DeepSummary
In this episode, Chris Williamson interviews Cal Newport, a computer science professor at Georgetown University and a productivity expert. They discuss the problems with our current view of productivity, which Cal calls 'pseudo-productivity' - focusing on visible activity as a proxy for useful work. Cal traces the history of productivity advice from the 1950s to today, showing how it has shifted from psychological approaches to overload and burnout.
Cal introduces the concept of 'slow productivity,' which involves letting go of goals that don't serve you, saying no more often, and focusing on quality over quantity. He advocates for taking more time, embracing variations in intensity, and creating an environment conducive to deep work. The conversation covers practical strategies for reducing overload, such as transparent workloads, quotas, templates, and pre-provisioning time.
Cal shares his personal approach to work, including his emphasis on writing, his struggles with finding the right balance, and his efforts to reduce commitments. He stresses the importance of improving one's taste and understanding what true quality looks like in a field, rather than just pursuing busyness.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Our current view of productivity, which Cal calls 'pseudo-productivity,' is flawed and focused on visible busyness rather than true value creation.
- The 'slow productivity' approach advocates letting go of unimportant goals, saying no more often, and embracing variations in work intensity.
- Reducing overload through strategies like transparent workloads, quotas, and pre-provisioning time is crucial for enabling slow productivity.
- Improving one's taste and understanding of true quality in a field is essential for producing excellent work.
- Self-doubt and the temptation to revert to busyness are common challenges when adopting a slow productivity mindset.
- Balancing depth of focus with timely completion is key, such as by setting deadlines or schedules while allowing adequate time for quality work.
- Finding the right level of commitment and recalibrating as life circumstances change is an ongoing process in maintaining a sustainable work approach.
- Writing and deep creative work benefit from focused, uninterrupted time periods rather than fractured schedules filled with administrative overhead.
Top Episodes Quotes
- โPseudo productivity has been around, it begins to become increasingly unbearable in the two thousands. What we then get starting maybe five or six years ago, is an emergent anti productivity movement. Because again, this is coming out of a place that makes sense. People are increasingly burnt out.โ by Cal Newport
- โYeah, there's a lot of self doubt, right? Especially early on, you're beginning to obsess over quality, but you haven't really gain traction yet. Right? That's difficult. You're like, oh, my God, I'm trying to do some things really well here. I'm going to use this as the foundation for slowness. You have a lot of self doubt.โ by Cal Newport
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Episode Information
Modern Wisdom
Chris Williamson
3/30/24
Cal Newport is a computer science professor at Georgetown University, a productivity expert and an author.
If youโve ever felt that youโre not as productive as you could be, youโre not alone. But what if the goal isn't to be more productive, but to let go of the goals that aren't serving you? What if the power of saying no to more things is the most important skill you can develop?
Expect to learn what our current problem with being productive is, why pseudo-productivity is a catastrophe, the advantages to what Cal calls Slow Productivity, how to better organise your communication, the best strategies for implementing a productivity schedule, how to stop saying yes all the time and much more...
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