Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout
$0.00
Price: $0.00
(as of Sep 29, 2024 14:54:07 UTC – Details)
A New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today, and IndieBound bestseller
![Fintie Universal Tablet Hand Strap Holder – [Dual Stand Supports] Detachable Padded Hook & Loop Fastening Handle Grip with Adhesive Patch for iPad/Galaxy Tab and All 7-11″ Tablets, Black](https://i1.wp.com/m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71YY9cREDHL._AC_SL1500_.jpg?w=300&resize=300,300&ssl=1)
“Brilliant and timely”—Oliver Burkeman
~ Do Fewer Things. Work at a Natural Pace. Obsess over Quality. ~
From the New York Times bestselling author of Digital Minimalism and Deep Work, a groundbreaking philosophy for pursuing meaningful accomplishment while avoiding overload
Our current definition of “productivity” is broken. It pushes us to treat busyness as a proxy for useful effort, leading to impossibly lengthy task lists and ceaseless meetings. We’re overwhelmed by all we have to do and on the edge of burnout, left to decide between giving into soul-sapping hustle culture or rejecting ambition altogether. But are these really our only choices?
Long before the arrival of pinging inboxes and clogged schedules, history’s most creative and impactful philosophers, scientists, artists, and writers mastered the art of producing valuable work with staying power. In this timely and provocative book, Cal Newport harnesses the wisdom of these traditional knowledge workers to radically transform our modern jobs. Drawing from deep research on the habits and mindsets of a varied cast of storied thinkers–from Galileo and Isaac Newton, to Jane Austen and Georgia O’Keefe–Newport lays out the key principles of “slow productivity,” a more sustainable alternative to the aimless overwhelm that defines our current moment. Combining cultural criticism with systematic pragmatism, Newport deconstructs the absurdities inherent in standard notions of productivity, and then provides step-by-step advice for cultivating a slower, more humane alternative.
From the aggressive rethinking of workload management, to introducing seasonal variation, to shifting your performance toward long-term quality, Slow Productivity provides a roadmap for escaping overload and arriving instead at a more timeless approach to pursuing meaningful accomplishment. The world of work is due for a new revolution. Slow productivity is exactly what we need.
Customers say
Customers find the book’s insights valuable, helpful, and freeing. They also describe the writing quality as well-written, easy to read, and simple. Opinions are mixed on the readability, with some finding it interesting and actionable, while others say it’s uninspiring and superficial.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
11 reviews for Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout
Add a review
You must be logged in to post a review.
Steve Berczuk –
Challenging the Busyness is Productivity Culture
The premise of [Slow Productivity](https://amzn.to/3VV8ZWk) by Cal Newport is that, as we transitioned from manufacturing to knowledge work, we started to confuse busyness with productivity. An extra hour working on an assembly line might increase the value produced in a factory, but often better results in knowledge work come from stepping away from distractions and focusing. This might sound obvious to anyone who works in tech or an office, but the myth of busyness persists.The principles are simple:⢠Do fewer things.⢠Work at a natural pace.⢠Obsess over quality.The book interweaves inspiring stories of highly productive people with an explanation of the principles of slow productivity and how you can implement Slow Productivity in a variety of work and life contexts. Newport also shatters some of the myths around how productive some famously productive people were by explaining the âslownessâ that preceded the burst of output we know them for.The ideas in the book sound reasonable and resonate with the advice Iâve gotten from mentors. . Nothing here is hard to understand. The hard parts are:⢠Getting past the idea that âproductiveâ and âbusyâ are the same thing. This is often deep in our corporate, if not larger, cultures.⢠Managing the expectations of those around you.Often, books about productivity, which feature stories about people who accomplish amazing things, inspire me but also leave me with a sense that perhaps Iâll never be able to accomplish anything comparable. Slow Productivity, with its mix of stories, actionable advice, and continued reassurance that approaching work and goals in a more measured way is a path to success, is inspiring and motivating without the self-doubt baggage.
Alexis V. –
useful tips
The book lacked any true scientific evidence for its claims but the tips are useful nonetheless. I will try out the pull vs push method and some of their suggestions but I am not convinced this approach will necessarily lead to success. All the examples were anecdotes where I am sure we could find support for fast productivity too if we looked. Overall a decent read.
Poli Sci Undergrad –
Great Advice for Developing a Hobby
If you want to start a hobby, then this book is for you. Itâs the mentality that you should have so there isnât some over-investment in something that might not be financially sustainable. Great read. My third Newport book. Worth the time and money.
ML –
Meh.
The best part of this book is the intro, which offers a helpful explanation for how we all ended up overwhelmed and burnt out, rooted in the difficulty of meaningfully measuring knowledge work plus a collective hesitation to actively & optimally manage knowledge workers. (Though I’d love some more evidence / explanation of the second half of that; How is this all hanging on one quote from Peter Drucker?) I do appreciate how he draws inspiration from the Slow Food movement to offer a Michael-Pollan-style set of guiding principles. One insightful point was a quick note about why GTD-style task-management systems can never really save knowledge workers â completable tasks aren’t the problem.After that… meh. The book is built on such a fundamentally weird premise, pulling lessons from people like Jewel on how to be a better knowledge worker. But his exploration into these unusual case studies leads to some surprisingly unoriginal guidance: don’t try to do so much, then maybe you’ll feel less busy? Make a 5-year plan? Take your time developing your skills? I like Cal Newport’s perspective generally, I enjoy his podcast and have a learned a lot from his other books. I wanted a lot more from this one.
A. Patterson –
Just what I needed!
As a knowledge working in the middle of shifting my career this book really hit home. It helped me to reset my thinking and focus on what really matters to help make the changes that will serve me best. The anecdotes helped me visualize what it could look like to shift my career to a more intentional slower pace.
Matt W. –
A series of solid methods for more sustainable productivity
Slow Productivity comes out after a wave of books challenging modern work culture and how it demands constant connectivity and effort at the price of an increasing risk of burnout. Newport’s solution isn’t a systemic one – though he does talk about the different issues people face in the world of work today, this book is primarily how one can edit one’s own personal productivity approach for accomplishment at a slower, more sustainable pace. If you’re looking for a book that addresses the greater problem, this isn’t it. Newport’s also up front in the type of reader the book best serves – namely, knowledge workers with a sense of autonomy about their time, and while this doesn’t imply it best serves white men in these sort of roles, it can be easy to assume that’s the case. He does ask that you implement his suggestions as much as you’re able, and often that you keep it on the down-low so as to not set off any superiors who might not understand what you’re trying to do.The overarching ideas aren’t new (do less, take longer, focus on quality) but Newport does give good, concrete suggestions for implementing them. He backs this up with stories about notable people in the past who worked in the manner he suggests. Often he says that it seems unlikely modern workers can reach the level of sustainable work that Georgia O’Keefe or John McPhee were able to do, and that can be true in some cases. You’ll get the most mileage out of Slow Productivity if you’re willing to look at it primarily as a way to enhance your own work above all, and you’re willing to tailor his suggestions to meet your needs. Again, if you’re looking for a book to address the greater systemic problems with work, this one will disappoint.Also, the writing can get pretty dense for the subject matter. It’s not impenetrable by any means, but compared to other productivity books covering the same kind of subject matter, it definitely reads more like, well, the kind of paper a computer science professor would write. Not a deal-breaker, but it might seem a little too stuffy.Overall I liked this book. I’ve followed Newport for years but I wanted to be fair. It’s a good volume to add to the existing productivity material out there, especially if you’re always hungry for new tactics as I am, but if you’re not you might get less mileage out of the stories of people who worked in way saner conditions than we do now.
ColinF –
If you are feeling overwhelmed and constantly looking for new productivity tools, this is the book for you. It will reduce your anxieties, make you feel worthwhile again and stop you from looking for more and more productivity apps. Highly recommended.
Carolina Mantovani –
Livro bom pra quem é doido com produtividade e precisa dar uma pausa
Seoi –
A lucid, highly persuasive and practical guide to getting meaningful work done. Buy it if you want to make work that stands the test of timeâ¦without burning out in the process!
Santosh –
Cal Newport brings his signature style and fresh perspective to the frenzy and busy lives of knowledge workers.I got personally invested n engaged with the book. I had realized I am doing something wrong.Always busy, always on my toes, doing so many things but no outcome to show. I looked at a few self help books like Make Time, One Thing, n lined up Essentialism..But probably it’s Cal Newport, a scholarly attitude, hypothesis driven writing is what appealed me n provided me logic, rational behind my non productivity but super busy life.Moreover examples from writing lives, academi. Life made the argument persuasive and appealing.Some music industry illustrations were bit boring for me, however that may be personal as I am unaware of those artists.Book, a fast n quick read on slow productivity, is going to have deep impact on the deep work of knowledge workers.
Andy Pandy –
I enjoyed this book and it made me think. Recommended.