#722: Cal Newport — How to Embrace Slow Productivity, Build a Deep Life, Achieve Mastery, and Defend Your Time

Cal Newport is a professor of computer science at Georgetown University, where he is also a founding member of the Center for Digital Ethics. His books have sold millions of copies and been translated into over forty languages. He is also a contributor to The New Yorker and hosts the popular Deep Questions podcast. His new book is Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout. Please enjoy! Timestamps for this episode are available below. Resources from this episode: https://tim.blog/2024/02/21/cal-newport-slow-productivity/ Sponsors: AG1 all-in-one nutritional supplement: https://drinkag1.com/tim (1-year supply of Vitamin D (and 5 free AG1 travel packs) with your first subscription purchase.) Eight Sleep’s Pod Cover sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating: https://eightsleep.com/Tim (save $200 on the Pod Cover by Eight Sleep this winter) Momentous high-quality supplements: https://livemomentous.com/tim (code TIM for 20% off) Timestamps: [00:00] Start [06:14] Unforced Errors: The Internet Story. [09:41] Techno-selectionism. [18:06] Why YouTube and podcasts aren’t ideal bedfellows. [23:03] Amish technology and Steve Martin. [28:07] What prompted Cal to write Slow Productivity? [31:35] Becoming a better writer through blogging. [36:54] The benefits of obsessing over quality. [40:54] How did Cal decide to identify himself as a writer? [52:02] People who exemplify slow productivity. [58:45] Trade-offs on the path to 21st-century slow productivity. [1:03:16] Push systems vs. pull systems. [1:04:34] Quota systems. [1:06:08] Why slow productivity isn’t a zero-sum game. [1:09:33] Language that clarifies. [1:13:17] Sender filters. [1:16:20] What people might miss about Slow Productivity‘s message. [1:21:24] How Cal defines productivity. [1:25:36] Derek Sivers and money as a neutral indicator of value. [1:28:34] Contemporary slow productivity champions. [1:33:18] Asynchronous vs. real-time conversations. [1:35:51] Mak