The Lumberjack Paradox

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Lumberjack paradox: Many jobs that feel very meaningful could be low happiness and high stress. Jobs like lumberjacks weren't particularly highly ranked on meaning scales, but they were happier and they were less stressed. Being in the great outdoors ranks in the top three for both happiness and meaning among locations in which measured activities occurred.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

Today’s Deep Question: Why are lumberjacks happier than lawyers? [3:06]

- Should I leave a good job to gain more autonomy? [32:34]
- Should I quit my trainer job? [38:31]
- What does Cal’s workday look like? [45:52]
- How can I create a career without skills? [54:48]

CASE STUDY: The Slow Lawyer [58:38]

Books Cal Read in December [1:05:33]

Links:

- washingtonpost.com/business/2023/01/06/happiest-jobs-on-earth/
- frugalwoods.com/2021/09/15/mr-fw-retired-and-we-paid-off-our-mortgage-frugalwoods-fire-is-complete/
- bench.co/blog/small-business-stories/paul-jarvis/
- calnewport.com/blog/2017/05/22/john-grishams-15-hour-workweek/
- itsfreetime.com/about

Thanks to our Sponsors:

This episode is sponsored by Better Help: betterhelp.com/deepquestions
huel.com/questions
policygenius.com
notion.com/cal

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.