by ‘Deep work’ will make you better at what you do. You will achieve more in less time. And feel the sense of true fulfillment that comes from the mastery of a skill. Cal Newport is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Georgetown University. In addition to studying the theoretical foundations of our digital age, Newport also writes about the impact of these technologies on the world of work. His most recent book, Deep Work, argues that focus is the new I.Q. in the modern workplace and that the ability to concentrate without distraction is becoming increasingly valuable. He previously wrote So Good They Can’t Ignore You, a book which debunks the long-held belief that “follow your passion” is good advice, and three popular books of unconventional advice for students.
“Well, social media use is the epitome of an easy to replicate activity that doesn’t produce a lot of value; it’s something that any six-year-old with a smartphone can do. By definition, the market is not going to give a lot of value to those behaviors. It’s instead going to reward the deep, concentrated work required to build real skills and to apply those skills to produce things – like a craftsman – that are rare and that are valuable. To put it another way: if you can write an elegant algorithm, if you can write a legal brief that can change a case, if you can write a thousand words of prose that’s going to fixate a reader right to the end; if you can look at a sea of ambiguous data and apply statistics, and pull out insights that could transform a business strategy, if you can do these type of activities which require deep work, that produce outcomes that are rare and valuable, people will find you. You will be able to write your own ticket, and build the foundation of a meaningful and successful professional life,…”
“We have a growing amount of research which tells us that if you spend large portions of your day in a state of fragmented attention – large portions of your day, breaking up your attention, to take a quick glance, to just check, – “Let me quickly look at Instagram” – that this can permanently reduce your capacity for concentration. In other words, you could permanently reduce your capacity to do exactly the type of deep effort”
