Lex Fridman Podcast
#166 – Cal Newport: Deep Work, Focus, Productivity, Email, and Social Media
05 Mar 2021
Cal Newport is a computer scientist who also writes about productivity. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod and use code LexPod to get 3 months free - Linode: https://linode.com/lex to get $100 free credit - Sun Basket: https://sunbasket.com/lex and use code LEX to get $35 off - SimpliSafe: https://simplisafe.com/lex and use code LEX to get a free security camera EPISODE LINKS: A World Without Email (book): https://amzn.to/3blXyjv Deep Work (book): https://amzn.to/3c0npMM Digital Minimalism (book): https://amzn.to/3kJPMmx Cal's Website: https://www.calnewport.com/ Deep Questions (podcast): https://www.calnewport.com/podcast/ PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LexFridmanPage - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (08:24) - Deep work (13:10) - Focus (18:52) - Time blocking (25:47) - Deadlines (35:22) - Do less, do better, know why (38:04) - Clubhouse (52:07) - Burnout (58:34) - Boredom (1:06:19) - Quit social media for 30 days (1:16:13) - Social media (1:41:21) - How email destroyed our productivity at work (1:51:07) - How we fix email (1:58:09) - Over-optimization (2:02:23) - When to use email and when not to (2:10:06) - Podcasting (2:14:42) - Alan Turing proving the impossible (2:18:41) - Fragility of math in the face of randomness (2:27:30) - Neural networks (2:36:16) - What will the P=NP proof look like? (2:39:55) - Is math discovered or invented? (2:44:02) - Book publishing (2:54:09) - Love (2:57:30) - Death (3:00:26) - Meaning of life
No persons identified in this episode.
This episode hasn't been transcribed yet
Help us prioritize this episode for transcription by upvoting it.
Popular episodes get transcribed faster
Other episodes from Lex Fridman Podcast
Transcribed and ready to explore now
#484 – Dan Houser: GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar, Absurd & Future of Gaming
31 Oct 2025
Lex Fridman Podcast
#483 – Julia Shaw: Criminal Psychology of Murder, Serial Killers, Memory & Sex
14 Oct 2025
Lex Fridman Podcast
#482 – Pavel Durov: Telegram, Freedom, Censorship, Money, Power & Human Nature
01 Oct 2025
Lex Fridman Podcast
#481 – Norman Ohler: Hitler, Nazis, Drugs, WW2, Blitzkrieg, LSD, MKUltra & CIA
19 Sep 2025
Lex Fridman Podcast
#480 – Dave Hone: T-Rex, Dinosaurs, Extinction, Evolution, and Jurassic Park
04 Sep 2025
Lex Fridman Podcast
#479 – Dave Plummer: Programming, Autism, and Old-School Microsoft Stories
29 Aug 2025
Lex Fridman Podcast