Money Lab

Revisiting Slow Productivity

Dec 1, 2025
Dive into the intriguing concept of Slow Productivity, inspired by Cal Newport's book. Explore the three core principles: doing fewer things, working at a natural pace, and prioritizing quality. Discover how to evaluate tasks by deciding whether to do them yourself, outsource, or eliminate them. Learn about the benefits of focusing on one or two tasks daily and how slowing down can enhance quality. Matt shares his personal journey of simplifying his work and the big wins from outsourcing tasks, making a strong case for this productive approach.
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INSIGHT

Three Core Principles Of Slow Productivity

  • Slow Productivity centers on three principles: do fewer things, work at a natural pace, and focus on quality.
  • The order matters because fewer commitments enable a natural pace, which then allows higher quality output.
ADVICE

Trim Your Task List Ruthlessly

  • Look at everything you do and decide: should you work on it, outsource it, or kill it.
  • Make killing non-impactful or joyless tasks your default first move.
ANECDOTE

Outsourcing Shipping Changed The Game

  • Matt describes doing almost every role in his business this year, from videos to shipping books.
  • He outsourced book shipping and found that change massively freed up his time.
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