
Ep. 321: Escaping Your Phone
10/07/24 • 75 min
1 Listener
It has become second nature to maintain a continuous partial participation in the world of digital networks. In today’s episode, Cal reflects on a week in which he spent too much time online, and argues why this continuous partial participation is dehumanizing, and what you can do to escape. He then takes questions and calls from listeners and reviews the five books he read in September.
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 Your Phone Is Changing You [1:43]
How do I teach my bosses to be deeper? [28:34]
How can I focus as a doctor when I have to keep switching from one patient to the next?” [35:46]
How do I overcome notebook overwhelm? [39:13]
Can “creativity” be added to the deep life buckets? [40:47]
How do I overcome the guilt of no longer being pseudo-productive? [44:51]
CALL: The Pomodoro Technique and overcoming distraction [49:33]
CASE STUDY: A 39-year-old changes careers [54:21]
FINAL SEGMENT: The 5 Books Cal Read in September 2024 [1:02:50]
Links:
Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.com/slow
Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/
Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?
Thanks to our Sponsors:
This show is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/deepquestions
Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for the slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.
It has become second nature to maintain a continuous partial participation in the world of digital networks. In today’s episode, Cal reflects on a week in which he spent too much time online, and argues why this continuous partial participation is dehumanizing, and what you can do to escape. He then takes questions and calls from listeners and reviews the five books he read in September.
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 Your Phone Is Changing You [1:43]
How do I teach my bosses to be deeper? [28:34]
How can I focus as a doctor when I have to keep switching from one patient to the next?” [35:46]
How do I overcome notebook overwhelm? [39:13]
Can “creativity” be added to the deep life buckets? [40:47]
How do I overcome the guilt of no longer being pseudo-productive? [44:51]
CALL: The Pomodoro Technique and overcoming distraction [49:33]
CASE STUDY: A 39-year-old changes careers [54:21]
FINAL SEGMENT: The 5 Books Cal Read in September 2024 [1:02:50]
Links:
Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.com/slow
Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/
Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?
Thanks to our Sponsors:
This show is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/deepquestions
Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for the slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.
Previous Episode

Ep. 320: Jobs and the Deep Life
One of the single most important factors in your attempts to cultivate a deep life is your job. Yet, many people don’t give much thought to the role their work will play in their conception of a life well-lived. In this episode, Cal looks deeper at this topic. He starts by outlining four common traps people fall into when thinking about their work and happiness, then offers an alternative model that works better. He continues by answering listener questions about jobs and happiness, and ends with a look at Robert Caro’s writing shack.
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: Jobs and the Deep Life [3:43]
How can I tame my 12-hour work days? [26:25]
- Should I worry about having too many daily metrics? [29:49]
- How can I create an inspiring deep work environment if I work out of my car? [33:24]
- How can I remain accessible to my kid's daycare without being constantly distracted? [35:36]
- How can I use the principles of slow productivity for my MBA studies? [39:58]
- CALL: Applying Cal’s principles as a new parent [45:49]
CASE STUDY: Focused work for a PhD program [51:37]
CAL REACTS: Robert Caro’s Budget Writing Shack [1:01:18]
Links:
Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.com/slow
Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?tumblr.austinkleon.com/post/761805215728009216/in-the-shack-with-robert-caro-he-bought-the-prefab
Thanks to our Sponsors:
notion.com/cal
mintmobile.com/deep
oracle.com/deepquestions
landroverusa.com
Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for the slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.
Next Episode

Ep. 322: The Discipline Ladder
Do you struggle to consistently make progress on hard things that are important to you? In today’s episode, Cal describes a way to improve this state of affairs: a systematic training regime called the discipline ladder. He then answers listener questions about their own struggles with discipline and reacts to an article claiming that professors are lazy (gasp!).
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: The Discipline Ladder [4:29]
How can I overcome procrastination? [24:42]
How can I make my daily metrics more personal? [27:16]
How can I get my discipline back on track after a negative event? [32:47]
How can I be more disciplined to find time for my part-time project? [39:50]
How can my organization adopt slow productivity principles? [43:49]
CALL: Process centered emails [50:41]
CASE STUDY: Leveraging Career Capital [58:02]
CAL REACTS: Are Professor’s Lazy? [1:07:19]
Links:
Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.com/slow
Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/
Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?
city-journal.org/article/professor-mia
newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-inquiry/what-kind-of-writer-is-chatgpt
Thanks to our Sponsors:
Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for the slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.
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