Ep. 43: Unproductive Days, Content Fatigue, and Cultivating Character | DEEP QUESTIONS

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Nov 9, 2020

Explore the struggles of unproductive days and gain insights on overcoming curated content fatigue. Discover the importance of cultivating character and intentionality over mere output in work. Delve into the balance between music, instant messaging, and focus along with tips for a productive work environment. Learn strategies for developing deep work habits and the transformative power of reflection and long-form learning. Plus, hear about the impact of structured workflows on academic success and personal growth.

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ANECDOTE

News Experiment

Cal Newport experimented with constant online news consumption during the election.
He found it terrible, distracting, and emotionally exhausting.

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ADVICE

Reframing Bad Days

Redefine "bad days" as strategic rest or variety days.
Focus on intentionality and important tasks, adapting to circumstances like illness or distractions.

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INSIGHT

Newport vs. Allen

Cal Newport's productivity system, while sharing the "capture" phase with David Allen's GTD, diverges significantly in the "configure" and "control" phases.
Newport emphasizes time block planning and workload management for greater control over time and attention.

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Exploring Life Transformation Through Optimize Coaching

06:47 • 3min

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The Power of Clear Expression and Managing Unproductive Days

09:25 • 3min

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Redefining Productivity

12:04 • 40min

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Mastering Productivity and Content Engagement

51:46 • 16min

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Music, Messaging, and Meaningful Connections

01:07:29 • 28min

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Cultivating Character Through Reflection and Long-Form Learning

01:35:21 • 2min

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So Good They Can't Ignore You

Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love

Cal Newport

In this book, Cal Newport challenges the conventional wisdom that following one's passion is the key to career happiness. Instead, he argues that passion often follows mastery and that developing valuable skills and expertise is essential for creating work you love. Newport presents four rules: Don't follow your passion, Be so good they can't ignore you, Turn down a promotion, and Think small, act big. He supports his arguments with case studies from various professionals who have found satisfaction in their careers through hard work and skill development.

The Second Mountain

The Quest for a Moral Life

David Brooks

In 'The Second Mountain', David Brooks explores the concept of two mountains in life: the first mountain, which represents individual success and ego-driven achievements, and the second mountain, which symbolizes a life of deeper meaning, commitment, and contribution to a greater good. Brooks argues that our society's extreme individualism has torn the social fabric, and the path to repair is through making deeper commitments to a spouse and family, a vocation, a philosophy or faith, and a community. The book is both a personal reflection on Brooks' own life journey and a broader social commentary, offering practical advice and stories of people who have lived joyous, committed lives.

The Road to Character

David Brooks

In 'The Road to Character,' David Brooks delves into the lives of some of the world’s greatest thinkers and leaders to illustrate how they built strong inner characters. The book contrasts 'résumé virtues' (external achievements) with 'eulogy virtues' (internal character strengths like kindness, bravery, and honesty). Brooks examines figures such as Frances Perkins, Dwight Eisenhower, Dorothy Day, and others, highlighting their personal struggles and the virtues they developed. He argues that modern society often prioritizes external success over internal character, and he provides practical advice on how to rebalance these aspects of life. The book is a call to rethink priorities and strive for a life marked by humility, moral depth, and meaningful relationships.

How to Become a Straight-A Student

The Unconventional Strategies Real College Students Use to Score High While Studying Less

Cal Newport

In this book, Cal Newport shares insights and strategies gathered from interviews with high-achieving college students who maintain excellent grades without excessive studying. The book emphasizes the importance of effective time management, focused study sessions, and smart note-taking techniques. It introduces the 'Straight-A Method' which is based on four pillars: knowledge, control, strategy, and balance. Newport argues that by using these methods, students can avoid procrastination, optimize their study time, and achieve academic success while maintaining a balanced life.

Essentialism

The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

Greg McKeown

In 'Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less,' Greg McKeown argues that by applying a more selective criteria for what is essential, individuals can regain control of their time and energy. The book is divided into sections such as Explore, Eliminate, and Execute, providing practical advice on distinguishing the vital few from the trivial many and eliminating non-essential activities. McKeown emphasizes the importance of clarity of focus, the ability to say 'no,' and living 'by design, not by default. ' This approach helps readers achieve more by doing less and making the highest possible contribution in their personal and professional lives.

A World Without Email

Reimagining Work in an Age of Communication Overload

Cal Newport

In 'A World Without Email', Cal Newport argues that the constant digital communication, which he terms the 'hyperactive hive mind', has become a productivity disaster. He contends that this workflow, driven by email and other messaging tools, reduces profitability, slows economic growth, and makes workers miserable. Newport proposes a workplace where clear processes, not haphazard messaging, define task management. He advocates for each person working on fewer tasks but doing them better, with significant investment in support to reduce administrative burdens. The book lays out principles and concrete instructions for streamlining important communication and reducing the central role of inboxes and chat channels in the workplace.

Getting Things Done

David Allen

Getting Things Done (GTD) is a personal productivity system developed by David Allen. The book provides a detailed methodology for managing tasks, projects, and information, emphasizing the importance of capturing all tasks and ideas, clarifying their meaning, organizing them into actionable lists, reviewing the system regularly, and engaging in the tasks. The GTD method is designed to reduce stress and increase productivity by externalizing tasks and using a trusted system to manage them. The book is divided into three parts, covering the overview of the system, its implementation, and the deeper benefits of integrating GTD into one's work and life.

Digital Minimalism

Cal Newport

In 'Digital Minimalism', Cal Newport argues that we need to be more intentional about the technologies we allow into our lives. He proposes a philosophy of digital minimalism, where individuals focus their online time on activities that strongly support their values and ignore the rest. The book highlights the negative effects of behavioral addictions created by technology, such as solitude deprivation and the fleeting nature of social media satisfaction. Newport suggests a 30-day 'digital declutter' process and other practices to help readers integrate digital minimalism into their lives, emphasizing the importance of optimizing technology use to support personal goals and values.

In this episode of Deep Questions I answer reader questions about dealing with unproductive days, avoiding curated content fatigue, and the importance of developing character, among many other topics.

To submit your own questions, sign up for my mailing list at calnewport.com. You can submit audio questions at https://www.speakpipe.com/CalNewport

Please consider subscribing (which helps iTunes rankings) and leaving a review or rating (which helps new listeners decide to try the show).

Here’s the full list of topics tackled in today’s episode along with the timestamps:

OPENING: The terribleness of my recent experiment with constant online news consumption.

WORK QUESTIONS

* Dealing with unproductive days [11:50]
* My system versus David Allen’s systems [15:16]
* The timeline for developing deep habits [22:35]
* Assessing your own career capital [31:17]
* The road to academic superstardom [36:05]
* Ideal number of working hours [45:28]
* Building a reasonable schedule for an unreasonable workload [51:32]

TECHNOLOGY QUESTIONS

* Avoiding curated content fatigue [53:41]
* Capture technology [58:22]
* The plan for this podcast [1:00:19]
* Music and concentration [1:07:01]
* Instant messaging and distraction [1:08:02]

DEEP LIFE QUESTIONS

* Essentialism versus the deep life [1:13:48]
* Deep home life [1:16:57]
* My ideal work environment [1:23:37]
* Character and the deep life [1:27:58]

Thanks to listener Jay Kerstens for the intro music.

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