Do history’s greatest thinkers care about time management? In today’s episode, Cal analyzes the system that the mathematician and philosopher, Kurt Godel, used to structure his days, weeks, and years to produce meaningful work over a long period of time. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: How do geniuses struct...
Jul 24, 2023•1 hr 26 min•Ep 258•Transcript available on Metacast Sometimes the most effective way to contain your workload is to simply declare how long you’re willing to work and then refuse to violate your pledge. In this episode, Cal revisits this “fixed-schedule productivity” strategy, which he first introduced way back in 2008. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: How doe...
Jul 17, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Ep 257•Transcript available on Metacast In Cal’s new “deep life stack” the first layer toward finding more meaning is to develop discipline. Why does this come first? In this episode, Cal dives deeper into the importance of starting with discipline. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: Why does cultivating the deep life start with discipline? [4:33] - ...
Jul 10, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Ep 256•Transcript available on Metacast Over the past twenty years, “productivity” has come to be synonymous with using digital tools to speed up non-essential parts of knowledge work. As cal argues in this episode, this “cybernetic” approach has proven to be a complete failure. He explores why speeding up isn’t working and what this teaches us about what we need to do instead. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from toda...
Jul 03, 2023•1 hr 12 min•Ep 255•Transcript available on Metacast Some of the most interesting and impactful people in the world build their work around a commitment to doing only a few things very well. No one remembers that it took Newton decades to finish The Principia, they just know that he wrote a book that changed science forever. In this episode, Cal defines some concrete laws for successfully implementing a shift toward doing less – but doing what you do better – in your own professional life. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with t...
Jun 26, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Ep 254•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, Cal is joined by Laura Vanderkam (author of Tranquility by Tuesday and co-host of the Best of Both Worlds podcast). Cal and Laura tackle a collection of your questions about the struggle to make time for the various things that matter most, from your career to your family to your hobbies. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewpor...
Jun 19, 2023•2 hr 39 min•Ep 253•Transcript available on Metacast How do you leave a life of superficial distraction and cultivate something deeper? In today’s episode, Cal describes “The Deep Life Stack,” an approach to cultivating a deep life that starts with overhauling the person before making the big decisions. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: How do I rebuild my life ...
Jun 12, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Ep 252•Transcript available on Metacast Productivity YouTube is filled with breathless videos about optimizing systems and squeezing every ounce of speed out of your common habits. But does all of this efficiency really end up improving the quality of the most important things you produce? In this episode, Cal takes a deeper look at the different ways that productivity systems and tools can help your professional life, separating the boring but effective from the exciting but over-hyped. Below are the questions covered in today's epis...
Jun 05, 2023•1 hr 11 min•Ep 251•Transcript available on Metacast The art of thinking – plain, old-fashioned, hard concentration on useful ideas – is rapidly vanishing as our culture recasts humans as the custodians and recipients of digital computation. In this episode, Cal explains why this is a problem and what we should do in response. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: W...
May 29, 2023•1 hr 19 min•Ep 250•Transcript available on Metacast Do you live to work or work to live? In this episode, Cal talks with author Simone Stolfzoff about his provocative new book, THE GOOD ENOUGH JOB. Cal then answers listener questions about escaping professional unhappiness, and then switches gears in the Something Interesting segment to talk about the critical technological breakthrough that not enough people yet are talking about. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here...
May 22, 2023•2 hr 45 min•Ep 249•Transcript available on Metacast Few professional experiences feel worse than overload. But what really causes this unfortunate state? In this episode, Cal takes a closer look at overload, identifying its main culprits, identifying solutions, and helping listeners with their specific overload-related questions. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Questio...
May 15, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep 248•Transcript available on Metacast We talk a lot on this show about how to be more organized and intentional in how you spend your time at work. But what about at home? In this episode, Cal is joined by Sarah Hart-Unger (https://theshubox.com/), a leading thinker on the challenges of staying organized amidst the chaotic busyness that defines family life, to help explore strategies for organizing life outside of work. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! He...
May 08, 2023•2 hr 56 min•Ep 247•Transcript available on Metacast Are smartphones bad for kids? Cal walks through the data on this question, including how researchers came to be worried, their findings, critiques of their findings, and where we are today. He then gives recommendations for how to think about technology when it comes to your kids. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Quest...
May 01, 2023•1 hr 26 min•Ep 246•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode Cal – against his better judgment – answers questions on the fly, with no advance plan or preparation. He also does a Deep Dive about the Twitter fog dissipating and discusses something interesting. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Deep Dive: What was Twitter anyway? [4:46] - Is there a difference between passion an...
Apr 24, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep 245•Transcript available on Metacast Are new AI technologies like ChatGPT about to massively disrupt our world? Drawing from his recent New Yorker article on the topic, Cal explains exactly how programs like ChatGPT work, and uses this knowledge to explain why we can calm our fears about this new technology. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Questi...
Apr 17, 2023•2 hr 30 min•Ep 244•Transcript available on Metacast Cal Newport answers 10 questions from his audience ranging from idea management to the Deep Life to writing. Throughout all the answers, you’ll hear Cal explain his core concepts and how they apply to everyday working life. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia - Why doesn’t Cal care about idea management systems? [2:46] - Does Cal stil...
Apr 10, 2023•57 min•Ep 243•Transcript available on Metacast Why do stories of people moving to the country to dedicate their lives to simple living resonate so strongly with us overworked knowledge workers? Cal explores lessons we can extract from these instincts that can improve our lives right now, even without the need to become a homesteader. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Tod...
Apr 03, 2023•1 hr 25 min•Ep 242•Transcript available on Metacast Why does Twitter maintain such a strong grip on those who produce things with their minds for a living? Is it really so critical that we all spend so many hours spreading our output on this particular platform? In today’s episode, we explore this question, seeking new, more sustainable and humane ways to be an online creative professional. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from tod...
Mar 27, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep 241•Transcript available on Metacast You can’t just turn a “work harder” or “relax” knob. Once you realize that productivity ideas can offer you great autonomy in shaping your life - however you decide to do that - your relationship with it becomes more nuanced and fruitful. Productivity can be understood as applying organization tools and deliberate processes to take back control of your obligations. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit...
Mar 20, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep 240•Transcript available on Metacast The relationship with time is one of the more interesting things going on in work culture. Many knowledge workers take on too much work and become overloaded. If we have less to do, our relationship with time can be repaired. So we have to think very concretely about building systems and mindsets that reduce how much we have to do. Life of Focus link here: life-of-focus-course.com Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here...
Mar 13, 2023•1 hr 14 min•Ep 239•Transcript available on Metacast The reading life is a deep life. The screen-filled life can be primitive and exhausting. Which one do you want? Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: Why is it important to read books? [7:23] - Should I buy physical copies of books I enjoyed on my kindle? [30:45] - How should I organize my notes when writing a non...
Mar 06, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep 238•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: https://youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: Should we consider a radically reimagined internet? [7:03] - Can we build a better internet? [29:20] - Will the coming augmented reality make the deep life impossible? [36:18] - How do I become more disciplined about shutting down my phone? [44:26] - Is the int...
Feb 27, 2023•1 hr 17 min•Ep 237•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: https://www.youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: How can I significantly decrease the footprint of my remote job (without anyone noticing)? [10:46] - How do I leverage a shift to remote work to gain a deeper life? [39:23] - How can I work deeply in a remote job that requires me to be available? [43:16] - ...
Feb 20, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Ep 236•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: Does Cal Still Think That Productivity is Overrated? [6:46] - Should I abandon my careful plan when I get on a roll? [30:47] - How do I achieve slow-and-steady work mode? [35:38] - How do I make my the most out of idle time? [41:37] - How does a deep work lover survive the sha...
Feb 13, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Ep 235•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: How can we be ambitious without burning out? [8:23] - How do I create a hit podcast? (Special guest JORDAN HARBINGER) [41:59] - How do I overcome boredom in my purposefully under-scheduled life? [1:01:57] - How do I manage multiple side hustle projects? [1:06:11] - Do I need t...
Feb 06, 2023•2 hr 32 min•Ep 234•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: How can I free myself from spending all day in my inbox? [8:24] - Why does Cal suggest having multiple email addresses? [43:27] - How do I convince my colleagues to actually read process-centric emails? [47:16] - How do I work with people who enjoy email check-ins? [52:16] - H...
Jan 30, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Ep 233•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Today’s Deep Question: Why are lumberjacks happier than lawyers? [3:06] - Should I leave a good job to gain more autonomy? [32:34] - Should I quit my trainer job? [38:31] - What does Cal’s workday look like? [45:52] - How can I create a career without skills? [54:48] CASE STUDY: The Slow Law...
Jan 23, 2023•1 hr 14 min•Ep 232•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia DEEP DIVE: Work Cycles [6:57] - Should I leave my relaxing job to make more money? [33:54] - Is there a need for deep work retreats? [45:59] - How do I find time to work deeply when I’m busy? [53:07] Case Study: On Walking and Remote Work [57:25] - Can Cal explain more about the “celebration” bucket...
Jan 16, 2023•1 hr 16 min•Ep 231•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia DEEP DIVE: How well are you living? [11:14] - How do you track deep life habits? [28:07] - How do I become more social? (Bonus: How does Cal avoid being killed by Jocko?) [34:15] - How do I distill essential ideas from complex topics? [46:13] - How does Cal research his articles? [53:49] - Should I ...
Jan 09, 2023•1 hr 26 min•Ep 230•Transcript available on Metacast Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast . Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo QUESTIONS: - How do I find time to study for a better job? [5:14] - How do I find rare and valuable skills to develop? [8:37] - How do I develop discipline if I have an easy job? [12:33] CASE STUDY: A graduate student ...
Jan 02, 2023•1 hr 17 min•Ep 229•Transcript available on Metacast 
