100+ Resources for Optimizing Productivity & Performance
I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.
— Oscar Wilde
Since founding Forcing Function, I've had the opportunity to purchase and test hundreds of products, programs, apps, and services.
In fact, I invested well over $100,000 in the last five years in my quest to optimize health, maximize productivity, and install systems to become a top performer.
Today, I would like to share my favorite resources, the critical few that made a difference for me.
This list was previously available only for my private performance coaching clients but I’m open-sourcing it so that everyone can benefit.
Personally, I don't care if you use any of these resources. The resources are only a means to demonstrate best practices. Try to understand the principle behind the tool.
My advice? Work back from your goals.
What outcome are you trying to accomplish?
What conditions support you in achieving this outcome?
How can you make what you want to do, even easier to do?
A final note before diving in:
The product links below are Amazon referral links. In the wealth section, if you sign up, we will both receive a bonus. If that’s not your thing, no worries, feel free to go direct.
Every single thing on this list is selected because I endorse it and use it personally, regardless of referability. I hope you find this list as valuable as I have.
Table of Contents:
Productivity (25)
Sleep (14)
Health (19)
Wealth (10)
Programs (13)
Chrome Extensions (14)
iPhone Apps (16)
Optimizing your workspace won’t get the work done for you, but it will maximize your chances.
Simply put, you will work more effectively and enjoy the experience more if you have a workspace that is comfortable and free from distraction. When you consider how much of your life you spend at a desk, it is a no-brainer to minimize the stress we put on our bodies and minds sitting and staring at a screen for long periods of time.
Adjustable Standing Desk / Standing Desk Pad / Adjustable Foot Rest
Stagnant body, stagnant mind. Occasionally standing while working increases my urgency and reduces my distractibility. Most standing desk setups are pretty janky; I love the flexibility of switching between seated and standing with one button press.
Without a mat at your standing desk, you won’t be standing for very long. The footrest reinforces posture while sitting and reduces pressure from the blood rushing to your feet. This setup eliminated the back pain and leg tightness I used to experience after long periods of sitting.
HAG Ergonomic Chair
This is a versatile chair designed to keep you active between many sitting positions rather than remaining still all day long. The chair supports your body’s natural posture and brings more energy to your work by improving your circulation and keeping your legs and core engaged.
Dell 49” Ultrasharp Monitor / Phillips 25” Monitor
Studies have shown that increasing screen real estate is one of the few guaranteed productivity boosts. Pay attention to how often you have to minimize windows because you ran out of screen space. I use the 49” for poker and the 25” for Forcing Function.
A second monitor can be dedicated to reference to support a presentation or composition in your primary window. Trust me, once you upgrade your monitor setup, you will never go back.
Lepow Travel Screen
This is a lightweight second monitor which fits into the laptop sleeve of my backpack. I’ve been on the move for the last two years and this monitor allows me to work from anywhere without missing a beat.
Rain Laptop Stand
A laptop stand is essential, either on its own when you’re on the move or when you’re plugging into a multiple-monitor system. Using the laptop as-is wreaks havoc on your spine.
Aer Backpack
Aer makes the best backpack I’ve found for remote work and travel. It has separate compartments for shoes and clothes so you can go right from work to the gym, and is sleek enough to bring to nice dinners without feeling out of place.
Figure 8 Posture Corrector
Bringing attention to your posture is improving your posture. This posture corrector is simple but effective: the straps tighten when you slouch.
Samson Q9U Broadcast Microphone / Boom Arm
Better audio helps you sound more intelligent and bat above your weight class. In one study, a physicist’s talk was rated as 19% better when they listened to it in high (vs. low) audio quality. They also thought he was smarter and liked him more.
The boom arm allows you to position the microphone close to your face when needed and move it away when not in use.
HD Streaming: Canon EOS M50 Camera / Engato Cam Link 4K / DC Power Adapter
A DSLR allows you to have super HD video input on Zoom and other streaming platforms. It’s hard to appreciate the difference until you see it side by side. When you present yourself well, it lends a sense of authority and quality to what you’re doing.
The Cam Link allows your computer to recognize the HDMI output as a camera feed and the DC adapter removes battery life as a constraint.
Video Lighting: Godol SL-60 Light / Neweer Softbox / Tripod Stand
Substance and style are not separate; how you package yourself says a lot about you. Professional lighting works because of the halo effect—if you look more professional, you will seem more professional. Being well lit is the equivalent of wearing a nice suit.
After your webcam, lightning is the biggest factor for looking professional on video. A softbox is what professionals use: it makes the light less harsh. The stand keeps the light above you at a flattering 45-degree angle and lets you adjust as necessary. Despite popular use, ring lights look cheap and give you alien eyes.
Mechanical Keyboard
A Cherry mechanical keyboard increases your typing speed and accuracy because of the reduced key force required plus audial feedback.
Hero High-Performance Gaming Mouse
Playing 12+ games of high-stakes poker simultaneously requires extremely fast and accurate clicking. Customizable mouse shortcuts are useful for one-click access to frequent programs or files.
AirPods Pro
AirPods aren’t going to impress any audiophiles when listening to music. But for listening to podcasts or hopping on calls, the experience is seamless.
Kindle Paperwhite
This Kindle is small enough to fit your entire library into your pants pocket and has seemingly endless battery life. No backlight, so less blue light exposure if reading at night. I doubled my time spent reading just by always having it in my backpack.
iPad Mini
I’m a big believer in single-use devices. My iPad only has a single app on it: Instapaper. As I never do any reading on my iPhone or laptop, I send any interesting articles or PDFs to Instapaper and go through them on nights or weekends.
Apple AirTag
Attach one of these to your keys, wallet, and phone. If you lose it, the Find My app will lead you there with exact direction and distance while playing a sound. No more “what’s the last place you used them?” searches.
Moleskine Notebook
I’ve used these notebooks as my journal for years. Can easily digitize these physical notes in Evernote to make them searchable across all your devices.
Productivity Planner
I’m a huge proponent of doing your short-term planning in analog mode. This has simple and powerful systems for weekly/daily planning, and every client I’ve turned on to this planner has loved it.
Five Minute Journal
Practicing gratitude has a higher ROI than any other habit. It is deceptively simple but has a profound effect on the way you go about your day. Using the 5MJ makes it much easier to maintain the habit.
Muji Pen
Having a pen you enjoy writing with increases the chances that you write more often. The more notes you take, the more you will learn. After testing many pens, these are my favorites.
Physical Pomodoro Timer
Committing to concentrating on a single task for a time period is a guaranteed focus improvement. I find that having the timer externalized in my physical environment increases salience.
Phone Lock Box
I’m sure you are sensing a theme here. The harder it is to access your phone, the more productive you will be. Putting your phone in the box removes that voice in your head saying, “I wonder what’s going on with . . . .”
MOKIN Multi-port Connector
One port to rule them all. No need for all those dongles. Recommend using the Ethernet port to hardwire for improved internet stability.
Circadian Optics Light Therapy Lamp
Getting sunshine to start the day is critical for maintaining healthy circadian rhythms. When real sunshine is not available, this is a great substitute. Fifteen minutes with this lamp while doing my morning pages has a noticeable wake-up effect. Super portable, very useful to counter jet lag when changing time zones.
Anker Portable Battery
I put one of these in every bag. It’s probably been years since my phone died.
Improving your sleep requires a multidimensional approach of upgrading your bedroom environment, sleep hygiene, and nighttime routine. The most important variables to control for in your sleep environment are light, sound, and temperature.
In my experience, each change has a compounding 1–5% effect on all future sleep. You spend almost a third of your life sleeping, so over the course of a lifetime, small changes really add up!
Oura Ring
Oura is by far the most accurate sleep tracker I have found, with excellent analytics. The new generation lets you track daytime stats as well and can act as an early alert system for when you are becoming sick.
Sleep duration is overrated; sleep quality is underrated. With a sleep tracker, you can see clearly the effects of lifestyle choices or changes to your sleep environment. Checking how I slept the previous night allows me to adjust my expectations for performance for the day to come.
Lectrofan White Noise Machine
There’s something about this particular machine that creates a sound cocoon, and luckily, it’s a very easy-to-satisfy dependency. Any time there’s noise in our environment, it’s the equivalent of sleeping with one eye open; this machine eliminates this variable completely. This is my pick for the highest impact under $50.
LED Covers
I travel with these stickers to cover all lights from electronics in hotels.
Manta Sleep Mask
Have tested many eye masks and this one is my new favorite. It blocks out almost all light, and allows you to open your eyes comfortably inside. Even if your room is pitch black, I recommend wearing an eye mask. The eye mask removes the variable of shifting shadows and putting one on becomes a major trigger for sleep.
Blackout Curtains
Wondering why you don’t sleep as deeply in the morning hours? Your body is very sensitive to light. For thousands of years, the sun rising was our trigger to wake up. Your sleep quality will improve immensely if you turn your bedroom into a cave. If you don’t believe me, an easy experiment is to put black construction paper over your bedroom windows and compare the data for yourself.
Eight Sleep Pro Pod Cover
Most people sleep in rooms that are too warm; the ideal temperature is generally below 68º F. This mattress cover keeps your mattress at a constant temperature, and cooling from below translates much better to temperature regulation than ambient room cooling.
Harkla Weighted Blanket
A weighted blanket seems to evoke the sense of calm and relaxation that comes from being held, helping me fall asleep faster. I have also found that the weight causes me to toss and turn in my sleep considerably less than I did previously.
Four Seasons Allergen-Proof Pillow Covers
As I began the journey to deeper sleep, I discovered I was allergic to dust—these help keep the allergens at bay.
Winix Air Purifier
An air purifier filters out dust, mold, and viruses—between allergies and the pandemic, you’ll sleep better with cleaner air.
Felix Gray Blue Light Blocking Glasses
Felix makes designer blue-blocking glasses that you can add a prescription to. I use these for online poker because there is zero color distortion. I added a magnifier effect which is easier on your eyes if you’re forced to look at the screen for a long period of time. The ideal is to look away from the screen every hour, but poker players don’t have that luxury. Blue light blocking glasses have varying effectiveness, but Felix Gray pulls off glasses that you can wear in public which still filter out 50% of all and almost 90% of the most impactful ranges of blue light.
Blue Light Blocking Glasses—Orange Lenses
These are the most effective blue blockers on the market, blocking out an incredible 99.8% of blue light. They do turn the world orange, so I mostly use them for evening reading on a device or red-eye flights.
Lighting Science PM Light Bulbs
I replaced all the bulbs in the bedroom with these to reduce ambient blue light. Most bulbs in this category are actually worse than traditional bulbs so make sure you use these. I find that I prefer the softer shade of amber light to brighter bulbs.
Vitamonk Quad-Magnesium
Of all the things I’ve tested for sleep onset, magnesium is the only one to have a measurable effect. Take one right before bed. The most effective drops are now prescription-only, so I’m now experimenting with different sprays and salves as well.
(Note: Stop using melatonin for sleep onset—it’s only good for shifting sleep schedule or changing time zones. If you do take melatonin, take it at least two hours before bedtime and limit your dosage to 1 mg or less.)
Integrative Therapeutics Cortisol Manager
These have been effective as a long-term intervention to counter cortisol spikes from late-night poker. You might not notice how elevated your cortisol is unless you’re measuring your levels via blood tests, but your body registers it with sleep disruption, elevated heart rate, and anxiety. Take right before bed.
For most executives, the bottleneck is not a lack of time but a lack of energy capacity. My lifestyle has become progressively healthier with these subtle nudges that make it easier to treat my body well.
Here is the 80/20: Start each day with movement and sunshine on your face, drink lots of water, be mindful of your posture, break a sweat every day, listen to what your body tells you after you eat, and reserve time away for screens for recovery in the evening.
SodaStream
Turning water into seltzer makes staying hydrated a pleasurable experience and helped me eliminate all sugary carbonated drinks.
Tiger Water Heater
Reduces the effort required to drink perfect tea by always keeping water heated at the perfect temperature.
Zojirushi Rice Cooker
As a whole grain, rice is central to my diet, and having a rice cooker means easy and consistent preparation. Also wonderful for at-home sushi making.
Jade Yoga Mat / Cork Blocks
If you have your yoga mat in a prominent location you will stretch more often. This will improve your posture and reduce energy leaks throughout the day. For best results, have supporting props like cork blocks, straps, and sandbags handy.
Sonic Handheld Massager
For the price of a single massage, you can get one of these and help your body recover on a daily basis. Well worth the investment. Might also make you quite popular at house parties.
Lacrosse Ball / Foam Roller
These loosen up hard-to-reach muscles and increase blood flow for an improved range of motion and a decreased chance of injury. Additionally useful for easing sore muscles for better quality sleep and faster recovery.
NormaTec Compression Boots
Started using these compression pants to recover after workouts. The boots fill with air and squeeze your legs like a really deep massage to stimulate blood flow. I often store anxiety and stress in my legs so working out tension has had a positive effect on mental health and helped me sleep through the night.
Rogue Kettlebells
Pretty much every exercise can be modified to use kettlebells. With a handful of kettlebells and a bench, you’re 80% of the way to a home gym.
Epsom Salt
Adding Epsom salt to a relaxing hot bath allows magnesium sulfate to be absorbed into the skin, helping ease sore muscles and speed up recovery.
Waterpik
I’ve been scared straight on the importance of tooth and gum health: all that bacteria will enter your bloodstream if you let it. Personally, I hate flossing but I don’t mind spraying water in my mouth, and the Waterpik is almost as effective.
EverlyWell Food Sensitivity Test
Every single person should take a food sensitivity test. It is almost certain that there is something you regularly eat that your body doesn’t process well. Anything that comes up in the test is a good candidate for an elimination experiment. Through this test, I confirmed my lactose intolerance and had a huge quality of life improvement. Friends have discovered unexpected sensitivities like broccoli or strawberries.
WellnessFX Blood Testing
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I get a blood test every year to track my health over time and catch any risk of disease early. The blood tests take place at Quest Diagnostics and WellnessFX is a sleek dashboard for understanding the results.
Athletic Greens
When multiple high-performing friends told me that they no longer take supplements, except for Athletic Greens, they got my attention. Can just add a scoop to water in the morning and worry less about eating salads.
Zhou Caffeine/L-Theanine
One pill every morning has been my sole source of caffeine (other than dark chocolate) for the last seven years. The L-Theanine (2–1 ratio is ideal) modulates the release of caffeine (longer duration, less of a crash) and counterbalances the anxiety effect. Taking my caffeine in pill form allows me to completely control for the variable of dosage.
Pure Vitamin D / K2
Taking D3 and K2 together maximizes absorption. Vitamin D deficiency has been shown to increase the risks of severe COVID infection and other inflammatory diseases. I prefer drops over pills; these have no taste so can be added to liquids.
Carlson Fish Oil
Research coming out says that most vitamin supplements are pretty useless and supplement quality is pretty variable. Fish oil is one of the very few supplements that’s been shown to have any measurable effect and Carlson is high quality.
Singulair
I have really strong seasonal allergies that make me pretty miserable for about two weeks every spring and fall. Austin has severe cedar pollen and my allergies were the worst ever last season. Singulair was far more effective than Claritin at preventing symptoms. Singulair is prescription only, so do your own research, talk to your doctor, etc.
Zibiotics
Zibiotics is a pro-biotic that you take before you drink alcohol. It’s always better not to drink, but if you do, make sure you have one of these before your first drink to avoid a hangover. Saving your whole next day is pretty valuable.
UGG Slippers
Comfortable house slippers for the win. I felt basic buying UGGs at first, but these are a game-changer.
Just like everything else in life, if you track your finances, you will improve your finances.
With credit cards, everyone obsesses with the annual fee but fails to account for all the perks and signup bonuses. Banks compete hard for the privilege of your transaction fees so, if you pay off your cards in full every month, you can unlock thousands of dollars per year in benefits without changing anything about your spending.
Take a look at where you spend your money and find the card which offers the best benefits to you. The best redemption value for points are usually business class international flights. I rarely pay for flights anymore unless I absolutely need to be somewhere on a certain day. The first time you fly across an ocean sleeping in a bed will change the way you think about travel.
Keep a spreadsheet of credit card and subscription service renewal dates so that you can cancel before the annual renewal date if you’re no longer receiving benefits greater than the cost.
Tiller
I use Tiller for my personal budgeting and spending tracking. The interface is a Google Spreadsheet which feels the most intuitive and malleable. After connecting your accounts and adding categorization rules, you can see where all the dollars are going with minimal maintenance.
Personal Capital
Seeing your net worth increase over time is really motivational. The dashboard is useful for seeing where all my investments are at a glance. Most figures update automatically but I need to mark-to-market my private market investments once a month. A far less spammy alternative to Mint.
AwardWallet
As you get deeper down the travel hacking rabbit hole, it gets harder to keep track of all your rewards points. AwardWallet lets you see all your airline, hotel, and credit card miles/points in one place.
Ledger Nano
Not your keys, not your crypto. Self-custody your coins for maximum security and to avoid counterparty risk via an exchange. The Ledger Nano is the size of a USB stick and can be taken with you anywhere.
Charles Schwab
Online banking has the best debit card for travel. Use any ATM in the world and have all fees refunded. Amazing customer service. Lost my card in Hong Kong and got a new one delivered to my hotel the next day.
Up to $1000 is available as a first deposit bonus. How can they offer this bonus? Schwab is hoping you will default to their investment platform as well. If you are investing long-only, Schwab is great. If you’re selling short or buying on margin, I recommend Interactive Brokers instead.
FoundersCard
Membership program with ridiculous discounts and benefits for a $595 annual fee. I’m using MRPORTER ($200), Herman Miller (15%), Stripe ($50k fee-free), AT&T (15%), Equinox ($300), Adidas (30%), Dell (40%), and FancyHands (25%). Many hotel and airline discounts.
No brainer for poker players going to the WSOP as you get instant Diamond status at all Caesar’s properties. This allows you to skip registration/cashier lines, receive free rooms at Tier 2 properties mid-week, and status match at other casinos.
American Express Platinum Card
Absolute best card to own for perks. Here are a few: 5x points on flights/hotels, $200 Uber/Airline credits, Centurion airline lounges, free Clear/Global Entry Access, Saks/Audible/Equinox/SoulCycle statement credits. Exclusive Resy reservations and event lounge access. Hotel/car rental status upgrades. Concierge.
The most underrated benefit is the Fine Hotels + Resorts program, offering late checkout, $200 on-property credits, occasional complimentary hotel nights, and room upgrades when available. For a recent Ritz-Carlton stay, we got upgraded to a $6k/night villa.
175,000 Membership Rewards points upon signup, good for two round-trip international flights. The annual fee is high but sometimes negotiable.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
I put most of my non-business spending on this card. $300 travel credit, 3x points on travel/dining (up to 10x through Chase portal), Priority Pass, Global Entry credit, complimentary DashPass/Lyft Pink, DoorDash credit. Ultimate Rewards platform is the best, with transfers available to all three airline alliances for max redemption value.
60,000 Ultimate Rewards points upon signup, good for a free round-trip international flight. $550 annual fee cut in half with the $300 travel credit.
If the $450 annual fee is a deal-breaker, you can also get the Sapphire Preferred with 2X points, a 60,000 point signup reward, and only a $95 annual fee.
Chase Ink Business Preferred
Doing your taxes when owning multiple businesses is much easier when you have all business expenses on a separate credit card for each business. The Ink Preferred has 3x points on a bunch of business categories: travel, shipping, phone, internet, and even online advertising.
100,000 Ultimate Rewards upon signup and only a $95 annual fee, good for two round-trip international flights.
This is just about everything I have installed on my computer for general productivity. All of these programs play well with either Mac or Windows.
Notion
No other program has impacted Forcing Function’s workflow as much as Notion. Notion is our central information hub. We use Notion to track client interactions, host Team Performance Training, house our Performance Library, keep our meeting notes and SOPs, manage projects, and plan out content and launches.
Freedom
Focus is created through constraints. Freedom is the best web blocker on the market—I call it the “nuclear option.” With Freedom, you can preschedule blocking of groups of websites, apps, and even the entire internet for certain times of the day. There are apps for Mac, Windows, Android, and iOS, which allows you to sync across your devices.
1Password
The most important thing for web security is a password manager. 1Password generates unique, super secure passwords that you never need to remember with automatic log-ins. Also, with 1Password team accounts, you can easily share temporary account access or credit card access with contractors.
Google Calendar / Workspace
If it’s not in my Google Calendar, it doesn’t happen. The calendar is my second brain for anything that is time-based, with notifications to remind me of all things that I’ve committed to doing and an objective record of all the things I’ve done. You can share calendars with roommates or a significant other for easy coordination.
I use Google Workspace for collaboration with our team and clients on documents, cloud storage, domain hosting, team email accounts, and probably other things that I’m missing.
Google Fi
If you travel frequently, Google’s unlimited plan is a revolution with free international data in 200 countries. AT&T and all the majors make you buy an expensive Passport subscription if you want to avoid paying $10/day while traveling or going through the hassle of finding a SIM card. Free calling to 50 countries and $0.20/minute calling from other countries means I use my phone how I normally would in the US.
Within the US, you can use your phone as a high-speed wi-fi hotspot for up to 22 gb/month. (Speed is metered after that unless you pay $10/gb for full-speed). For both security and convenience, I prefer to use my computer without logging in to a public wi-fi network. I can also use my phone as a backup router.
Satori
Satori is Forcing Function’s client-facing interface. Satori saves us a ton of administrative hassle and helps me spend more time adding value to clients rather than managing a business. I use Satori for all session scheduling (syncing with my Google Calendar), payments (Stripe), and check-in questionnaires.
Calendly
I use Calendly for all personal scheduling. Can create unlimited meeting types/durations with a shareable link (and keyboard shortcut!) for each so the previous back-and-forth becomes [cal type] + enter. Providing your scheduling link (along with a magic disclaimer: “If these times don’t work, feel free to suggest . . .”) nudges all meetings towards the windows that work best for you.
Pro tip: create an “urgent” calendar with open availability for a one-week window to prioritize getting someone on the schedule ASAP.
Slack
All internal team communication at Forcing Function takes place on Slack. Email is the worst—reduced formality in Slack minimizes feedback cycles. All our past conversations are searchable and public record, making it easy to stay on the same page. It’s important to encourage your team to have all notifications turned off (unless someone tags them directly) so that Slack does not become a distraction from deep work.
Discord
Make your own herd! Discord is your gateway to the metaverse—if you do anything in crypto-land, you will spend a lot of time here. Discord is probably the most fun place to host your community. Forums are dead, all communication is moving to real-time.
There are trade-offs: without threaded conversations, Discord can become a meme-y firehose. More useful for a temperature check than structured discourse.
RescueTime
RescueTime automatically tracks where your time is spent on desktop and mobile devices. This allows you to identify problem sites and apps so that you can add friction to accessing them. Armed with objective knowledge (the results will surprise you!), it is much harder to deny reality.
Screen Time is not a valid substitute due to misaligned incentives. This may surprise you, but Apple doesn’t actually want you to spend less time on your phone!
Readwise
I export all of my Kindle and Instapaper highlights to Readwise. Whenever I want to research a topic, my first stop is searching that topic in Readwise to resurface anything I have saved in the past.
Readwise also surfaces past highlights in a customizable daily email. The most useful idea right now is likely an idea you have already had. Embrace randomness: curated serendipity is powerful for lateral thinking.
F.lux
F.lux automatically and gradually adapts the level of on-screen blue light on your MacBook at night. Customizable. Apple’s Night Shift is a complete joke; a change in coloration does not mean a change in light frequency.
focus@will
My go-to background music for deep work, focus@will is a total flow enhancer. Upbeat music which fades into the background without lyrics or big drops. Also an iPhone app.
Try The Deep: Alpha Chill while working or Atmosphere while reading on a plane.
The best Chrome extensions act as subtle behavioral nudges, saving you time and improving your intentionality when you spend time online.
Momentum
Chrome’s default is to show your most visited websites (generally not where you’ll want to be defaulting to!), but Momentum gives you a clean interface with a to-do list that reminds you of why you’re on your computer.
Grammarly
Grammarly acts like an automated copy editor that checks your spelling and grammar as you write. An amazing extension that also works with Google Docs.
Instapaper
Improve the average quality of what you read online by separating discovery from consumption. A simple rule: don’t read anything when you first find it—save it for later. I have an iPad Mini with only Instapaper on it, and I process my articles on nights/weekends. Counterintuitively, I have found that the shorter the article, the lower the ROI of reading it.
Facebook News Feed Eradicator
Stay out of the feed! I’m pretty much off the Facebook ecosystem entirely at this point, but I do need Facebook occasionally for business purposes. With this extension in place, I can visit Facebook during the workday without falling into the rabbit hole.
Distraction Free YouTube
Avoid rabbit holes and triggers on YouTube. Hides all algorithmic recommendations and comments. Disables video autoplay.
uBlock Origin
Best ad blocker out there. Blocks all ads and pop-ups across the web. Major impact on saving CPU/memory while browsing.
Crackbook
Expand the space between impulse and habitual response. Crackbook increases the page load time of problematic websites that you still want to access from time to time. Load time gets longer with every check. Rather than just blocking your distraction entirely, Crackbook gives you time to be more intentional. (A minute of waiting for Twitter to load feels like an eternity—try it!)
OneTab
OneTab allows you to close and save a group of similar tabs for one-click future access. I keep running lists for every active project to minimize mental activation energy. Plus, by only having the tabs you need at this moment, you minimize distraction, RAM, and mental clutter.
xTab
Overloaded browser, overloaded brain. If you have dozens of tabs open right now, you are operating at a fraction of your attentional capacity. With xTab, when I reach my (customizable) maximum of twelve tabs, I have to close a tab before I am able to open a new one.
An important meta-habit: close all your tabs every time you end a computer session so that you start the next session with a clean slate. Think about it: when you open up your browser, do you really want to be bombarded with fifteen random things you’ve “saved for later”?
MetaMask
Your browser-based crypto wallet and your bridge for all things DeFi. MetaMask is compatible with every Ethereum-enabled protocol and, with bridges, will allow you to access all of the other L1 protocols as well. Recommend combining with Ledger Nano.
Video Speed Controller
One click speeds up or slows down video playback in 0.1x increments so that you can watch more things in less time.
Mailtrack for Gmail
Mailtrack lets you know if your emails and emailed links have been opened with a handy dashboard. If someone engages with your email after a while, that is usually a good time to follow up. If they haven’t opened your email, it can also be a good indicator that the person hasn't seen it and you can ping them.
Boomerang for Gmail
Boomerang schedules the sending of your emails, snoozes emails until you’re ready to take action, and resurfaces the email in your inbox if someone does not respond. I prefer Boomerang over the embedded Google functions.
Inbox When Ready for Gmail
Add some intentionality to your email. Inbox When Ready allows you to send an email or search past messages without seeing your inbox so that you don’t get distracted by the manufactured urgency of present communications.
Inbox When Ready is also customizable, I set it so that I need to wait fifteen seconds for my inbox to load. This buffer feels like an eternity when I’m distractible, ensuring that I batch my email checks to prescheduled times instead of treating my inbox as a default distraction.
My iPhone home screen
Your smartphone can be a superpower or a super-stimulus—it's up to you. Curate your applications and your home screen to nudge yourself towards more valuable actions and a more impactful life. Pro-tip: keep your phone in black and white mode to reinforce the principle that your phone is a tool, not a toy.
Google Authenticator
Highly recommend using two-factor authentication (2FA) for any accounts with sensitive data—especially financial accounts. If you do not have 2FA set up for your email and cell service, do that right now. App-based 2FA is far more secure than text-based (where the service texts you a code) because phone numbers are much more hackable than physical devices.
Overcast
Overcast is the best player for listening to podcasts. Download podcasts for offline listening and reclaim space after you finish an episode. The SmartSpeed function takes out pauses and can cut down the time to listen to a podcast in half.
Otter
Otter automatically transcribes all audio. Integrates well with Zoom. I use Otter to transcribe all meetings and important conversations. Knowing I can use search to find key ideas and action items later allows me to be more present and less pressured to take notes during the conversation.
Foursquare
Foursquare remains the best app for local travel discovery. I used Foursquare to find (and select what to order at) almost every single restaurant I tried for the last decade. Don’t even get me started on the dumpster fire that is Yelp.
Pro-tip: when in a new city, sort by rating and walk to anywhere rated 9.0 or higher within 0.3 miles for a guaranteed win.
Resy
Preferred app for reservations. The search function is very handy for the use case of “where can our group of six get a reservation tonight?”
Carrot Weather
Never get caught in the rain again. Customizable notifications where you can get down to the minute predictions of when rain is about to start. Best Dark Sky replacement I’ve found after their acquisition by Apple.
Insight Timer
Voice-directed meditation apps are weird. I want my meditation guidance to be as minimal as possible. Set a duration and just focus on the out-breath until the ending bell sounds.
Pzziz
Pzziz will absolutely transform your power nap game. Hypnotic dreamscapes which block out ambient noise, calm you down, and help you fall asleep faster. You can specify how long you would like to sleep and Pzizz gently wakes you up feeling refreshed.
Soundcloud
Soundcloud is the best place to find and discover electronic music. Play sets rather than individual tracks to avoid awkward transitions. Activate the feature to “automatically download liked tracks” so that you can bookmark sets and listen to them when offline.
Shazam
Shazam has upped their game—the detection has improved immensely since partnering with Apple Music and Spotify. There is a one-click shortcut available to capture any great song I hear. You can also set it to passive detection mode, so it just vacuums up every song while you’re out at an underground electronic show with music that’s otherwise impossible to find.
Daylio
Daylio is a visual mood diary to identify trends in feeling over time. Helped me identify that I was feeling depressed much sooner than I would have realized otherwise. You click on the emojis on a one-to-ten scale, which creates a nice visual of your mood trajectory over time. You can also correlate “I feel happy when,” or “I feel less fulfilled when,” to external factors.
AllTrails
Every place I travel, I like to find hikes. AllTrails helps me find the best trails in the area with excellent filters, photos, and reviews. Download the map offline so you can follow the trail in the app without reception.
Strava
With Strava, my casual bike rides have become training runs. If you have a speedometer on your handlebars, you will go faster. If you time your routes, you will push yourself harder.
Soothe
Soothe is Uber for massage therapists in your home. You pay a premium for convenience but it’s usually the only way to get a same-day massage.
Turboscan
High-quality document scanning on your phone. I do a lot of analog note-taking and Turboscan makes it simple to send or archive notes to Drive, Evernote, Slack, or email.
Chwazi
Anytime I have a decision that doesn’t carry much weight (chicken or fish for dinner?) I inject some randomness into my life with this generator. Perfect for deciding who pays for the check with your more degen friends.
So there you have it.
I update this list periodically with any other great resources I discover in my travels.
I would love to hear what you find the most useful.
What did I miss? Anything I should add to this list?
Let me know. You can find me on Twitter @SparksRemarks, DMs open.