
Show Notes
Is developing discipline one of the most effective bulwarks against the constant flood of distraction we face daily? And if so, what’s the best way to accomplish this goal? In this Monday Advice episode of the show, Cal Newport investigates these questions with the help of Brad Stulberg, who writes about these ideas in his most recent book, the New York Times bestseller “The Way of Excellence.”
Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Send an email to [email protected].
Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia
2:27 Do I Need More Discipline? (w/ Brad Stulberg)
1:07:33 Dealing with abundance of choice in media
1:11:45 Using typewriters for first drafts
1:14:44 Success with “information walkabout”
1:17:22 What I’ve been doing
1:19:54 What I’ve been reading
Books:
A World Appears (Michael Pollan)
Links:
Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow
Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/
Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdvqpqHSQas
Thanks to our Sponsors:
https://www.cozyearth.com/deep (Use code “DEEP”)
https://www.monarch.com (Use code “DEEP”)
Thanks to Jesse Miller for mastering and production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
More from Deep Questions with Cal Newport
Tesla’s recent demo of a rocket-powered Roadster doing a kick-flick over a parked car touched a nerve in me. It seemed to epitomize changes to the tech sector in recent years that have been largely negative. In this short episode, I jump on the mic to explain some of my developing thoughts surrounding these ideas.
A lot of attention has been paid recently to examples of AI going “rogue.” What’s missing from this discussion, however, is a more detailed explanation of what specific types of systems are causing problems. Taking a closer look at this problem reveals an issue that’s much more narrow and much more avoidable than some of the frontier labs would like you to believe.
How do we stop from becoming so reliant on LLMs that we lose our ability to think. A new paper explores answers based on an unlikely source: rigorous mathematical models. In this episode, Cal explains the paper and its conclusions, arguing that once you cut through its complexity it yields a useful way of thinking about our current AI moment.
Cal Newport takes a critical look at recent AI News. Cal interviews Emile Torres who provides a stark warning about AI.
One of the more debilitating experiences in our current digital world is the sense of being trapped in relentless, reactive, busyness. This “whirlwind” can separate you from both ambition and presence, leaving you feeling flat and fried. In this episode, Cal discusses a simple trick he deploys when he finds himself in this state. It requires only a single sheet of paper.