Learn one of the most exceptional skills in our economy and accomplish groundbreaking outcomes with this “exciting” book from a “exceptional” author (Daniel H. Pink).
The ability to concentrate on a mentally demanding job without interruption is known as deep work. It’s a talent that enables you to grasp complex material fast and generate superior outcomes in less time. Deep Work will improve your skills and give you the genuine satisfaction that comes from creating something beautiful.
In the increasingly competitive economy of the twenty-first century, deep work is akin to a superpower. However, the majority of people no longer have the capacity to spend their days in depth; instead, they are engrossed in a hectic haze of social media and email, not even recognizing that there is a better way.
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About The Author
Cal Newport, an associate professor of computer science at Georgetown University, writes on the relationship between technology and culture for a broad readership. He has written eight books, the most recent being Deep Work, A World Without Email, Digital Minimalism, and Slow Productivity.
These books have been published in more than 40 languages and include several New York Times bestsellers. In addition, Newport hosts the Deep Questions podcast and contributes to The New Yorker.
Review
“A wonderfully entangled, intertwined, and erudite series of strategies, philosophies, disciplines, and techniques to sharpen your focus and dive deep into your work.” ―800-CEO-READ
“DEEP WORK is now one of my all-time favorite books, and I’m not joking when I say it was a life-changing read for me. I think it can be for you too.” ―Brett McKay, author of The Art of Manliness
“What emerges most powerfully is the sense that it’s wrong to think of deep work as one more thing you’ve got to try to cram into your schedule. Truly committing to it, Newport suggests, transforms the rest of your time – so you’ll crank through shallow work faster, be more present in your everyday life, and eliminate time wasted switching between tasks.
Depth, in short, isn’t at odds with a full life – it facilitates it. I’m persuaded.” ―Oliver Burkeman, The Guardian As a presence on the page, Newport is exceptional in the realm of self-help authors.” ―New York Times Book Review
“DEEP WORK accomplishes two considerable tasks: One is putting out a wealth of concrete practices for the ambitious without relying on gauzy clichés. The second is that Mr. Newport resists the corporate groupthink of constant connectivity without seeming like a curmudgeon.” ―Wall Street Journal
“As automation and outsourcing reshape the workplace, what new skill do we need? The ability to engage in deep work is crucial. Cal Newport’s exciting new book is an introduction and guide to the kind of intense concentration in a distraction-free environment that results in fast, powerful learning and performance. Think of it as calisthenics for your mind-and start your exercise program today.” ―Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive and When
“Just when you think you already know this stuff, DEEP WORK hits you with surprisingly unique and useful insights. Rule #3 alone, with its discussion of the ‘Any-Benefit’ mindset, is worth the price of this book.” ―Derek Sivers, founder, Sivers.org
“Here lies a playbook for professionals of all stripes to achieve true differentiation in a crowded talent marketplace. Cal Newport’s latest shows why he is one of the most provocative thinkers on the future of work.” ―Ben Casnocha, co-author of The Start-Up Of You
“Deep work is the key to success in the knowledge economy: mastering a challenging discipline or solving a demanding problem requires intense concentration.” ―The Economist
“This is a deep, not shallow, book that can enrich your life.” ―The Globe and Mail
“In this strong self-help book, Newport 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.” ―Publisher’s Weekly
“[A] worthwhile distraction.” ―ValueWalk
“DEEP WORK makes a compelling case for cultivating intense focus and offers immediately actionable steps for infusing more of it into our lives.”―Adam M. Grant, author of Originals and Think Again
“Cal Newport is a clear voice in a sea of noise, bringing science and passion in equal measure. We don’t need more clicks, more cats, and more emojis. We need brave work, which occurs when we refuse to avert our eyes. ―Seth Godin, author of This is Marketing and The Practice
“Cal Newport offers the most well-informed and astute collection of practical advice I have seen for reclaiming one’s mental powers.” ―Matthew B. Crawford, author of The World Beyond Your Head and Why We Drive
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Book Summary
Deep work is a crucial skill that allows individuals to focus without distraction on cognitively demanding tasks, master complicated information, and produce better results in less time. It is like a superpower in the competitive twenty-first-century economy, but many people have lost the ability to go deep, spending their days instead in a frantic blur of email and social media.
In Deep Work, author and professor Cal Newport celebrates the power of its opposite, arguing that cultivating a deep work ethic will produce massive benefits in almost any profession. He presents a rigorous training regimen, presented as a series of four “rules,” for transforming one’s mind and habits to support this skill. These rules include:
1. Work Deeply
2. Embrace Boredom
3. Quit Social Media
4. Drain the Shallows
The book takes the reader on a journey through memorable stories and actionable advice, such as Carl Jung building a stone tower in the woods to focus his mind or a social media pioneer buying a round-trip business class ticket to Tokyo to write a book free from distraction in the air. It also offers no-nonsense advice, such as the claim that most serious professionals should quit social media and practice being bored.
Deep Work is an indispensable guide to anyone seeking focused success in a distracted world. It provides a formula for building career capital, rare and valuable skills, creative control over projects and time, a positive impact on the world, and working with people you enjoy being with.
However, Deep Work doesn’t spend much time explaining how to implement deep work into one’s life. Instead, it tells readers to focus deeply, stretch themselves cognitively, and get constant high-quality feedback on their work/output.
Chapter 1 argues that deep work is valuable because the economy is changing, and the days of doing the same thing over and over for 40 years until retirement are over. Newport presents a theory for three types of workers: superstars, owners, and high-skill workers and makes a convincing argument for the importance of working at higher levels of abstraction and with intelligent machines.
In conclusion, deep work is the most crucial skill for knowledge workers to master to succeed and remain competitive in today’s job market.
Chapter 2 of Newport’s book explores the importance of deep work in today’s world, highlighting the increasing distractions and fragmented attention of knowledge workers. He argues that complex knowledge work is often difficult to measure, leading managers to focus on busyness rather than output related to bottom-line results (KPIs). This vanity metric leads to people optimizing for appearance rather than getting real work done.
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Chapter 3 discusses the meaning behind deep work, linking it to the Passion vs. Rare Skills debate. Newport presents three theories: psychological, neurological, and philosophical. He provides four rules to implement deep work in daily life:
1. Integrate deep work into your schedule with strategies and examples, such as Bill Gates’s Think Week and renowned authors who go to secluded islands or build cabins to get a lot of deep work done when necessary. The Grand Gestures part of this chapter is particularly helpful, as it offers explanations about Bill Gates’s Think Week and renowned authors who go to secluded islands or build cabins to get a lot of deep work done when necessary.
2. Embrace boredom by improving focus and eliminating distraction. By making deep work your default and scheduling shallow work in between, you can block off time for deeper work and improve your ability to focus.
3. Measure the importance of social media sites and infotainment sites based on their positive and negative effects. This approach helps you make informed decisions about which sites and services to include in your daily life.
4. Drain the shallows by eliminating as much shallow work from your daily schedule. This chapter focuses on tactics for improving productivity, including planning your day, avoiding work-related distractions, managing emails, and discussing deep work with your boss to rearrange your schedule.
Overall, Newport’s book and his previous book, So Good They Can’t Ignore You, are essential for career planning. Most individuals dedicate minimal time to career decisions, and their thinking remains entrenched in the industrial economy paradigm. Deep work provides a solid, actionable plan that addresses these issues.
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