#371. Help, Work Sucks | Cal Newport

A lot of us right now would probably agree that the technologies meant to make our jobs easier are actually stressing us out. Think: the email and Slack messages that never stop and you can never catch up.

The worst part is the dopamine hit that you can get hooked on that comes with getting new information, causing you to check your messages way too often. All of this has been exacerbated by working remotely.

In this episode, our guest Cal Newport says that these technologies have created what he calls “the hyperactive hive mind,” and he has a ton of thoughts about how to stop it. He’s a computer science professor at Georgetown University, and a New York Times bestselling author of seven books, including A World Without Email, Digital Minimalism, and Deep Work. He’s also the host of the popular Deep Questions podcast. 

In this conversation, we talk about how to minimize the impact of the hyperactive hive mind, how the way we work is fundamentally broken, how we ended up in our current work situation where we're checking email and Slack all the time, and what this does to our brain.

If you don't already have the Ten Percent Happier app, download it for free wherever you get your apps: https://app.tenpercent.com/link/download.

Where to find Cal Newport online: 

Website: https://www.calnewport.com/

Books Mentioned:

• A World Without Email: Reimagining Work in an Age of Communication Overload
• Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World
• Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World

Other Resources Mentioned:

• New Yorker: What if Remote Work Didn’t Mean Working from Home?
• Deep Questions podcast

Additional Resources:

• Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live
• Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide
• Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care