Cal Newport is a computer science professor and a New York Times bestselling author who writes about the impact of technology on society, and the struggle to work and live deeply in a world increasingly mired in digital distractions. On this podcast, he answers questions from his readers and offers advice about cultivating focus, productivity, and meaning amidst the noise that pervades our lives.
407 episodes transcribedOne of the simmering concerns surrounding the current AI revolution is the fear that we might accidentally create an “alien mind” smarter than we expe...
Oliver Burkeman recently noted that time blocking seems oppressive? In this episode, Cal responds to this reaction in a surprising way. He then answer...
In a recent interview, held to promote his new Netflix movie, Jerry Seinfeld went on a remarkable 10-minute run in which he rattled off one insight af...
The desire to cultivate a more intentional and remarkable existence – what we call “the deep life” – is universal. In today’s episode, Cal talks about...
We talk a lot on this show about how to organize and execute your work, but not enough about where to do it. In this episode, Cal explores the theory...
In this episode, the proverbial tables are turned, with Cal being interviewed by Jordan Harbinger about time, focus, and the quest for a slower notion...
There has been a lot of attention paid recently to the impact of technology like social media on the mental health of young people. But this is not th...
Cal has been writing professionally about issues related to personal productivity for two decades. In today’s episode, he provides a short history of...
We think of information as something neutral; a spotlight that helps illuminate the reality of the outside world. Accordingly, more information is bet...
Why do you struggle with your grand attempts to escape distraction and aimlessness to make your life deeper? In this episode, Cal draws on an unexpect...
In the first ever live episode of Deep Questions, recorded at People’s Book in Takoma Park, MD, Cal extracts a modern productivity lesson from the tal...
In this episode Cal takes a closer look at a growing trend of artists quitting social media and instead reverting to old-fashioned websites. Are these...
One of the biggest problems afflicting knowledge workers in the digital age is frantic busyness; days filled with emails, chats, and meetings, without...
Imagine a world in which AI could handle your email inbox on your behalf. No more checking for new messages every five minutes. No more worries that p...
On his recent book tour, Cal found great success using a small notebook dedicated to developing a single idea. In this episode, he explores this “sing...
What does the story of the rise of the singing superstar Jewel teach us about escaping busyness in our knowledge work jobs? In this episode, Cal makes...
One of the most common strategies for achieving a powerful ideal lifestyle vision is to leverage entrepreneurial activities to find a stable source of...
How did we end up tyrannized by our inboxes? How is this related to Tyrannosaurus? What was it like working at a high-tech company at the exact moment...
We’ve become so used to our phones in our lives that we’ve stopped realizing how arbitrary and unusual the content we’re watching really has become. I...
A deep life requires that you encounter and make sense of a large amount of incoming information, from narrow data relevant to a professional project,...
