Deep Work by Cal Newport Book Review
Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
In today’s world where it seems like distractions lurk around every corner, staying focused is like a superpower. I read about a church recently who is doing a 40 day digital fast for Lent together. I think it’s a fantastic idea teaching people to separate from technology and distractions to get closer to God.
In our professional lives being able to lock in and eliminate distractions (from technology or other sources) and focus on a particular task or project can lead to so much more efficiency, creativity, and problem-solving.
In this book, he gives practical strategies and examples of how to apply his concepts to get better work done, undistracted. Newport is a computer science professor at Georgetown University so his work is all researched based. He’s also written the books Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World and So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love.
Here’s my takeaways from this book:
A commitment to deep work usually means short term sacrifice for long term success.
Embrace boredom and resist the constant urge for distraction. He argues that allowing the mind to wander and experience boredom can lead to insights and creative breakthroughs.
The quality of work matters more than the quantity of time spent working. He encourages prioritizing deep work sessions over long hours of shallow work, as deep work leads to more meaningful accomplishments.
Montaigne, Jung, Woody Allen, Bill Gates and others took deliberate time out to think deeply and about big things. This is especially important today with so many distractions. Chunks of time with no distractions is vital in any line of work. Those who recognize the importance of this depth of thinking have a huge competitive advantage. This time allows you to learn faster, think deeper, make more connections than shallow, distraction filled thinking does.
Add friction for people to have access to you - less social media, don't give out email or phone number freely.
Undistracted work allows you be totally present and grateful and comfortable being bored.
Ability to master hard things quickly and produce high quality work quickly are two vital characteristics in order to succeed.
Many corporate pressures to be always connected but has shown to lead to lower quality work. Most of these habits can be broken with habits which promote deep work.
Clarity for what matters gives clarity to what doesn't matter.
Deep work goes hand in hand with awareness and attention which are strongly correlated with happiness.
We need to develop our own routines and philosophy for Deep Work. Some may set aside a certain time every day for deep work, some may fit it in wherever they can and others might try to remove all distractions for constant Deep Work with regular breaks.
Having a set time and location when you do certain types of work helps save some willpower and eliminate certain decisions.
Great, creative minds think like artists but work like accountants - don’t wait for inspiration to strike, you have to have great routines.
White boarding effect - sometimes doing Deep Work collaboratively is more effective than solo Deep Work.
Productive meditation - think of your deep work task during some mindless physical activity such as walking the dog or going for a run. Beware of distractions like your phone and just thinking of things you already know.
Being able to memorize a deck of cards will help you stay concentrated for long periods of time.
Quit social media as much as possible
Craftsman's approach to tool selection - determine key things that will determine your success and happiness and only use tools which help you get substantially closer to achieving these goals. Focusing as much of your time and energy on tools which bring disproportionate rewards is the best way to leverage your time.
A minimalistic, simplistic lifestyle is helpful to stay focused and do Deep Work
Be very deliberate about how you spend your leisure time before it begins
Most people hit a mental block with deep work after about 4 hours
It can be a helpful and insightful exercise to try to plan out your day by half hour chunks and see how closely you can follow it and to clearly see where and how you spend your time. This is more about establishing thoughtfulness to your schedule than constraints and rigidity.