{"id":15925,"date":"2024-03-05T07:47:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-05T15:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/?p=15925"},"modified":"2024-03-15T04:40:32","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T12:40:32","slug":"paradox-productivity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2024\/03\/05\/paradox-productivity\/","title":{"rendered":"The Paradox of Productivity"},"content":{"rendered":"

What if being<\/em> productive doesn\u2019t mean feeling<\/em> productive?<\/p>\n

A paradox of productivity is that the things that feel productive\u2014working incessantly, checking off lots of tasks, feeling strained and drained\u2014are often not what produces important accomplishments; in fact, these things can get in the way. <\/p>\n

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Recently, two of my friends have written books which argue versions of this thesis. The first is Ali Abdaal\u2019s Feel Good Productivity<\/a><\/em>. Ali\u2019s central idea is that we\u2019re at our most productive when we\u2019re happy. In the moment, grinding ourselves into exhaustion may seem like a necessary trade-off. We might be miserable, but it\u2019s a crucial sacrifice on the altar of our ambitions. Ali argues this is a delusion. Burning ourselves out doesn\u2019t just make us unhappy\u2014it also makes us get less done.<\/p>\n

The second book, Slow Productivity<\/a><\/em>, written by my longtime friend and collaborator, Cal Newport, comes out this week. (I was lucky enough to get an advance copy.)<\/p>\n

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Slow Productivity<\/a><\/em> builds on the ideas Cal developed in Deep Work<\/em>, Digital Minimalism<\/em> and A World Without Email<\/em>. Cal argues that we aren\u2019t good at measuring the productivity of knowledge workers. As a result, we tend use how visibly busy workers are as a proxy for their productivity. This pseudo-productivity makes workers feel harried, but all this busyness doesn\u2019t lead to doing excellent work.<\/p>\n

Drawing on dozens of well-researched case studies, Slow Productivity<\/em> makes the argument for a different understanding of productivity. It is less centered on checking off items on a to-do list, and more focused on doing work that will build a legacy.<\/p>\n

Cal proposes three principles to make this work:<\/p>\n

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1. Do fewer things.<\/strong><\/p>\n

2. Work at a natural pace.<\/strong><\/p>\n

3. Obsess over quality.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Feeling Productive Versus Being Productive<\/h2>\n
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