Slow Productivity: How to Do Less, Focus More, and Not Burn Out with Cal Newport

The One You Feed

Eric Zimmer, The One You Feed

Buddhism, Education, Self-improvement, Religion & Spirituality, Health & Fitness, Mental Health

4.6 • 2.5K Ratings

🗓️ 9 September 2025

⏱️ 70 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, Cal Newport explains slow productivity and how to do less, focus more, and not burn out. Cal argues, our obsession with busyness is pseudo-productivity and while it may look like progress, it isn’t. In his new book, Slow Productivity, he shows how we can accomplish more by doing less with focus and intent We need your help! We all know ads are part of the podcast world, and we want to improve this experience for you. Please take 2 minutes and complete this survey, it's a quick and easy way to support this podcast. Thank You! Key Takeaways: The impact of technology on productivity and focus. The struggle between distraction and meaningful work in the digital age. The moral implications of smartphone use, particularly among children. The distinction between deep work and shallow busyness. The concept of “slow productivity” as an alternative to traditional productivity metrics. The challenges of measuring productivity in knowledge work. The importance of quality over quantity in work output. Strategies for managing workload and reducing distractions. The psychological and evolutionary roots of digital distraction. Balancing ambition with practicality in creative work to avoid perfectionism. If you enjoyed this conversation with Cal Newport, check out these other episodes: How to Find Focus and Master Attention with Dr. Amishi Jha Digital Minimalism with Cal Newport For full show notes, click here! Connect with the show: Follow us on YouTube: @TheOneYouFeedPod Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Follow us on Instagram Grow Therapy - Whatever challenges you're facing, Grow Therapy is here to help. Sessions average about $21 with insurance, and some pay as little as $0, depending on their plan. (Availability and coverage vary by state and insurance plans. Visit growtherapy.com/feed today! Persona Nutrition delivers science-backed, personalized vitamin packs that make daily wellness simple and convenient. In just minutes, you get a plan tailored to your health goals. No clutter, no guesswork. Just grab-and-go packs designed by experts. Go to PersonaNutrition.com/FEED today to take the free assessment and get your personalized daily vitamin packs for an exclusive offer — get 40% off your first order. BAU, Artist at War opens September 26. Visit BAUmovie.com to watch the trailer and learn more—or sign up your organization for a group screening. LinkedIn: Post your job for free at linkedin.com/1youfeed. Terms and conditions apply. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Social stress drives you back to your phone because you're stressed that someone you know has sent you a message.
0:06.6	And if you're not responding, they will interpret it as you're ignoring them.
0:11.3	We're really wired for this because if I'm in an actual Forager band 100,000 years ago,
0:16.8	these interpersonal connections are everything for my survival.
0:19.9	And if someone in my band is like tapping me on the shoulder and I ignore them, that could be a huge problem.
0:28.1	Welcome to the one you feed.
0:34.2	Throughout time, great thinkers have recognized the importance of the thoughts we have. Quotes like
0:39.3	garbage in, garbage out, or you are what you think, ring true. And yet, for many of us, our
0:45.9	thoughts don't strengthen or empower us. We tend toward negativity, self-pity, jealousy, or fear.
0:53.3	We see what we don't have instead of what we do. We think things that
0:57.0	hold us back and dampen our spirit. But it's not just about thinking. Our actions matter. It
1:03.2	takes conscious, consistent, and creative effort to make a life worth living. This podcast is about how
1:09.2	other people keep themselves moving in the right direction,
1:12.3	how they feed their good wolf. For years, I believed the only way to succeed was to put in more
1:21.3	hours. But when I was working full-time in software while also running this podcast, I couldn't do
1:27.1	more. I had to find a way to do
1:29.3	less. And then something surprising happened. My work improved. I had to get clear on what was
1:36.8	most important in both roles. It forced me to think about what really mattered for getting
1:43.0	results. As Cal Newport argues, our obsession
1:46.2	with busyness is pseudo-productivity. It looks like progress, but it isn't. In his new book,
1:52.6	Slow Productivity, he shows how we can accomplish more by doing less with focus and intention.
2:04.0	I'm Eric Zimmer, and this is the one you feed.
	...

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