For those who don't tweak their toolchains spending one chunk of time and forgetting about them is obviously better than doing nothing else, but personally I recommend continuously evaluating what you do on the shell (well, obviously this can be generalized, but I won't go there) and tweaking away your pain points and repetitive tasks.

Some specific recommendations --

- Keep a version controlled `dotfiles` folder, link important files to it and share it across dev envs.

- Add shortcuts to modify your vimrc (<leader>v) and apply it (<leader>V) to help you tweak fast and get instant feedback.

- Using an approximation of REPL for any work I do has been the single largest productivity boost I have: minimize keystrokes between (Write Code) <> (Build/Compile/Run/Whatever/Get feedback) <> (Write code). I started using vimux recently (lets you run commands in a split pane without actually leaving the pane with vim installed) and have never been happier.

- While speaking of nice fonts to write code in, http://www.google.com/webfonts/specimen/PT+Mono is a new favourite of mine. Of course, your mileage will vary.

(edit: formatting)