Rethinking Daily Writing: The Psychology of Project Completion

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Episode 3640:

Cal Newport challenges the popular “write every day” mantra by revealing how it can backfire for ambitious, cognitively demanding projects. Instead, he advocates for a more strategic approach, optimizing your schedule to make space for deep work while managing motivational psychology with intentionality and clarity.

Read along with the original article(s) here: http://calnewport.com/blog/2013/01/13/write-every-day-is-bad-advice-hacking-the-psychology-of-big-projects/

Quotes to ponder:

"Big projects are psychologically daunting. We fear them."

"Working consistently, but not necessarily every day, ensures you preserve the psychological connection to the project."

"When you do work, work deeply. Depth generates value faster than shallow repetition."

Episode references:

The War of Art: https://www.amazon.com/War-Art-Through-Creative-Battles/dp/1936891026

Deep Work: https://www.amazon.com/Deep-Work-Focused-Success-Distracted/dp/1455586692

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