Created by Kavya Shankar (Harvard 2014), Brandon Liu (Harvard 2014), Carl Shan (UC Berkeley 2014), Varun Pemmaraju (UC Berkeley 2014), and Betsy Tsai (UCLA 2014) from Lynbrook High School.

1. Module
#
9
Produc-vity
Tips
and
S
trategies
By
Carl
Shan,
Kavya
Shankar,
Brandon
Liu,
Betsy
Tsai,
Varun
Pemmaraju

2. Module
#
9
Introduc-on
Carl
Shan,
Kavya
Shankar,
Brandon
Liu,
Betsy
Tsai,
Varun
Pemmaraju
The purpose of this module is to compile a list of effective tips and strategies that can quickly help you
become more productive with your time.
The module is organized into several sections:
I. Studying Strategies – This section will go over general tips for studying.
II. Writing Papers – We know this is a big part of being productive.
III. General Strategies – Strategies for general activities such as email management.
IV. Productivity Tools – We will list some applications and tools that we use to build our productivity
habits.
As a caveat, we know that not all of our strategies will work for everyone. Please try to take the time to
discover the amalgamation of strategies that work for you.

3. Module
#9
Sec-on
1:
Studying
Strategies
By
Carl
Shan

4.
Module
#
9
Sec-on
1:
Studying
Strategies
Carl
Writes:
1. One of your goals should be to make studying unnecessary. I mean this as in, you should cultivate the
discipline to pay such close attention in class and to tune in in such intensity that your brain naturally captures
most or all information such that the only studying left to do is to skim over material before a test. Of course,
this is difficult for most but we’re trying to help you get there. One way I think you can begin to discipline your
mind to that state is simply by practicing or engaging your knowledge soon after you’ve learned it. In my
CS class for example, right after I learn about the concepts in lecture I attempt to apply what I’ve learned to
things I already know. We recently covered the topic of recursion, and I just thought about how closely that ties
into the movie Inception. By doing so, I am forming more neural connections between concepts in my head,
leading to higher memory retention and better comprehension.
2. Take the initiative to seek help when you need it. There is no shame in asking seemingly ‘dumb’
questions. Those who judge you for asking questions about what you genuinely don’t know aren’t worth your
attention. It took me quite a long time before I learned this lesson.
3. Repetition or rote learning will only get you so far. You should truly understand the lesson and not simply
be able to memorize it. The reason behind this is simple – you build your intellectual capital base. Just as you
might have heard it is easy to make money when you have a lot of money, it is easier to get smarter when you
are already smart. The reason behind this is simply due to the fact that when you have an eager brain that
contains much knowledge, a new piece of information can fit snugly right in. Get smart now so that it’s easier
to get smarter later.

5. Module
#9
Sec-on
2:
Wri-ng
Papers
By
Betsy
Tsai

6.
Module
#9
Sec-on
2:
Wri-ng
Papers
Betsy
Writes:
Firstly,
don't
try
to
force
anything.
If
you
really
want
to
write
that
scholarship
/
college
essay
about
leadership,
but
your
personal
experiences
can't
really
aPest
to
this
(really
hackneyed)
subject,
then
don't.
You
want
to
come
up
with
something
unique
and
representa-ve
of
your
capabili-es.
In
the
long
run,
we
all
get
-red
of
trying
to
write
something
we're
not.
And
then
we
just
can't.
And
then
comes
writers'
block.
College
essays:
-­‐-­‐Recall
and
chart
down
your
past
experiences.
Even
go
through
old
elementary
school
porYolios
or
middle
school
photos.
Recall
significant
conversa-ons
with
teachers,
parents,
friends.
By
synthesizing
these,
you'll
gain
clarity
for
how
your
life
has
illustrated
the
prompt.
And,
the
readers
will
know
that
you
are
actually
human,
not
just
a
resume.
-­‐-­‐When
asked
about
your
"goals,"
"ambi-ons,"
"aspira-ons,"
don't
immediately
think
about
a
career.
If
every
kid
your
age
was
thinking
about
careers
in
this
much
detail,
the
majority
of
them
would
be
lying.
Think
of
the
ques-on
this
way:
"what
is
your
mission
statement?"
Go
on
university
websites
for
examples
of
mission
statements.
What
in
abstract
terms
do
you
want
to
do?
Give
a
unique
face
to
the
ambi-on
of
being
a
district
aPorney
or
electrical
engineer.

7.
Module
#9
Sec-on
2:
Wri-ng
Papers
Betsy
Writes:
Open
Research
Prompts:
-­‐-­‐Start
ac-ng
like
a
prompt
and
asking
ques>ons
all
the
>me.
Read
a
book,
have
a
conversa-on,
and
wonder
why
someone
said
something,
or
came
to
that
conclusion.
-­‐-­‐ex.
My
friend
traveled
to
Taiwan
and
China
this
summer
to
teach
English
and
found
that
the
Chinese
were
a
lot
less
gregarious
and
embracing,
and
more
self-­‐contained-­‐-­‐-­‐maybe
a
result
of
the
One-­‐Child
Policy?
BAM!
Research
paper
topic!
(I'm
sure
this
works
in
all
sorts
of
fields.)
Planning
&
Outlining
Outlines.
Use
complete
sentences.
Fragments
are
for
archaeologists.
If
you
have
a
bullet
point
that
just
says
"my
community
project,"
great,
3
days
later,
how
were
you
going
to
link
that
to
the
prompt
again?
Don't
be
afraid
to
use
sentences
that
sound
immature.
It's
just
your
outline.
This
is
not
what's
being
submiPed.
If
you
want,
use
sentences
like,
"A
indicates
B,
which
means
C,
which
is
like
point
D,
and
is
related
to
the
thesis
because
E..."
Makes
for
a
more
cohesive
paper.
A
very
beefy
outline
is
also
a
lot
less
daun-ng
to
write
than
an
actual
paper.
There's
a
sense
of
fluidity,
that
you
can
go
back,
screw
around
with
it,
and
write
without
erring.
Keep
the
fingers
tapping
out
the
ideas.
Let
your
brain
have
more
to
work
with
when
you
put
things
visibly
down
on
paper.
Having
a
really
strong
outline
also
makes
wri-ng
the
paper
seem
a
lot
easier,
almost
like
transcrip-on.

8.
Module
#9
Sec-on
2:
Wri-ng
Papers
Betsy
Writes:
Actually
Wri>ng
-­‐
Take
breaks.
Run.
Play
your
instrument
(I
know
you
lie
on
those
Music
department
prac-ce
sheets).
Look
at
some
art
or
photography.
Essen-ally
what
you're
doing
is
taking
a
break
from
trying
to
juice
yourself.
We're
all
affected
by
the
environment
around
us,
so
being
cooped
up
in
your
liPle
room
24/7
won't
do
you
much
good.
-­‐
If
there's
a
genre
of
music
or
ar-st
that
gives
you
energy,
by
all
means...
-­‐
If
you
struggle
with
wri-ng
a
good,
interes-ng
variety
of
sentences,
or
how
to
charge
through
a
paragraph
without
making
it
sound
as
tedious
as
the
wri-ng
process,
try
reading
other
ar>cles.
Find
a
voice
you
like
and
see
how
they
set
up
the
claims
of
each
sec-on.
You'll
find
some-mes
the
best
writers
aren't
necessarily
linear
in
their
trains
of
thought.
-­‐
If
you
have
a
thought
inside
your
head,
but
don't
know
how
quite
to
communicate
it,
say
it
aloud.
Your
mouth
will
somehow
form
it
into
a
sentence,
or
at
least
a
couple
of
fragments.
If
you
need
to,
write
what
you
blurted
out
on
a
separate
sheet
of
paper
/
Word
document,
play
around
with
its
structure,
clarity,
and
then
insert
it
into
your
paper.
Proofreading
-­‐
Read
it
aloud.
You'll
immediately
pick
out
the
verbose,
aristocra-c
words
with
more
syllables
than
you
would
normally
care
to
pronounce.
-­‐
Have
someone
(Hanford
and
Clark
are
hard-­‐asses
;P)
read
it.
If
it
makes
sense
to
you,
great,
but
you're
not
the
grader,
are
you?
-­‐
Aher
reading
each
sentence,
ask
how
it's
related
to
the
other
sentences
in
the
paragraph,
the
paragraph,
and
the
topic.
Ask
yourself
if
you
really
need
to
make
this
point.
I
can't
tell
you
how
many
-mes
I've
read
people's
papers
and
they
have
threads
in
there
that
don't
need
to
be
there
and
make
reading
the
paper
a
heavier
task.

9. Module
#9
Sec-on
3:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
By
Carl
Shan,
Brandon
Liu,
Varun
Pemmaraju

10.
Module
#9
Sec-on
3:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
Varun
Writes:
1.
Planner:
I
thought
everyone
uses
planners..
but
apparently
that's
not
the
case.
For
me
a
planner
is
a
way
of
passing
memory
and
RAM,
as
Brandon
calls
it,
so
that
it
can
be
saved
for
other
stuff.
2.
To-­‐Do
Lists:
I
keep
a
structured
set
of
lists
through
my
iPhone
Notes.
It
used
to
be
on
this
neat
liPle
pad
that
someone
gave
me
but
I
went
through
so
much
paper
it
was
ridiculous.
But
anyway,
I
have
a
Current
To-­‐Do
which
is
all
stuff
which
has
to
get
done
today,
followed
by
things
that
should
get
done
if
I
have
free
-me
that
day.
Then
there's
a
longer
term
to-­‐do
list.
I
think
the
most
important
thing
is
get
in
the
habit
of
being
able
to
cross
things
out.
If
you
don't
start
and
get
into
the
system,
it
becomes
harder
and
harder
to
aPain
the
produc-vity
goals
you
want.
3.
Don't
put
off
small
tasks
if
you
can
do
them
at
that
moment.
If
there's
an
email
that
can
be
responded
to,
don't
mark
it
as
unread
and
say
you'll
"do
it
later".
Like
I
said
before,
cross
stuff
off
the
To-­‐Do
lists
while
you
can.
4.
Along
those
lines,
everyone
has
to
find
a
way
to
fight
Facebook/TwiOer/etc.
Counterintui-vely,
for
me
it
was
to
have
them
always
open
along
with
Mail.
Firefox
has
this
neat
way
of
pinning
websites
you
always
use,
and
then
flashing
them
blue
when
they
update.
At
first,
it
was
addic-ng
to
check
but
now,
I've
become
bePer
at
ignoring
it
un-l
the
problem's
done
or
the
chapter's
finished.
Also,
with
them
constantly
up
(but
tucked
away
on
the
side),
I
don't
have
the
urge
to
open
a
tab
and
go
check.

11.
Module
#9
Sec-on
3:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
Varun
Writes:
5.
Find
things
in
your
life
that
you
can
accomplish
and
feel
like
you're
gePng
something
done,
but
involve
no
academic
work
whatsoever.
It
can
be
working
out,
cleaning
your
room,
etc.
For
me,
Triathlon
prac-ce
really
gets
me
through
the
day
but
it
literally
can
be
anything.
6.
Sounds
cheesy
but
when
you're
showering
in
the
morning
or
while
ea-ng
breakfast,
think
about
what
your
goals
are
for
the
day
and
how
you
plan
to
accomplish
them.
Be
specific!
Don't
just
say
"Do
CS
HW";
quan-fy
what
you
want
to
get
done
so
that
its
easy
to
turn
it
into
an
accomplishment
at
the
end
of
the
day.
7.
Leave
room
for
spontaneity
in
your
schedule!
It
keeps
you
sane!

12.
Module
#9
Sec-on
3:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
Brandon
Writes:
1.
Capture
all
the
things
you
need
to
get
done
somewhere
so
you
don't
need
to
use
extra
"RAM"
to
remember
2.
Schedule
which
day
you
want
to
get
these
things
done,
so
that
each
day
you
have
a
todo
list
that
you
don't
have
to
look
at
un-l
that
day.
3.
Leave
room
for
unexpected
occurrences,
and
don't
get
upset
if
you
didn't
accomplish
everything
you
wanted
to
do.
4.
Remember
the
purpose
and
outcome
you're
gemng
out
of
comple-ng
a
task.
5.
Some-mes
produc-vity
means
cumng
out
tasks
that
you
shouldn't
be
doing.
Always
ques>on
every
single
task
and
ask
yourself
whether
it's
something
you
should
be
doing.
Some-mes
we
end
up
doing
things
that
don't
actually
contribute
to
anything!
6.
When
applicable,
see
if
you
can
leverage
someone
else's
skills
to
get
something
done
faster
7.
hPp://regardingwork.com/2011/09/01/100-­‐ways-­‐to-­‐get-­‐more-­‐done/

13.
Module
#9
Sec-on
3:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
Carl
Writes:
1.
Start
small
-­‐
don't
try
to
accomplish
100
tasks
in
1
day
if
you
don't
have
to.
It
just
burns
you
out
and
makes
you
cynical
about
produc-vity.
2.
For
big
projects,
do
a
por>on
the
DAY
that
it's
assigned.
A
small
por-on,
but
more
than
just
a
symbolic
gesture.
For
many,
just
star-ng
is
the
difficult
part.
3.
Plan
things
out.
So
much
can
be
accomplished
when
you
plan
out
what
you
want
to
do
and
when
you
want
to
do
it.
We
have
a
tendency
to
think
vaguely
to
ourselves
“Oh
I’ll
do
it
tomorrow.”
Think
instead,
“I’ll
complete
the
Biology
homework
assignment
from
4PM
–
5PM
tomorrow.”
4.
Priori>ze.
It’s
very
important
to
do
so!
It
gives
you
a
sense
of
perspec-ve
of
what’s
important.
By
priori-zing
your
tasks
and
ranking/categorizing
them
in
terms
of
importance,
you
are
essen-ally
telling
your
mind
what
tasks
it
needs
to
concentrate
on.

14. Module
#9
Sec-on
4:
Produc-vity
Tools
By
Carl
Shan

15.
Module
#9
Sec-on
4:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
Carl
Writes:
Apps:
1.
Use
Google
Calendar
or
some
sort
of
calendar
to
keep
track
of
everything.
Especially
big
and
important
dates.
I
simply
cannot
emphasize
how
important
this
is.
By
keeping
a
calendar,
I
no
longer
forget
any
big
or
important
events.
I
even
put
the
deadlines
of
school
projects
down
and
have
periodic
reminders
to
ping
me!
This
has
been
an
immense
help
to
me.
2.
I
use
Boomerrang
(Gmail
Plugin)
to
keep
track
of
emails
that
I
have
to
follow
up
on
and
send.
3.
No>fyMe
-­‐
Cell
phone
reminder
tool.
It's
5$
but
there's
other
ways
to
get
it
for
free
(hint
hint).
4.
I've
used
TaskPaper,
Todoist,
Things,
Omnifocus,
Wunderlist
Rememberthemilk
and
much
more.
All
are
kinda
meh.
I've
stuck
with
Taskpaper
for
now
because
it's
by
far
the
most
flexible.
These
don't
solve
the
problem
of
produc-vity.
They're
just
tools.
Buying
amazing
running
shoes
doesn't
help
you
use
weight
if
you
don't
use
them
in
an
effec-ve
manner.
Don’t
mistake
the
tools
for
what
the
tools
are
supposed
to
help
you
do.
5.
Check
out
Self-­‐Control
if
you
have
a
Macbook.
It’s
a
website
blocking
app
that
can
keep
your
Facebook/Reddit/TwiPer/Whatever
urges
under
control.

16.
Module
#9
Sec-on
4:
General
Produc-vity
Strategies
Carl
Writes:
Where
Can
I
Get
These
Tools?
Email
Tools:
Boomerrang
-­‐
hPp://www.boomeranggmail.com/
CloudMagic
-­‐
hPp://www.cloudmagic.com/
To-­‐Do
List
Applica-ons:
Wunderlist
-­‐
hPp://www.6wunderkinder.com/wunderlist/
Taskpaper
-­‐
hPp://www.hogbaysohware.com/products/taskpaper
Omnifocus
-­‐
hPp://www.omnigroup.com/products/omnifocus/
No-fyMe
-­‐
hPp://no-fymecloud.com/
ToDoist
-­‐
hPp://todoist.com/

17.
Module
9
In
Closing…
Carl
Shan,
Kavya
Shankar,
Brandon
Liu,
Betsy
Tsai,
Varun
Pemmaraju
In summary, these are all some of the techniques and tools that have helped us become more productive. It
does not mean that these are the right tools for you. Find your own mix of strategies and systems that help you
become more efficient. Take what value you can from our advice and craft something out of it.
Keep in mind that one of the hardest parts of becoming more productive is finding the willpower to even truly
want to. That means being able to watch less TV, use less FB, stop playing games etc. so that you can
accomplish and achieve more in life.
The best way to build up this willpower, and you definitely can do it, is by changing your habits slowly but
surely. Start small, with just one unproductive thing that you do, and cut it down by 10%. Increase every other
day by a little bit more until you have a firm grasp on it and rinse and repeat for all your other wasteful habits.
We, as your mentors, can only guide you to see the paths that we’ve walked in our lives. It is important for you
to also discover your own.
And we all believe that you can find it.
Cheers,
Carl, Kavya, Brandon, Betsy and Varun

18. Thanks!
Authors:
Carl
Shan,
Kavya
Shankar,
Brandon
Liu,
Varun
Pemmaraju,
Betsy
Tsai
For
more
informa-on,
email:
shan.carl@gmail.com,
varun.pemmaraju@gmail.com,
kshankar.92@gmail.com,
brandon.k.liu@gmail.com,
betsyrtsai@gmail.com