. . .so where am I working today? I agree with Leigh; the list is way longer than four. If that is the limit for this academic discussion, then I reserve the right to have a different list of four things for each of my various work environments and some gear is assumed and not listed.

I get the impression that some peeps live in normally very safe office environments where a paper cut is a big deal. My typical carry has way more than four and it isn't necessarily my decision. To get down to four I'd need to dump stuff required for the job; even then some things are assumed even though they aren't listed. Is this like four things in addition to wallet (cash & ID), keys, locking folder and cell-phone?

I don't work in an office environment and I typically carry a lot of stuff.
Depending on where work is today I may be carrying/wearing or have ready access (within arms reach) of:
Flying:
* Nomex flight suit
* Aviation survival vest
* flight bag which contains:
-- radio headset (attached to both UHF and one VHF radios)
-- ear plugs (under the headset)
-- leather/nomex flight gloves
-- multiple LED flashlights
-- multi-tool

Not flying:
* leather gloves
* ear plugs + outer ear muffs
* multi-tool
* 1xAA LED flashlight

My truck and its kits are a short walk away in the parking lot.

Folks concerned about which four items to carry should think about whether their work environment is safe My work environment is not inherently safe and no one calls OSHA

Stop worrying about arbitrary lists and just carry what you think is appropriate for whatever likely possibilities. When whatever hits you will wish you had a lot more.