Useful productivity resources to consider

(Updated 2024-April-26th)

Study Music (ambience):

• The Guild of Ambience, "Indoors/Heavy Wind Sounds", "Forest/Rain Sounds", "Harbor Sounds", "Library Sounds", 2018-2019.
• The Guild of Ambience, "Rain/Storm/Fireplace Sounds", "Potion Shop Sounds", 2017.
• The Guild of Ambience, "Swamp/Frogs/Owls/Crickets/Rain Sounds", "Medieval Tavern/Fireplace Sounds", 2017.
• The Guild of Ambience, "Indoors/Rain Sounds", "Pirate Ship Sounds", "Fantasy Medieval Town Sounds", 2016.
• Retrovex Ambient, "Nostalgic Soundscapes S01E06 | A New Millennium | Windows 2000", March 2024.
• Retrovex Ambient, "Nostalgic Soundscapes S01E05 | After Dark | Windows NT", March 2024.
• Retrovex Ambient, "Nostalgic Soundscapes S01E04 | Ascended | Windows 98", Feb 2024.
• Retrovex Ambient, "Nostalgic Soundscapes S01E02 | Forgotten | Windows 95", Jan 2024.

Study Music (no vocals):

• Chillhop, "Joakim Karud Mix", "Joseph Jacobs Mix", Instrumental Jazz/HipHop Mix, 2016.
• Fluidified, "Forgotten Memories", Instrumental Chill/Ambient Mix, 2014. (SOUNDCLOUD)
• Fluidified, "On the Way to Somewhere", Instrumental Piano/Chill/Ambient Mix, 2016. (SOUNDCLOUD)
• Fluidified, "Path to Tranquility", Instrumental Chill/Downtempo/Ambient/FutureGarage Mix, 2017. (SOUNDCLOUD)
• Fluidified, "We All Have Stories to Tell", Instrumental Chill/Melodic Mix by 4lienetic, 2015. (SOUNDCLOUD)
• Live Better Media, "Upbeat Instrumental Work Music", 2017.
• Odysseus, "Waves", Instrumental Chill/Electronic/Beats Mix, 2018. (SOUNDCLOUD)
• Relax Music, "Relaxing Jazz for Work & Study", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Mix, 2018.
• Relax Music, "Night Smooth Jazz", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Mix, 2019.


• Oakwood Station, "For Better Times", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, April 2018.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "From This Day Until Forever", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, April 2018.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "A Trace of Light", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, Jan 2018.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "Pollyanna", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, Jan 2018.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "Glancing at the Moon", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, Sep 2017.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "Faith in Truth", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, Sep 2017.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "Answers To Be Found", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, March 2017.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "We Have Come Through", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, Sep 2016.     (YOUTUBE)
• Oakwood Station, "Space For Two", Instrumental Smooth Jazz Track, Sep 2016.     (YOUTUBE)


• Clarence Reed, "Don't Blink", Instrumental Upbeat Track, Nov 2017.     (YOUTUBE)
• Raymond Grouse, "Before All of This", Instrumental Upbeat Track, July 2017.     (YOUTUBE)
• Bonnie Grace, "Nature's Wonders", Instrumental Upbeat Track, Oct 2016.     (YOUTUBE)
• Clarence Reed, "Breathing Again", Instrumental Upbeat Track, Oct 2016.     (YOUTUBE)
• Brightarm Orchestra, "Brother John's Farewell", Instrumental Upbeat Track, June 2016.     (YOUTUBE)
• Gavin Luke, "The Beginning", Instrumental Upbeat Track, June 2016.     (YOUTUBE)
• Gavin Luke, "Wonders", Instrumental Upbeat Track, June 2016.     (YOUTUBE)
• Magnus Ringblom, "Free as Can Be", Instrumental Upbeat Track, Sep 2015.     (YOUTUBE)
• Adriel Fair, "The Expedition", Instrumental Upbeat Track, May 2015.     (YOUTUBE)
• Dream Cave, "Boost", Instrumental Upbeat Track, Nov 2014.     (YOUTUBE)
• Howard Harper-Barnes, "A New Horizon", Instrumental Upbeat Track, Feb 2014.     (YOUTUBE)
• Raymond Grouse, "Aggregated", Instrumental Upbeat Track, June 2013.

Study Music (vocal samples):

• Chillhop, "Chillhop Essentials": Sm2016, F2016, W2016, Sm2017, F2017, Sp2018, Chill/HipHop/Jazz Mix's.
• Chillhop, "Chill Study Beats": Vol 1, Vol 2, Vol 3, Vol 4, Vol 5, Chill/HipHop/Jazz Mix's, 2016-2017.
• Fluidified, "(aLone) September", Deep Chill/Atmospheric/Downtempo/FutureGarage Mix, 2017.
• JaBig, "Deep & Dope": 113, 146, 170, 177, Brazilian House/Samba Mix's, 2012-2013.
• JaBig, "Deep & Dope": 101, 193, 201, 208, Deep House/Acid Jazz Mix's, 2012-2013.
• JaBig, "Deep & Dope": 161, 190, 194, 222, 228, 229, 240, 282, 297, 305, 310, 317, 323, 329, 330, Deep House/Lounge Mix's, 2013-2018.
• Johnny M, "Luxury House Grooves": P1, P2, P3, P4, Deep Souful House Mix's, 2017.
• Johnny M, "Midnight Grooves": E1, E2, E3, E4, E5, E6, E7, E8, Deep House Mix's, 2017.
• Music Lab, "Chillstep Music for Programming", Chill/Dubstep Mix, 2019.
• Silk Music, "Best of Shingo Nakamura": 01, 02, Melodic Progressive House Mix's, 2017-2018.
• Silk Music, "(Shingo Nakamura) Only Silk": 01, 02, 03, 04, Progressive House Mix's,


• Underset - My Melancholy (D.P.Kash version), Triphop Guitar Instrumental, 2012.

Short Videos (<30 minutes):

• David Allen, "The Art of Stress-free Productivity", TEDx talk, 2012.
• Valerie Balester, "The Perfect Defense: The Oral Defense of a Dissertation", TAMU, 2010.
• Gideon Ben-Ami, "This is the Best Book on [Germanic & Romance] Language Learning I've Ever Read", YouTube Video, June 2020.
• Elizabeth & Robert Bjork, "How to Study to Maximize Performance", TEDx talk, 2019.
• Jeff Bollow, "Writer's Block Instant Cure" & "How to Write FAST", YouTube videos, 2013.
• Peter Carr, "How to Read an (Academic) Paper Efficiently" & "How to Write an (Academic) Paper in a Weekend", UMN, 2016.
• Peter Carr, "How to Choose Your Thesis Adviser: Junior vs. Senior Faculty", UMN, 2018.
• Lori Conlan, "Interview Techniques", NIH OITE, 2014.
• Bruce Dancik, "Tips from a Journal Editor: How to Select a Journal for Your Paper", Meeting of Science Editors interview, 2011.
• David Epstein, "Why Specializing Early Doesn't Always Mean Career Success", TED talk, Feb 2020.
• Adam Grant, "The Surprising Habits of Original Thinkers", TED talk, 2016.
• Candace Hastings, "The Perfect Proposal", TAMU, 2012.
• Nadine Kozak, "What to Expect as a Junior Faculty Member", UW Milwaukee SOIS PhD Workshop, 2015.
• Daniel Levitin, "The Organized Mind" & "This is Your Brain on Music", Chicago Ideas talks, 2015.
• Sharon Milgram, "Advice from Admissions Directors: Applying to Graduate School", NIH OITE, 2014.
• Sharon Milgram, "Finding Your Research Home", NIH OITE, 2014.
• Barbara Oakley, "Learning How to Learn", TEDx talk, 2014.
• Randy Pausch, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams", Reprised talk on the Oprah Show, 2007. (WEBPAGE)
• Neil Postman, "Remarks on Cyberspace", MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour interview, 1995.

Long Videos:

• Elizabeth & Robert Bjork, "Making Things Hard on Yourself, but in a Good Way", 28th Annual Convention of the APS talk, 2016.
• Jonathan Blow, "Preventing the Collapse of Civilization", DevGAMM Talk, 2019.
• Jonathan Blow, "Techniques for Dealing with Lack of Motivation, Malaise, Depression"   Q&A, Twitch.tv stream, 2017.
• Scott Brueckner, "Great Ways to Study" & "More Great Ways to Study", Long Beach City College, 2010.
• Scott Brueckner, "Organizing Your Study Time": Part 1, Part 2, Long Beach City College, 2011.
• Tasha N. Dubriwny, "Creative and Effective Conference Presentations", TAMU, 2011.
• Neil Fiore, "How to Overcome Procrastination and Become a Producer", Albany KALB, 2015.
• Richard Hamming, "You and Your Research", Naval Postgraduate School, 1995.
• Candace Hastings, "Avoiding Plagiarism: Writing with Integrity", TAMU, 2012.
• Candace Hastings, "Get Lit: The Literature Review", TAMU, 2009.
• James Hayton, "The Basic Principles Every PhD Student Needs to Know", NUI Galway, 2020.
• James Hayton, "How to Get Through Your PhD without Going Insane", Edinburgh, 2013.
• John Hennessy, David Patterson, "A New Golden Age for Computer Architecture", ACM Turing Award Lecture, 2018.
• Richard Hipp, "Checklists for Better Software", SouthEast LinuxFest talk, 2013.
• Susan Kare, "30+ Years of User Interface Graphic Design", Smithsonian talk, 2018.
• Brian Kernighan, "On Teaching, Research Interests, Book Publication, Careers", Princeton Startup TV interview, 2012.
• Brian Kernighan, "How to Succeed in Language Design without Really Trying", Univ Nottingham talk, 2015. (PDF SLIDES)
• Brian Kernighan, "The Early Days of Unix at Bell Labs", LCA Talk, 2022.
• Daniel Levitin, "The Organized Mind", Aspen Institute talk, 2017.
• Marty Lobdell, "Last Lecture", Pierce College, 2011.
• Marty Lobdell, "Study Less, Study Smart", Pierce College, 2011.
• Larry McEnerney, "The Craft of Writing Effectively" & "Writing Beyond the Academy", UChicago, 2014 & 2015. (PDF)
• Marshall McLuhan, "The Medium is the Message": Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, ABC Radio National Q&A, 1977.
• David Patterson, "How to Have a Bad Career", Google Talk, 2016.
• Randy Pausch, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams", CMU, 2007. (BACKUP VIDEO) (PPT SLIDES) (WEBPAGE)
• Randy Pausch, "Time Management", UVA, 1998. (This version is more academic-focused than the 2007 talk.)
• Randy Pausch, "Time Management", UVA, 2007. (BACKUP VIDEO) (PDF SLIDES) (WEBPAGE)
• Rob Pike, "Concurrency is Not Parallelism", Heroku Waza talk, 2012. (ONLINE SLIDES)
• Robert C. Pozen, "Extreme Productivity: How to Become More Productive Every Day", MIT Sloan, 2014.
• Tim Pychyl, "Why Don't They Just Do It? Research Helping to Solve the Procrastination Puzzle", Carleton University, 2012.
• John Romero, "Id Software's Early Days", Big Techday 12 of TNG Technology Consulting GmbH talk, 2019.
• Jin Zhang & Hope Olson, "How to Successfully Publish Journal Articles", UW Milwaukee SOIS PhD Workshop, 2012.

Audio:

• Harvard Business Review IdeaCast
• iProcrastinate Podcast

• "The Secret to Better Problem Solving", "Handling Stress in the Moment", HBR IdeaCast, 2016.
• "Are Robots Really Coming for Our Jobs?", "Set Habits You'll Actually Keep", HBR IdeaCast, 2015.
• "Skills We Can Learn from Games", "Fixing the College Grad Hiring Process", "Our Bizarre Fascination with Stories of Doom", 2014.
• "Reduce Stress with Mindfulness", "How to Schedule Time for Meaningful Work", "Take Control of Your Time", 2013.
• "The Myth of Monotasking", "Habits: Why We Do What We Do", "Improve Your Business Writing", 2011-2013.
• "Getting Unstuck", "How to Write Clearly at Work","What Motivates Us?", HBR IdeaCast, 2007,2009,2010.

• Tim Pychyl, "I Don't Feel Like It! I Don't Want To!", "Cleaning to Procrastinate", 2015-2016.
• Tim Pychyl, "Fine-Tuning an Implementation Intention", "Key Strategies to Procrastinate Less", 2012-2013.
• Tim Pychyl, "Unnecessary Illusions and the Truth about Procrastination", "Autonomy and Procrastination", 2011.
• Tim Pychyl, "Does Evaluation Threat Help or Hinder Our Procrastination?", iProcrastinate podcast, 27 Nov 2009. (BLOG)
• Tim Pychyl, "Guilt and Our Strategies to Reduce Cognitive Dissonance", iProcrastinate podcast, 23 Nov 2009. (BLOG)
• Tim Pychyl, "Quirks of the Brain: Procrastination's Perfect Storm", iProcrastinate podcast, 10 Nov 2009. (BLOG)
• Tim Pychyl, "Old Habits Die Hard", "Go with the Flow", "Structured Procrastination", 2009.
• Tim Pychyl, "Existentialism and Procrastination": Part 1, Part 2, 2008.
• Tim Pychyl, "Cyberslacking", "Mindfulness Meditation and Procrastination", 2007.
• Tim Pychyl, "Fear of Failure and Procrastination", "Cognitive Restructuring and Strengthening Volition", 2006.
• Tim Pychyl, "Dealing with Avoidance", "Taxes and Other Aversive Stuff: Why We Put It Off", 2006.
• Tim Pychyl, "The Positive Side of Planning", "Time Management and Procrastination", 2006.
• Tim Pychyl, "What is Procrastination?", "Personality and Procrastination": Part 1, Part 2, 2006.

Documents:

• Stephen R. Covey, "Circle of Concern vs. Circle of Influence", from Seven Habits of Highly Effective People book, 1989.
• Daniel Lemire, "Write Good Papers", Blog Article, 2007.
• J. DeSmet, M. Plowman, "Short Bursts, Not Shortcuts: The Value of Learning over Time", Harvard Business Publishing, 2015.
• Johannes Haushofer, "CV of Failures", Princeton, 2016.
• William T. Ross, "How to Give a Good 20-minute Math Talk", URichmond, 26 Mar 2008. (BACKUP PDF)
• Melanie Stefan, "A CV of Failures", naturejobs.com article, 2010.
• Stephanie Vozza, "What To Do On 15-, 30- and 60-Minute Breaks to Boost Productivity", Fast Company Article, May 2018.

Books:

• D. Allen, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, Penguin Books, 352 pages, 2015 / 2001.
• K. Blanchard, S. Johnson, The New One Minute Manager, William Morrow, 112 pages, 2015 / 1982.
• R. Boice, Advice for New Faculty Members: Nihil Nimus, Pearson, 336 pages, 2000.
• P.C. Brown, H.L. Roediger III, M.A. McDaniel, Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning, Belknap Press, 336 pages, 2014.
• J.B. Burka, L.M. Yuen, Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It Now, 2nd Ed, Lifelong Books, 336 pages, 2008.
• D. Carnegie, How to Win Friends & Influence People, Pocket Books, 288 pages, 1998 / 1936.
• C. Collins, Time Management for Teachers: Techniques and Skills That Give You More Time to Teach, Parker Publishing, 252 pages, 1987.
• S.R. Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change, Simon & Schuster, 432 pages, 2013 / 1989.
• M. Csikszentmihalyi, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, HarperCollins, 334 pages, 2008 / 1990.
• P.F. Drucker, The Effective Executive: Getting the Right Things Done, HarperCollins, 210 pages, 2006 / 1967.
• D. Epstein, Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, Macmillan, 339 pages, 2019.
• J.R. Eyler, How Humans Learn: The Science & Stories behind Effective College Teaching, WVU Press, 312 pages, 2018.
• P.J. Feibelman, A PhD is Not Enough: A Guide to Survival in Science, 2nd Ed, Basic Books, 176 pages, 2011.
• N. Fiori, The Now Habit: A Strategic Program for Overcoming Procrastination, 2nd Ed, TarcherPerigee, 224 pages, 2007.
• M. Gladwell, Outliers: The Story of Success, Bay Back Books, 336 pages, 2011 / 2008.
• B.W. Kernighan, R. Pike, The Practice of Programming, Addison-Wesley, 288 pages, 1999.
• D.A. Kolb, Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, 2nd Ed, Pearson, 416 pages, 2014 / 1984.
• J. Lahey, The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go so Their Children Can Succeed, Harper, 304 pages, 2016.
• M. McLuhan, Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, MIT Press, 392 pages, 1994 / 1964.
• C. Newport, Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, Grand Central, 304 pages, 2016.
• L.B. Nilson, Specifications Grading: Restoring Rigor, Motivating Students and Saving Faculty Time, Stylus, 184 pages, 2014.
• B. Oakley, A Mind for Numbers: How to Excel at Math and Science, TarcherPerigee, 336 pages, 2014.
• B. Oakley, Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning, TarcherPerigee, 304 pages, 2017.
• R. Pausch, J. Zaslow, The Last Lecture, Hyperion, 206 pages, 2008.
• N. Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, Penguin Books, 208 pages, 2005 / 1985.
• N. Postman, Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology, Vintage Books, 240 pages, 1993.
• T.A. Pychyl, Solving the Procrastination Puzzle: A Concise Guide, 2nd Ed, TarcherPerigee, 128 pages, 2013.
• W. Strunk Jr., E.B. White, The Elements of Style, 4th Ed, Pearson, 1999 / 1935.

Papers:

• A. Furnham, A. Bradley, "Music While You Work: The Differential Distraction of Background Music on the Cognitive Test Performance of Introverts and Extraverts", Applied Cognitive Psychology, 11 (1997), 445-455.
• A. Furnham, S. Trew, I. Sneade, "The Distracting Effects of Vocal and Instrumental Music on the Cognitive Test Performance of Introverts and Extraverts", Personality and Individual Differences, 27 (1999), 381-392.
• P. Kelley, T. Whatson, "Making Long-term Memories in Minutes: A Spaced Learning Pattern from Memory Research in Education", Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7 (2013), 1-9
• T. Lesiuk, "The Effect of Preferred Music on Mood and Performance in a High-Cognitive Demand Occupation", Journal of Music Therapy, 47 (2010), 137-154.
• N. Mammarella, B. Fairfield, C. Cornoldi, "Does Music Enhance Cognitive Performance in Healthy Older Adults? The Vivaldi Effect", Aging Clinical and Experimental Research, 19 (2007) 1-6.
• N. Perham, J. Vizard, "Can Preference for Background Music Mediate the Irrelevant Sound Effect?", Applied Cognitive Psychology, 25 (2011), 625-631.
• N. Perham, T. Withey, "Liked Music Increases Spatial Rotation Performance Regardless of Tempo", Current Psychology, 31 (2012), 168-181.
• N.S. Rickard, S.R. Toukhsati, S.E. Field, "The Effect of Music on Cognitive Performance: Insight from Neurobiological and Animal Studies", Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience Reviews, 4 (2005), 235-261.
• E.G. Schellenberg, "Music and Cognitive Abilities", Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14 (2005), 317-320.

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