The Importance of Deep Work for Knowledge Workers

A 2012 McKinsey study found that the average knowledge worker now spends more than 60% of the work week engaged in electronic communication and internet searching. Shallow work, non-cognitively demanding logistical-style tasks often performed while distracted are easy to replicate. Larger efforts that would be well served by deep thinking such as forming a new business strategy or writing an important grant application get fragmented into distracted dashes with muted quality.