#78 Slow Productivity

Greetings from seat 2A on an Airbus A350, taking off from T4 at Madrid-Barajas airport.

It took me 27 minutes from arrival to boarding. You might think I was running extremely late and had to sprint and get rushed through security. The reality is I took it leisurely. I navigate this airport so frequently that I do it very efficiently through muscle memory, progressing fast while actually moving slowly, which is today’s topic.

Slow productivity

This week, I read Cal Newport's Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout, which presents a simple but powerful concept particularly relevant to knowledge workers with some autonomy over their schedules.

Newport argues that our current definition of productivity is wrong, especially in knowledge work where we struggle to define it. So, we treat busyness as a proxy for useful effort, leading to never-ending to-do lists and burnout.

Instead, Newport proposes ‘Slow Productivity’ as a more sustainable alternative to our current overwhelm.

The three key principles

1. Do fewer things - Strive to reduce your obligations to the point where you can easily imagine accomplishing them with time to spare. Leverage this reduced workload to fully embrace and advance the small number of projects that matter most.

2. Work at a natural pace - Don’t rush your most important work. Allow it instead to unfold along a sustainable timeline, with variations in intensity, in settings conducive to brilliance. (The book has some great examples of the way the most important and prolific scientists and writers over the ages have followed this principle)

3. Obsess over quality - Obsess over what you produce, even if this means missing opportunities in the short term. Leverage the value of these results to gain more and more freedom in your efforts over the long term.

By following these, the aim is to free oneself from the grip of pseudo productivity, being busy for the sake of it. It’s not to say work less; it’s about working more intentionally at a sustainable pace. The outcome should be higher-quality work. The author makes a plea to step back from the frantic activity of the daily grind.

Addressing scepticism

Some people might view this as idealistic, a romantic view applicable to a privileged few who have real flexibility to do so, but with little carryover to the average person.

I disagree. I believe that with holistic thinking and creativity, even those in seemingly rigid roles can implement these principles, even in small ways. I’ve personally made many changes in line with these ideas over the last month, to great success. (You can see some of that in #76, Rebuilding)

Implementation idea

To integrate Slow Productivity into your life, consider these questions:

1. What does it mean to be ‘productive’ in your life?

2. Is your current method of defining and assessing productivity optimal?

3. What changes can you make this week to maintain quality while working more sustainably?

These principles are applicable across all domains of life.

Best, AJ.

Note: A tech fault, or more likely human error on my part led to last week’s edition being sent out in error on Friday. If you missed it, it’s here. For those who gave me your attention in the midst of the weekend, thank you.

On my bedside table:

• Non-fiction: Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout, by Cal Newport (link)

You can now listen to me narrate Plane Thoughts each week: link

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