My notes from Deep Work

by Cal Newport

Execution is more difficult than strategizing

At the end of the workday, shut down your consideration of work issues until the next morning.

1. Downtime aids insights

• some decisions are better left to your unconscious mind to untangle. To actively try to work through these decisions will lead to a worse outcome than loading up the relevant information and then moving on to something else while letting the subconscious layers of your mind mull things over.
• for decisions that involve large amounts of information and multiple vague, and perhaps even conflicting constraints, your unconscious mind is well suited to tackle the issue

2. Downtime helps recharge the energy needed to work deeply

• to concentrate requires directed attention - a finite resource
• trying to squeeze a little more work out of your evenings reduce your effectiveness the next day enough that you end up getting less done than if you had instead respected a shutdown

3. The work that evening downtime replaces is usually not that important

• by evening, you're beyond the point where you can continue to effectively work deeply. Any work you do fir into the night, won't be the type of high-value activities that really advance your career
• Zeigarnik effect - incomplete tasks that continue to dominate our attention. To reduce this effect, make a plan for how would you later complete the task. Committing to a specific plan for a goal may free cognitive resources for other pursuits
• there are always tasks left incomplete, the idea that you can reach a point where all your obligations are handled is a fantasy
• capture every task in a common list, then review them before making the plan for the next day