Unlocking your productivity

I recently described a couple of days at the office as feeling very ‘pre-covid’. It wasn't about capacity, which has been back to full levels for a while; the days also felt like one long block. I kept on going throughout the day from task to task trying to do as much as possible over longer working hours, but at the end felt I hadn’t been as intentional or productive as I am normally.

This is in contrast to how I found my office experiences for the first few months back in after lockdowns ended. Because days in the office were limited in number, and in many cases the hours spent at a time were shorter, I felt far more intentional about my days. I thought it would be a true lasting benefit from the pandemic on working life; being more intentional with time spent, thus increasing productivity and general satisfaction with work.

Recently I’ve felt that some of these benefits are slipping away somewhat as old habits come back. After all, behaviour is very much context dependent, and being back to routines from the past can bring back old behaviours because of how deeply engrained they are. It’s thus very possible in a new hybrid working set up to be very intentional and focussed whilst working from home, whilst being less so on days in the office.

These observations led me to revisit the idea of ‘Deep work’, popularised by Cal Newport.

Deep work

Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It's about setting aside dedicated time to work on something that requires your full attention and concentration. This is certainly something which is becoming increasingly difficult in today’s working environment given we are always reachable (and distractible) via emails and instant messengers.

Why is deep work so valuable? When you're fully focused on a task, you can achieve a level of concentration that simply isn't possible when constantly being interrupted. This means that you can produce work that is more thoughtful, insightful, well-crafted and ultimately of higher quality.

Deep work is also essential for mastering complex skills. Whether you're learning a new language, mastering a musical instrument, or becoming an expert in a particular field, deep work is what allows you to make significant progress. When you're able to fully immerse yourself in a task, you can develop a deeper understanding of the subject matter and make faster progress than if you were only able to devote a few minutes at a time. (This is typically referred to as a ‘flow’ state)

How to do more deep work?

The common advice for how to do more deep work is well understood by most, for example reducing screen time and using email sparingly, given the constant notifications distract from deep work and can be a fallback for performative busy work.

What I think many of us could simply do with are reminders to set aside time for deep work, which is what this post is.

Implementation idea

Set some time aside this week for intentional periods of focussed deep work, doing whatever is necessary for yourself to ensure you protect it. This could be blocking out your calendar, closing down email and messaging, or changing your environment.

Best, Alex Joshi.

On my bedside table:

• Podcast: The Rewind: Calling the market - Howard Marks, Oaktree Capital (link)

• Article: How the psychology of Silicon Valley contributed to a bank collapse - Scientific American (link)

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