The Cal Newport Show

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 263: Overhaul Your Life Aug 28, 2023

Show notes

Too many people believe that the New Year is the right time to undertake major improvements to your life. In this episode, Cal argues that it is instead right now, at the beginning of fall, that is the best time to turn over a new page. He lays out a detailed 4-month journey through the deep stack that will have you done with a major overhaul by the time everyone else is just getting started early next year.

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 reinvent my life in 4 months? [6:30]

- How can I ease into Cal's more advanced time management strategies? [44:06]

- Can unstructured work be a part of the deep life? [47:42]

- How can I stop changing my mind about what I want to do with my life? [51:50]

- Can I pursue the deep life if I need a job? [59:33]

- How do you pursue the deep life with depression? [1:03:58]

Cover Reveal for Slow Productivity [1:13:20]

Thanks to our Sponsors:

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 262: Creativity Hacking Aug 21, 2023

Show notes

When it comes to generating fantastic ideas – the type that can make your career – you don’t have to passively wait for inspiration to strike. You can, instead, *hack* the creative process to increase the odds of coming up with something great. In this episode, Cal explores one of the more powerful forms of “creativity hacking”: making use of strange locations.

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 do you work better in strange locations? [3:31]

- Does Cal read online articles? [34:35]

- Is fitness tracking on my Apple Watch an excuse to stay distracted? [40:09]

- Which is better for original thinking: the city or the country? [43:05]

- How do I organize the pursuit of deep ideas? [47:19]

- Does reading books from unrelated genres help idea generation? [51:57]

CAL REACTS: Over stimulation is ruining your life! [59:11]

Links:

blog.computationalcomplexity.org/2020/02/pre-publish-and-perish.html

calnewport.com/on-using-inspiring-locations-to-inspire-deeper-work/

youtube.com/watch?v=yYWvUoN4yt8

Thanks to our Sponsors:

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/deepquestions and get on your way to being your best self

hensonshaving.com/cal

blinkist.com/deep

ladderlife.com/deep

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 261: Control Your Time Aug 14, 2023

Show notes

In celebration of the newly released *second* edition of the Time Block Planner, Cal provides some additional expert tips for getting the most out of a time blocking discipline before answering listener questions on the general topic of time management. He closes by discussing the recent claim that phones are ruining peoples’ ability to watch movies.

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 double what I accomplish each week by better controlling my time? [16:54]

- How do I deal with the guilt of missing time blocks? [44:17]

- How does Cal reconcile slow productivity with the urgency of time blocking? [49:22]

- How do I block enough time to keep up with all the internet content I want to read? [52:40]

- How do I stick to my block schedule if no one is forcing me to? [1:02:11]

- How can Cal be both a computer science professor and yet still be so bad at technology? [1:07:00]

Something Interesting: Have Phones Ruined Movies? [1:15:45]

Links:

washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/08/05/barbenheimer-bad-movie-behavior/

Thanks to our Sponsors:

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 260: Make Haste Slowly Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

One of the most popular (and widely forgotten) slogans of the ancient world was Festina Lente, or, “Make Haste Slowly.” In this episode, Cal looks deeper at what this phrase meant, and in doing so uncovers an ancient version of slow productivity.

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: What can Octavian Caesar Augustus teach us about productivity? [5:37]

- How can I help my team move fast to slow productivity? [26:12]

- How do I figure out how long to spend on a task? [33:08]

- What’s up with Cal’s podcast album art? [38:14]

- Why is my partner so slow? [40:49]

- How does Cal’s Remarkable tablet change his working memory.txt habit? [46:23]

CASE STUDY: Not allowing work to dominate your life [53:28]

The 5 Book Cal Read in July 2023 [1:03:21]

Links:

bigthink.com/the-learning-curve/festina-lente/

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festina_lente

Thanks to our Sponsors:

zocdoc.com/deep

hensonshaving.com/cal

mybodytutor.com

blinkist.com/deep

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 259: The Four-Hour Work Day Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

Do you ever feel completely overwhelmed by everything you have to do? The writer Oliver Burkeman recently experimented with an unexpected response to this common sensation: he decided to work much less. In more detail, he wanted to see what would happen if he reacted to overload by restricting his work to only four hours per day. In this episode, Cal reviews what Burkeman discovered in this experiment and what it teaches the rest of us.

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: What happens when you cut your workday in half? [5:51]

- What does the “celebrate” deep life bucket include? [30:34]

- When are big life changes the right thing to do? [38:38]

- When does Cal “start” his work day? [49:04]

- How do I save for a good retirement without making my current lifestyle worse? [50:05]

CASE STUDY: The Joys of Doing Less [56:44]

CAL REACTS: Chris Nolan doesn’t own a phone [1:05:21]

Links:

hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/oppenheimer-christopher-nolan-cast-interview-film-1235535418/

Thanks to our Sponsors:

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 258: Godel’s Deep Life Stack Jul 24, 2023

Show notes

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 structure their life? [8:00]

- How do I follow through on the projects I start? [34:33]

- Is creating a deep environment one of the deep life buckets? [42:14]

- How do I find examples of my ideal lifestyle? [48:24]

- Should I switch jobs, I’m bored (but effective)? [59:20]

CAL REACTS: The ReMarkable 2 tablet. Is it worth it? [1:11:57]

Thanks to our Sponsors:

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/deepquestions and get on your way to being your best self

drinklmnt.com/deep

80000hours.org/deep

hensonshaving.com/cal

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 257: Refusing Overwork Jul 17, 2023

Show notes

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 does fixed-schedule productivity work, and how has Cal’s thoughts on it changed over the years? [3:02]

- What activities can fall outside fixed schedules? [30:12]

- How do you manage a workload determined by other people? [33:08]

- Why doesn’t Cal build his weekly plan on his calendar? [43:24]

- How do I deal with having too much work piled up? [51:23]

CASE STUDY: Implementing tactics from “A World Without Email” [53:14]

The 5 Books Cal Read in June 2023 [1:02:28]

Links:

calnewport.com/fixed-schedule-productivity-how-I-accomplish-a-large-amount-of-work-in-a-small-number-of-work-hours/

Thanks to our Sponsors:

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 256: Start with Discipline Jul 10, 2023

Show notes

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]

- How do I stop falling off the productivity wagon? [26:38]

- How do I cultivate more consistent discipline? [32:35]

- How do I convince myself to follow through on demanding projects? [41:22]

- What’s the problem with studying for 10 hours a day? [54:37]

Something Interesting: Harrison Ford’s Slow Productivity [1:07:35]

Links:

linkedin.com/posts/billy-oppenheimer-70612782_before-he-was-han-solo-or-indiana-jones-activity-7069305284627730432-CRJA

Thanks to our Sponsors:

drinklmnt.com/deep

zocdoc.com/deep

hensonshaving.com/cal

mybodytutor.com

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 255: The Failure of Cybernetic Productivity Jul 03, 2023

Show notes

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 today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

Today’s Deep Question: Why doesn’t cybernetic productivity work? [8:40]

- What should I ask a potential hire about their time management habits? [31:55]

- How do I teach leaders how to work more deeply? [38:17]

- How did Cal become good at breaking things down into systems and processes? [48:06]

- How do I build task boards if I have many roles? [51:05]

- How do I find time to think in my busy job? [54:20]

Something Interesting: Taylor Sheridan’s “writing bunker” [1:02:48]

Links:

hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-features/taylor-sheridan-yellowstone-interview-1235519261/

Thanks to our Sponsors:

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ep. 254: The Laws of Less Jun 26, 2023

Show notes

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 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 should I do less? [7:29]

- How can a teacher embrace slow productivity? [31:26]

- How do you know if an idea is good enough to spend years working on? [39:07]

- How can I slowly build the success needed to pivot into a new career? [46:16]

- How does Cal read 5 books a month? [49:58]

CASE STUDY: I can do my job in 4 hours a day [55:53]

The 5 Book Cal Read in May 2023 [1:07:04]

Thanks to our Sponsors:

betterhelp.com/deepquestions

cozyearth.com