Over the years of hunting down the true tools, I have noticed a pattern among the those that earn their place: they offer simplicity and reliability. These are not gadgets promising to revolutionise your life through complexity. They are not systems requiring elaborate maintenance or steep learning curves. They are foundational tools and habits that quietly-and without fuss-ease daily life.

— Nicholas Bate, The Tools of Excellence: Seventy Devices, Concepts or Strategies which enable Brilliance, Easily.