📖 Shallow Hit or Deep Satisfaction: My Reflections on ‘Deep Work’ by Cal Newport
Book Review
For a while now I’ve need thinking about my scrolling tendencies. I’m very aware that I’m following the trend in reading the first few lines of an article and then a decreasing number of words on the left as I scroll down to the bottom - if I actually manage to retain my interest for long enough to get to the bottom.... I’ve been wondering about the neurological impact of the chemical burst that hits my body in response to this shallow swiping and its long term consequences. So, ‘Deep Work’ by Cal Newport made sense to be the next book from this year’s pile to read and review.
I have to start by adding a health warning that this book was written in 2016. And the world has changed a lot since then. But I think his ideas about deep work still hold true.
The book sets out the case for focussing deeply on specific tasks as the converse to flicking through inane posts on social media. Newports argues that our dopamine-inducing scrolling makes for shallow thoughts, contributions and work, as opposed to the intellectual, innovative contributions that are derived from deep concentration and focus. I think he’s absolutely right. Watching cats riding vacuums and clicking like on anti-Trump tweets is mind-mushing time wasting that detracts us from doing the important things on our to-do list and robs us of life in 3D.
The book discusses emails, social media and the shallow things that detract us, sharing ideas and examples of how we can help ourselves to break the addiction. Newport references
and how he sections his year to achieve days of focused work, where he’s uncontactable, the out-of-office notice is on and his door is shut. He talks about academics who simply don’t reply to emails and those that even announce that unless emails are interesting enough and have a clear answer to ‘what’s in it for me?’, they’ll go unanswered! I absolutely decry some of these methods as disrespectful, arrogant and in 2024 language, ghosting. But you get the point: if we want to achieve more, greater things, we have to be more focused and think more deeply.With this newfound awareness, I’ve definitely been thinking and doing things differently this week. I’ve been focusing less on the quick wins and more on the deeper work. I’ve felt calmer and more chilled because of it. As someone who enjoys the quick hit of responding to 30 emails and bouncing from topic to topic, it’s been a conscious effort. My usual M.O. is to work through the quick win emails and keep those that require deep work until the end, when I can find time and space. But this week, I’ve created more time and space leaving those quick wins for the little gaps between the deeper work. It’s a work in progress, but there’s definitely merit in putting bigger boundaries around the shallow work.
“To leave the distracted masses to join the focussed few, I’m arguing, is a transformative experience”
Cal Newport
I do think Newport’s perspective, as a working academic, heavily influences his recommendations. I’m not sure this book translates well to other roles. Not everyone has the autonomy or ability to simply disregard email communication without it turning into a performance issue and showing up in their personnel file! But I do think there is a lot to be said for taking back control of our time and our concentration and putting it to better use than feeding the egos of the Gods of TikTok. If, like me, you’re already thinking abut the perils of the shallow hit over achieving deep satisfaction, it’s a book you’ll want to read.
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Nia is an expert leader who talks the talk and walks the walk. She is an academically awarded thought leader in self-aware leadership and practices self-aware leadership every single day in her role as a Director in a Children’s Charity.