Deep Work
Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
1 of 1 copy available
Deep work is the power to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It allows you to quickly master complicated information and produce better results in less time–a superpower in our increasingly competitive economy. In Deep Work, author and professor Cal Newport presents four rules for transforming your mind and habits to support this skill:
1. Work Deeply
2. Embrace Boredom
3. Quit Social Media
4. Drain the Shallows
A mix of cultural criticism and actionable advice, Deep Work uses examples from Carl Jung to social media pioneers to demonstrate how great thinkers have focused their minds in a nonstop world.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
January 5, 2016 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781478930082
- File size: 223028 KB
- Duration: 07:44:38
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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The friendly urgency in Jeff Bottoms's narration is perfect for this multilayered advice on managing distractions and improving personal productivity. With diction that sounds both classy and conversational, he communicates like a helpful friend, which keeps this author's outsize intellect from sounding overbearing. A lot of the advice is certainly available from other management and mental health authors--suggestions such as minimizing distractions or working in blocks of uninterrupted time. But Newport's ideas sound more pointed because he places his recommendations within the context of the growing cultural pressure to multitask constantly and be connected to everyone. With fascinating studies and personal vignettes illustrating his points, this is a fast-moving and useful lesson for anyone who is struggling to get more done in any complex work setting. T.W. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine -
November 9, 2015
In this strong self-help book, Newport (So Good They Can’t Ignore You) declares that the habits of modern professionals—checking email at all hours, rushing from meeting to meeting, and valuing multitasking above all else—only stand in the way of truly valuable work. According to him, everyone should practice deep work: “professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit.” Newport calls on psychology and neuroscience, as well as common sense, to back up his recommendations. As to why people don’t already work this way, he implicates a cultural narrative that stresses activity over concentration and that encourages workers to follow the path of least resistance. Newport encourages readers to take breaks from technology, recharge with downtime, leave social media, and reply to emails more purposefully. It’s tempting to blow off the message as the complaints of an admitted non-technophile, but Newport’s disarming self-awareness—“Deep work is not some nostalgic affectation of writers and early-20th-century philosophers”—and emphasis on a meaningful work practice that’s “rich with productivity and meaning” makes for an excellent lesson in focusing on quality rather than quantity at work.
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