Audiobooks can be surprisingly effective. For me after a day's work programming most days I don't feel like sitting in front of the computer again or use a tablet or phone to read. It's exhausting. But there is a better way to relax. Listening to audiobooks while lying down relaxing. Simple and effective. Walking and listeing is also equally effective. Listening to books while doing chores, not effective. Listening is an active activity. If you are never used to listening to audio content, this might get some getting used to because thoughts wander in between and you will have to rewind a few times. But it will get better. Trust the process. Reading also has its equal share of mind wandering.

Here are some of the audiobooks I have listened and completed recently. I am able to complete the books and grasp most of the content effectively than I could reading the book for the same amount of time. These are not technical books which I am not sure how listening to will help.

  • Atomic Habits by James Clear
A small change or improvement in habit will bring remarkable results over time. And a negative habit can slowly compound and be detrimental. Focus on the system to achieve the goal and not just the goal alone. And much more on personal development with anecdotes.
  • Deep Work by Cal Newport
In our present world of constant distractions, doing deep work matters. It's required for achieving anything worthwhile. Doing shallow work is easy and can be easily replicated. This book focuses on the importance of concentrated, focused work. And literature around this. Essential for programmers.
  • The Strangest Secret by Earl Nightingale
You become what you think about. Is the core idea. This is an audio recording of a radio program which I listens since my childhood days. It's short and I often revisits for a change.

I definitely recommend listening to these. It's a nice way to end this year on a positive note and prepare for the year ahead.

I also listened to the below which has some points to keep in mind.

  • The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Parts of it is useful for me. All money related books talk about stock markets and such which I don't care about. So those are not relevant to me. But rest of the content is worth noting. Behaviour matters more than technical knowledge on finance for saving money. Serendipity plays a part in life and cannot be overlooked. Wealth building is a slow process. It takes time. And more.

For a DRM free audiobook listening a dedicated app would make the listening experience much better. Music players are not designed for this. I use BookPlayer for iOS. It has 30 seconds rewind, begin a bit before on a pause to get the continuation, continue from where it was left off, bookmarks, library, the features I use.