Ergodriven was born miles from any office. Hiking, swimming holes, and cliff-jumping created a few blisters and an important realization.

Nature isn't flat.

Feeling our joints articulate and stabilizing muscles activate as we traversed varied terrain really hammered home just how not flat nature is.

When we teamed up with specialists well-versed in biomechanics and dug into the research, it was clear that "flat" is just too little stimulation for healthy living.

So we decided to start making things less flat with the one of the spaces we occupy the most - the ground right in front of our desks.

It feels so good to be working on products every single day that make people feel better. Every time we read an email from a customer, detailing how their lives have improved from working healthier, it really feels good.

We're the "it's weird but it really works!" company and we're proud of that.

You see it in all of our products.

When we first showed people Topo, they thought we were a little crazy, but everybody who uses it loves it.

When we first introduced Tempo, people thought it was insane to make a desk move by itself. Until they saw it raise for the first time.

Even a vertical handshake mouse is kind of a weird looking mouse. It definitely takes some explaining until somebody uses one, then they get it right away.

And pull-up bar desk - yeah, people think that one's weird too. Until they feel it (it feels REALLY good). That's the pattern we see over and over again. It's weird, but it really works. 

But why is it that Ergodriven keeps making weird but works type products?

For the full details, keep reading below. But the TLDR is this:

👉 We are aiming to make work feel as good as possible, not just less bad.

👉 And we don't mind looking weird (IF it works!)

 If this resonates with you, GREAT! Join our newsletter (you might even get a chance to beta test the weirdest stuff), see our products, and read more about our thought process below.

We’re on a mission to bring ergonomics back to its roots. Here’s why and how.

We’ll make you a bet. When we say ergonomics, you think of some sort of expensive chair – and not super awesome mountain biking.

Were we right? We should have bet an anti-fatigue mat on it.

People have made some great chairs, sure. But we take issue with the fact that the public sphere thinks of ergonomics as expensive chairs and funky keyboards. We’re here to fix that.

And we’re going to start with the basic etymology:

Ergonomics

From greek ἔργον, meaning “work”, and νόμος, meaning “natural laws”

So ergonomics, at its literal roots, means working according to natural laws. And we’re all about that, so long as we think about work and natural laws the right way.

What does “work” mean in the context of ergonomics?

The reason you picture bizarre office equipment is because work has been reduced in our culture to “stuff that happens in or near a cubicle.” See, the workplace has gotten its time in the spotlight because there is big corporate money to be had in improving worker efficiency and decreasing employer healthcare costs. But most of us aren’t Fortune 500 CEOs. And we spend most of our lives outside work. (Even if it doesn’t always feel that way).

Ergonomics has to go beyond workplace efficiency. It has to include everything else that goes into just plain feeling awesome all the time.

And although those piles of corporate studies focus on ergonomics as a means to increase office work output – and that is valuable – the spotlight needs to expand to other things you care about.

Things like your joints not aching. Things like not feeling so darn tired when the alarm clock rings. Things like realizing that health is more than just the absence of disease. Things like feeling better at 45 than you did at 25.

That’s why ergonomics has to go beyond workplace efficiency. It has to include weekend warrior efficiency, playing with your kids efficiency, restful sleep efficiency, 100-yard sprint efficiency, and everything else that goes into just plain feeling awesome all the time.

Ergonomics has to include EVERYTHING you can optimize by “working” according to natural laws.

Because work isn’t just what you want to get done in the office. Work happens every time you expend energy in the pursuit of a goal – even if it’s just the work of laying down to take a nap.

How do we identify natural laws?

The natural world is a big, confusing place – and though human knowledge is expanding at an unprecedented rate – there’s still a lot we don’t understand. Fortunately, we’ve been gifted a great tool for our approach: the history of humans in their natural environment.

Our pursuit of natural laws to improve our “work” starts there. Whenever we notice a deficiency, inefficiency, or issue – we should first turn to our knowledge of mankind’s natural environment for a cause and solution.

Ergonomics = Work + Natural Laws

Let’s bring it home. Work includes everything we humans expend energy to do. Natural laws are the result of the environment we evolved in. Here’s our definition of ergonomics:

Ergonomics

noun | The science of improving human efficiency, health, and performance by designing environments in accordance with natural laws.

Meet the Founders:

Kit Perkins | CEO

Kit is a mechanical engineer by degree, and a self-taught entrepreneur, growth hacker, and web developer. With a strong interest in human design and its implications to guide his thirst for knowledge and get-stuff-done mentality, Kit is determined to make the world a healthier, more productive place for everyone.

Ryan Feeley | CTO

Ryan has a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley. As a brilliant engineer and burgeoning scientist, Ryan leads product development and validation. On the weekends, you can find him sprinting barefoot and shirtless in his local parks, with myriad home-brew sensors quantifying his body.

Everyone Else

We don't do it alone - far from it. We have a fantastic team, and we've had the pleasure of working with some very talented contractors and interns. We're also incredibly fortunate to have a fantastic advisory board composed of seasoned professionals to help guide us to success. We've also benefitted from the support of world class technology companies, through Microsoft's BizSpark program and engineering simulation offerings from Ansys.

Our Most Valued Contributor - You

At Ergodriven, we think it is absolutely crucial to involve our users (or as we say, family) as much as possible. After all, the whole point is to improve your life - shouldn't you have a voice in that process? We achieve this primarily through our newsletter, where we involve you in unprecedented ways, including regular polls about potential new products. Go here to join - it's very interesting.