This week is a sabbatical week, during which I usually write about the need for rest and recovery to be built into our regular routines. You can see those posts here. Today, I want to talk about the concept of “deep work,” which is a system for reducing distractions and producing more high quality work in less time. After recently re-reading Cal Newport’s Deep Work and finding it an excellent resource on structuring your time and workday, I wanted to address two common objections to the concept.
What is deep work?
Deep work is a system of working with concentrated focus on high quality problems, eliminating distractions, and producing more quality work in less time. The term was coined by Cal Newport in his book of the same name. The first third of the book explains the philosophy and concept, then the latter two thirds show you how to put the concepts into practice. In the book, Newport also gives examples of distractions in our down time, such as social media or streaming television, which we should look at critically and then determine whether to keep in our routine.
Deep work combines concentration and time set aside to focus on valuable tasks which require more thought and energy. This concept builds on Anders Ericsson’s research on “deliberate practice” and his book, Peak. Deliberate practice consists of two requirements; your attention is “tightly” focused on a specific skill intending to improve or master, and that you receive feedback in order to correct your approach.
The practical application of deep work requires distinguishing high quality, high value work from essential low value work, then eliminating distractions and scheduling all work – shallow and deep – in a way which enables you to complete all of it in a predetermined amount of time.
This concept started with an observation from Newport, an associate professor at Georgetown University; among himself and other professionals in positions similar to his, though the amount of work they did remained more or less constant, many professors weren’t able to accomplish it in an eight hour workday. He wondered if they were all of similar intelligence and ability, what could explain the reasons why one professor was able to complete his work in a fifty hour week, while others were still struggling to get their work done through eighty hour work weeks? Where was all this extra time going and coming from?
Wharton professor Adam Grant became a key to unlocking this mystery. He structured his calendar so that he taught all his classes in one semester, then had the entirety of the second semester for research. By blocking off his schedule, he is able to focus more deeply, and adjust his work habits to the work each semester accordingly. When he teaches classes, he needs to be able to respond fairly quickly by email, and has a more fractured work day sprinkled with classes and meetings. When he is doing research, he effectively closes the door, and works deeply for hours at a time, allowing for the very most concentration to be applied to problem-solving and breakthroughs.
It is a practice of focusing strictly on the more demanding aspects of knowledge work and creating higher quality work in less time, while still getting your less demanding work done. Simply put, it’s finding the best way to do more valuable work in less time, not less work in less time.
What is shallow work?
Of course, not every task we come across in a workday takes concentration or is of high value. “Shallow work” characterizes those tasks which don’t require much concentration and aren’t highly valued, such as email, social media, scheduling, etc. These are activities which are essential, but don’t take critical thinking or skill to complete. Newport advises that we should aim to eliminate as much of this work as possible, without negative consequences, and schedule time for the remaining essential tasks.
There is a place for shallow work in the deep work system. As Newport describes his day, he specifically details that his schedule prioritizes deep work, and he blocks time for shallow work at the peripheries of his daily routine. He also takes time to remind the reader that they will likely need to let their coworkers know that they will be available to respond during certain hours, and unavailable at others. There is nothing about deep work which inherently keeps one from gathering around the proverbial water cooler.
Objections
A common objection presents shallow work and deep work as an either/ or situation, claiming concern over the day-to-day tasks if a worker is only “working deeply.” This situation is not realistic and presents the situation as though only one kind of work is ever completed. There doesn’t need to be tension between deep and shallow work. We all have emails to return or notes to organize. We also have problems which require focused attention. Newport is urging us to look at the typical low quality, but time-consuming activities we attend to, and consider what could be eliminated or streamlined into a consistent block of time. For example, this could be scheduling deep work from 8am to 9:30am, followed by a half hour block for email, scheduling meetings, etc. Instead of allowing interruptions and distractions to dictate when you work, create a schedule which will reduce and place those essential-but-not-urgent tasks to be taken care of all at once.
Another popular objection is that the worker who shuts their office door to focus on their work ends up going a different direction than his peers because he misses out on the day-to day interactions and ideas communicated via small talk around the office. Firstly, no one is closing their office doors and working eight hour days submerged in deep work, never coming up for air. This is simply not how our brains work.
This sets up a false dichotomy between working in a deeply focused manner and getting the less intensive tasks done. It’s like saying deep work requires you to never respond to an email. The two are not opposites; one does not take the place of the other. Deep work requires intense focus on the more nuanced and difficult aspects of work. Our brains have limited energy and and resources.
Deep work is an iteration of psychologist Anders Ericsson’s research on deliberate practice. Deliberate practice is spending time in a proactive state of learning. As the name denotes, this is deliberate, not passive practice. Deep work employs this same cognitively demanding thinking. This kind of deep concentration maxes out at about four hours a day; we simply can not concentrate, or work deeply, at all times. This is a skill we can develop over time, and that upper limit describes those who have been practicing working deeply for years. Those newer to the concept will find their concentration has trouble lasting that duration.
With the average work day extending beyond eight hours, at most, you are only spending half your day in deep work. This allows half a day, every day for meetings, organizing notes, calls, email, etc. There is plenty of time for conversing around the proverbial water cooler.
The idea that someone has focused on one project for years, then suddenly realizing the company has gone in a completely different direction without them, is not a realistic concern of deep work. Deep work is about giving yourself time and mental clarity to concentrate on the problems you need to solve. Working deeply does not mean you never do shallow work or interact with your colleagues, nor is it intended as an excuse to never interact with them.
If you’ve followed Newport’s recommendations for deep work, you know that he recommends scheduling time for both shallow and deep work, as both are likely critical to any job. Newport himself is a teaching professor and researcher; he deals with daily emails and time spent intensively researching and developing theories. The need for shallow tasks to get done is not foreign to him, and he addresses this in his book. Newport’s point is most people never get into a deep work habit because they are constantly interrupted or spend their time on shallow tasks. By scheduling time for deep focus and less mindful tasks, you accomplish more difficult work faster, while also tending to the minutia of office work. The objections fail to really address the key point, which is to live with fewer distractions, produce high quality work, and spend your time on the things you love.
Final Thoughts
Objections like the one addressed here are usually from people who aren’t familiar with the concept of deep work itself, and attack an oversimplified version of the concept. Newport is a lecturing professor, he is well aware that emails and phone calls exist. He has office hours in which he is available to students. Neither Newport, nor anyone familiar with the concept of deep work, will tell you that shallow work is eliminated. This is simply not possible. However, reducing these tasks, and getting ahead of low-energy requests are vital parts of working deeply.
The majority of people who claim to object to or reject the concept of deep work likely aren’t familiar with the concept behind the practice and the goals of deep work. Deep Work and the concepts it introduces are not only compatible with the very real demands of the knowledge work industry, but enable workers to succeed within that industry. Developing more concentration and working with focus and purpose are skills we should advocate for in our professional positions. We should all aim to reduce low-quality distractions, build our ability to focus and do meaningful work, and encourage others to do the same.
