June 24, 2020

Insights From the Book Deep Work by Cal Newport: Part 2 | The Get Over Yourself Podcast

Check out The Get Over Yourself Podcast Episode Page & Show Notes

Key Takeaways

• “Neil Postman, who wrote prophetically back in 1993, warned against the culture of technology where anything representing technological progress was deemed as good instead of weighing the pros and cons” – Brad Kearns
  • Technology isn’t a simple binary of good/bad, we must consider its consequences without making blanket statements
• “Those who are able to disengage from the cultural momentum toward distractability, busy-ness, and all that can create a huge competitive advantage for themselves by being more productive than those immersed into busy-ness” – Brad Kearns
  • “The skillful management of attention is the key to living a good life”
• Deep work advice:
  • Schedule time for deep work and commit to it
    • Commit at least 1 hour of every day to deeply engaging work without distractions
  • Be comfortable not responding to people immediately
  • Protect time that makes you more creative
    • Time for both relaxation and deep work is necessary to achieve maximum creative potential
  • Track time you spend on activities throughout the day
    • You will probably be surprised at how much time you’re wasting on meaningless activities 
  • Inspiration is for amateurs
    • If you have to wait for inspiration to strike before acting you’ll always be stuck in the amateur divisions
• “Human beings are at their best when they’re immersed into something that’s deeply challenging” – Brad Kearns

Books Mentioned

• Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport
• Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life by Winifred Galligher
• The Hacking of the American Mind: The Science Behind the Corporate Takeover of Our Bodies and Brains by Robert H. Lustig

Intro

• Host: Brad Kearns (@bradleykearns)

Culture of Technology

• “Neil Postman, who wrote prophetically back in 1993, warned against the culture of technology where anything representing technological progress was deemed as good instead of weighing the pros and cons” – Brad Kearns
• Let’s take the Apple Watch, which many buy into as a great boon for humanity, and consider its effects
  • Pros: 
    • Elderly are able to easily call for help 
    • Encourages fitness by tracking your steps and heart rate
  • Cons:
    • Constant Electro-Magnetic Field (EMF) exposure right next to your wrist
    • Physically cannot ignore notifications from your phone
  • Technology isn’t a simple binary of good/bad, we should consider its consequences without making blanket statements
• Elon Musk has stated on the Joe Rogan Experience that people might as well already be cyborgs considering how we can’t live without smartphones
• It seems to Brad that the enthusiastic adoption of social media by large media companies self-sabotages journalistic quality by forcing media companies to focus on clickbait headlines and quick quips for attention

Focus & Attention

• “Those who are able to disengage from the cultural momentum toward distractability, busy-ness, and all that can create a huge competitive advantage for themselves by being more productive than those immersed into busy-ness” – Brad Kearns
  • Also, by removing sources of distractability which provide cheap dopamine you make your productive endeavors even more meaningful and fulfilling
• Be incredibly selective of what you choose to focus on
  • Even the tiniest activities chip away at the finite amount of energy you have to spend during the day
• Focusing on events out of your control is mentally draining
  • People who pay less attention to the 24/7 news report feeling happier and have more time to spend throughout the day
• Even when events out of your control force themselves into your focus, how you respond is entirely within your control
  • When Winnifred Gallagher was diagnosed with cancer, she reported that her situation was quite pleasant despite the circumstances
    • You probably don’t have cancer, so you have even less of an excuse to dwell on negative thoughts
• “The skillful management of attention is the key to living a good life” – Brad Kearns

Deep Work

• “Human beings are at their best when they’re immersed into something that’s deeply challenging” – Brad Kearns
  • The greatest satisfaction in life comes from activities that require effort and time, whether it’s being a parent, starting a business, or reading a good book
  • Activities that provide instant gratification, like scrolling social media or doing drugs, don’t lead to longterm happiness
• Schedule time for deep work and commit to it
  • Commit at least 1 hour of every day to deeply engaging work without distractions
• Be okay with not responding to people immediately and possibly annoying them
  • Don’t allow yourself to pick caught up in the unsustainable pace of social media everyone else is caught up in
• Protect time that makes you more creative
  • Time for both relaxation and deep work are necessary to achieve maximum creative potential; don’t let others take away from the time that maximizes your human potential 
• Track time you spend on activities throughout the day
  • This includes seemingly benign activities such as scrolling Amazon or Twitter while “working”
  • You will probably be surprised at how much time you’re wasting on meaningless activities 
• Inspiration is for amateurs
  • If you have to wait for inspiration to strike before acting you’ll always be stuck in the amateur divisions