in the tech sector I have to be contactable all the time it's not one of those 9 to-5 jobs I get called kind of at any hour I've got teams that I manage in Singapore and China and in the US here and Europe so I have to be available a lot of the time so it's not really an option for me to not go out without a phone I do choose to have one phone instead of having a work phone and a personal phone I'm a big fan of just trying to minimize things where you can so I have one phone for everything and I carry it with me everywhere it also doubles as a fantastic little camera because I do create these YouTube videos I often find myself on flights or just out and about with gear and I'm able to take really good 4K video the video that that comes out of these 15 Pros now is insane particularly if you use the Blackmagic app and you you plug in an external SSD you can get DSLR quality videos out of these I'm massively impressed with these so they're more than a phone these days but it is the second thing I just won't leave home without one I can make calls I can navigate I'm useless at using maps and I can also pay for things with Apple pay so no brainer that the second item it doesn't have to be an iPhone for you it doesn't have to be an iPhone 15 it can be any phone but obviously I would consider a phone to be part of your EDC cuz it's part of your everyday [Music] carry so this one here is a small little uh micro machine Porsche that I got when I was really young like when I was a kid this is this is a toy I've had for the longest time and why do you carry a little toy with you in your pocket so when I look at this toy I've even got little melt marks on the hood of the the truck here from when I had a magnifying glass when I was a kid and I was just melting holes in it it's rusted there's a little magnet on the bottom you can't even take this the bottom off this anymore it's so it's so rusted anyway why is a 43y old man carrying around a little dinky in his pocket or a little small micro machine in his pocket when I put my hand in my pocket and I feel it sometimes I take it out sometimes I roll it around I am a big fan of setting goals for myself and reminding myself staying staying present and kind of um staying focused on the things that are important to me and this represents a car that I want to own sometime I've set myself the goal of ultimately owning an old Porsche a 1980s Porsche or early '90s ideally late ' 80s Porsche it's not something I can afford going back to the watch is just something that I've set myself as a goal and having this in my pocket when I when I put my hand in and feel it really aligns my thinking and makes me remember this is something that I really want over and over several many many times a day and it it's surprising how it helps me in some of the decisions that I make as I go in some of the impulse purchasing decisions in terms of saving in terms of investing just carrying this little Porsche with me in my pocket helps me I keep it on my desk in front of me and just seeing those things helps your subconscious helps you align the things that are important and helps you achieve your goals at least I believe that you probably think I'm nuts I'm carrying a little toy with me in my pocket I really don't mind moving on to topic number three and for me the third thing I always bring with me is my wallet now what I've got here is a wallet that I only recently just got before I used this wallet I was using my own wallet that I made I made this wallet in 2016 uh I machined it using a laser cutter that I have at work uh genuine leather I stitched it myself I've changed the threading it several times and I had this in my front pocket for the longest time and just this year for the first time I felt like just doing something new and having a slightly different wallet a bunch of people in the comments have asked would I please make some of these cuz they look great and they love to buy one but the truth is it just isn't financially viable for me to actually make some of these and send these to people because I would have to charge so much in terms of the amount of time it takes maybe at some point in the future if glow Forge or somebody sponsors a video and I can get a laser cutter here into the shop I have a shop in my back yarden maybe I'll be able to do a run but until then unfortunately it's just something that that's going to have to sit on the Shelf but if you are looking for something that you can buy and is available right now this is the Speak Easy Dillinger this is a cool guy Rob is his name he reached out to me on Instagram and said I'm making these cool handmade leather wallets would you like one and I absolutely love this one it's really really great so it's got a space in it it's got two buckles on it first of all fully customizable you can choose which color leather you want you can choose which color stitching you have on it you can even choose which types of buckles you have I've got these really kind of vintage brass buckles on mine the thing I like about is that once you open it up it's got a flap here it's got a space where you can put your cards and behind that has a space where you can tuck in cash or Band-Aids or little things that I like like that I do carry cash with me all the time I've just got this here cuz the internet is a weird place and I don't have real cards in here at the moment so what I would say is a really great little Wallet not very expensive Rob's an awesome guy as well so I'll have a link in the description below I don't make any money from you know sending people to Rob for a small uh person someone here who's got a small business who's creating these awesome products but please do use them let Rob know I sent you at least so that he knows that it was worth sending me this wallet he did send it for to me free and I absolutely love it so great little wallet if you're thinking of it this is a great start into having a front pocket wallet EDC so the fourth thing that I don't leave home with and it's definitely part of my EDC is I bring a set of headphones with me for me it's the Apple airpods Pro 2 I've had a couple of sets of these actually I've had all the Apple airpod Pros since they came out I buy at least one set a year cuz I either break them or lose them but they're fantastic I love these I keep them in that top pocket here in my jeans where where what is it your coin wallet or whatever that that thing in the top of your Levis that's where I keep them they fit in perfectly I take a lot of calls as part of my job I take a lot of I listen to audiobooks wherever I go if I'm working out I've always got headphones in basically um and these are great I hate holding a phone up to my head it's very old school so I use these all the time I use them on flights you know I know people like to put over headphones if they're doing flights but if I'm flying across the US I'm going to Boston or New York New York I was in Boston last week I'll use these for the entire flight they last the 6 hours maybe you have to take them out for 10 minutes Midway through and and give them a bit of a charge but it gives your ears a break anyway I love these can't can't recommend them enough again it doesn't have to be these but I think a quality set of pocketable earbuds that are Bluetooth and noise cancelling are kind of a a great first EDC thing to carry with you all the time I think it's a game changer most people at this stage know the benefit of these but if not if this isn't part of your routine I'd recommend it it really is a game changer in terms of productivity and just ease of use so stick a set of these in your pocket now number five might surprise people because it's probably not on everybody's list but I really don't like to leave the house without having a notebook and specific this tomoo River notebook I use this paper it's Japanese paper I've used it for years I've got so many so so many of these notebooks I probably have 20 of them filled out I use them for all my notes I do morning pages in the morning where I write down all my thoughts before I start work just a stream of Consciousness just to get my thoughts out on paper but this notebook I've had for a long time I I probably use one of these small notebooks probably just maybe two a year so I don't write that many notes but I probably write something in it two or three times a day a little not a little thought that I have a little to-do list I think it's much nicer to write in a notebook than capture the note on your phone there's something about just writing it on paper that makes it real something about Crossing it off on that paper that makes it real I absolutely love it I plan my videos in this I've got little calendars of things that I'm doing you know I draw these calendars in on it I take the time to do it I'm a nerd like that but I love having a little pocket notebook and with that I a pocket fountain pen as well now I realize this isn't for everybody but remember part of my EDC is the things that bring me joy the things that make me happy and taking out a little notebook and writing with a beautiful fountain pen this is the kuo liliput in Copper again this is something that I have to thank my subscribers for because someone recommended this at one point to me in the comments and I went and looked it up and fell in love with it you can see from this just how petine it is I've been using it for a long time and I've had it for I probably got it in November or December of last year and I've been using it since it's my pen of choice it just lives in my pocket I love it because it posts beautifully it is one of those fountain pens that you have to post it is too short if you don't post it but it's got this lovely threaded back on it that when you put the you know when you do scw it um screw it in it is a lovely length it's a fine nib and when I write with it I use black ink for everything when I write with it it makes me smile it makes me happy the only time I'm not carrying this in my pocket is if I'm on a plane and for that I'll go for a gel pen I've got a bunch of gel pens in fact if you're thinking of getting a pen this is $100 this kuo Lily put I'll have a link in the description below to help you find it this is a fantastic first fountain pen it might be the only fountain pen you ever need if you interested in more detail about all the different pens I have a whole category of all the different pens that I use I've done a video on it link on it here if you're interested but if you just want to jump to the punchline the kuo lilyt in Copper is absolutely beautiful and if you want to get a gel pen that's incredible this is the refine ep1 it's the mini another copper pen I really like the I'm in a copper binge at the moment I really like the weight of these and just how they patina but this is a gel pen it's the nicest writing gel pen I've ever used before it's so Hefty and heavy and it just I can't recommend it enough I'll have links to all these things in the description just to help you find them so six after the notebook and pen that I bring every with me to capture my thoughts my thoughts my thoughts I bring a pocket knife with me or a tool a multi-tool either a Leatherman or something small I I like to have a fix Blade with me at the moment I've been carrying this this is the vased Cor I think it's called I really like this knife in terms of like how it opens it's a beautiful opener it's a it's both a front flipper and back flipper and it's also got a push lock so you can flick it by just pushing the lock like that it's not assisted it's got a back flip but it does lock in place so for those of you in the UK and Ireland this is not something you can carry it's not too big a knife it's not too intimidating again going with the copper Vibe it's got my car to scales which I love and it's got this little copper insert on it which is just oh so classy it just goes with the full aesthetic of everything I'm carrying with me really nice little knife I've only had it for a week and just disclosure B did send this to me for free they haven't paid for a review they haven't asked me to do anything but it did just arrive in the mail and I really like it I've been carrying it for the last week and it's a nice little knife but typically I'll bring a knife with me and if you're looking for a knife if you're not sure which knife might be the best first knife for you this is actually the first knife that I bought when I moved to the US this is the civi elementum and I really like it it's a cheap knife it's like 50 or 60 bucks you can get it on Amazon and it stands up to time I've had this you know for 9 years now since I moved here it is a a locking knife again for folks who are in the UK or Ireland it's not the best one for you if you are in the UK and Ireland and you're thinking you you want to know which knife which is the best knife to get just get a Victorinox get a Victorinox compact it's got It's a multi-tool it's the smallest multi-tool knife you can get it's absolutely brilliant and I carry that about half the time anyway so but this knife civia elementum it is a back flipper flips out nicely it's not too scary for people it's not too big it's just the right size I think it's a nice first knife if you're thinking of a pocket knife and you're you're something that you think is kind of classy I like that it comes in a bunch of different scales you can get different colors if you want something like purple or red or something to stand out or you just want to get black and you want to get something super basic saiv elementum okay let's talk about seven and these are things this is kind of jewelry and things I carry all the time first and foremost I've got this little bracelet I carry I've worn this since I was 22 years old I got this in Ireland in Karne down in carry down in the southwest of Ireland a long time ago it's got oh writing on it it's got my name in M which is an ancient form of Irish writing it's one of the oldest written languages are certainly in that part of the world I wear it because when I see it it reminds me of fun times I had it was you know growing up in Ireland was a fantastic place to grow up I'm very Irish I'm very patriotic about being from Ireland and just having this on me for some reason makes me feel Irish I know it's crazy but I do live in California and I'm really far from home these days so it's those small things that bring you Joy and bring you back to the person you are and for me this is something that I've worn it for the last what was it 23 years and I'm probably going to wear it for the rest of my life unless I lose it so I always wear this on my wrist it's very minimalist people don't notice but it is something that people ask in the comments about unfortunately you're not going to be able to get it I got it in a small jewelry store in Karne a very very long time ago the other thing is this ring I like to wear fitness trackers this is the ultra Human air I actually like how it looks now when I first put it on I'm not a ring person but I actually really like how it looks I've really got used to it and I wear it all the time so it's something I carry with me I like to track my health I like to track my data I like to try and you know track my steps all of those things my sleep see how healthy I'm being and the ultra Human air helps me do that so now we're moving on to item eight and these are optional items things I don't carry with me all the time everything I've talked about till now I bring pretty much all the time with me everywhere I go but in this case what I'm talking about is a flashlight now this one here I love this this is called the Prometheus again it's in Copper now the you know the thing about me showing this on the channel is that you actually can't get this anymore I've got links in descriptions people keep reaching out to me saying where did you get the Prometheus I got it on Amazon I got it a number of years ago and you just can't get this anymore more just look at how beautiful it is it's absolutely gorgeous and if I'm going to grab a flashlight I like something small this one's got three different settings from like one Lin up to like 90 it's not super powerful but it's certainly more powerful than the flashlight on your phone people say why do you carry a flashlight with you I'm not someone who carries it every day but when you know you know if you're someone who has carried a flashlight for a while you'll find excuses and I actually do find myself reaching for it like two or three times a day looking under a desk something I've dropped under the fridge something like that whipping it out and being able to to use use it straight away is a joy but even just in itself it is a nice piece of metal feels good in the hand and it's just one of those things that that I don't know makes me happy to have so why not carry it with me but if you are looking for a flashlight that is highly functional not terribly expensive and this is your first EDC outing into a flashlight I would recommend you go for this rivon rivon sent me this flashlight it's called the E8 it's great for lots of reasons it's incredibly bright for a flashlight of this size it's absolutely blindingly bright but it's tiny as well and I like lots of things about it there's there's three or four different output levels on it it's got a magnet on the back so you can stick it onto something if you need to get a little bit of work done it's got a reverse clip on it that's deep carry so you can have it in your pocket tuck down nice and deep but if you have a baseball cap on you can also stick it on your baseball cap and use it as a a headlight if you're out for a walk or you're cut out after dark and finally the best thing about this is it charges with USBC so it is fantastic that you can just stick any charger in this I'm big on the now that I've got the iPhone 15 they finally switched over to USBC so I'm big on single cable carry and this is just another thing I can plug in with whatever cable I have anytime anywhere I am and charge back up again so a great first flashlight if you're just getting into flashlights if you want to try out on I a flashlight person go with that it'll probably convert you okay finally the last few things on the table I have my keys I have a whole video on all the thought I put into my keychain I actually spent months creating the perfect keychain for me and there's a link to a video here on it if you're interested in viewing that but a keychain and a multi-tool I use the vorox here this the Victorinox mini champ Alex it's the best pocket knife you can get it's expensive it's like 60 70 bucks of all the things I use in terms of tools this is the thing I use the most it's got a little Phillips head screwdriver for changing batteries out it's got a scissors on it for clipping my nails it's got several different knives for opening boxes on it it's got a seat Bel cutter or an apple peeler or an orange peeler people disagree about what all the tools do but fundament it's got a lot of tools on it it's very useful very very handy tiny little set of keys I have I clip it to the front of my P when I'm walking and I don't even know that they're there also my glasses I wear I do wear glasses I've got a stigmatism and I need to wear glasses for reading and writing I Chang my glasses all the time these were actually sent to me I'll have a link in the description if you're interested in them I got these for free and I'm not sure the brand I'll put it on here sorry brand for forgetting but if you do like the look at these I like them they're really classy they're really lightweight and they just kind of sit in your face nicely so I've been wearing these for the last couple of weeks like them a lot so what are some of the things that you took away from this one do you agree with my definition of EDC I know it's different for everybody I'm sure I'll get some hate in the comments two what are some of the things that you carry with you all the time that didn't make it onto my list here or or what are some of the things that you like I I really don't think I I think you're over carrying stuff it be better if you kind of minimized and and got down to some more core things you'd have a happier life really love to hear all the things you carry all the things you don't carry and what you have to say about what I've just shown you here today comment in the description below good luck

Channel: Marcus O'Brien

Views: 71,231

Keywords: edc, everyday carry, productivity, edc tech, technology

Id: zzChDej8eUE

Length: 21min 21sec (1281 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 30 2024