rediscovering deep work
The “gift of listening” is based on the ability to grant deep, contemplative attention—which remains inaccessible to the hyperactive ego.
from The Burnout Society by Byung-Chul Han
by baja · updated 1d ago
rediscovering deep work
Adolescents who never learn to control their consciousness grow up to be adults without a “discipline.” They lack the complex skills that will help them survive in a competitive, information-intensive environment. And what is even more important, they never learn how to enjoy living. They do not acquire the habit of finding challenges that bring ou
... See morefrom Flow: The Psychology of Happiness by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
baja added 2mo ago
A more substantive potential use of words to enhance our lives is the lost art of conversation. Utilitarian ideologies in the past two centuries or so have convinced us that the main purpose of talking is to convey useful information. Thus we now value terse communication that conveys practical knowledge, and consider anything else a frivolous wast
... See morefrom Flow: The Psychology of Happiness by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
baja added 2mo ago
There are several levels at which history as a flow activity can be practiced. The most personal involves simply keeping a journal. The next is to write a family chronicle, going as far into the past as possible. But there is no reason to stop there. Some people expand their interest to the ethnic group to which they belong, and start collecting re
... See morefrom Flow: The Psychology of Happiness by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
baja added 2mo ago
Great thinkers have always been motivated by the enjoyment of thinking rather than by the material rewards that could be gained by it.
from Flow: The Psychology of Happiness by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
baja added 2mo ago
philosophy and science were invented and flourished because thinking is pleasurable. If thinkers did not enjoy the sense of order that the use of syllogisms and numbers creates in consciousness, it is very unlikely that now we would have the disciplines of mathematics and physics.
from Flow: The Psychology of Happiness by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
baja added 2mo ago
- Scott Belsky coined the term insecurity work to describe work that does not move the ball forward, but is quick enough that you can do it multiple times a day without realizing.
Unlike insecurity work, deep work often feels elusive because it takes time.from Letter to a Friend Who Is Thinking of Starting Something New by Sari Azout
baja added 2mo ago
- “So often, reading is seen as important because of its social value. It is tied to education and the economy and so on. But that misses the whole point of reading.
“Reading isn’t important because it helps to get you a job. It's important because it gives you room to exist beyond the reality you're given.”
—Matt Haig, Notes on a Nervous Planetfrom Home | Substack by Substack
baja added 2mo ago
It's important because it gives you room to exist beyond the reality you're given 🤍
- Looking closely is valuable at every scale. From looking closely at a sentence, a photograph, a building, a government. It scales and it cascades — one cognizant detail begets another and then another. Suddenly you’ve traveled very far from that first little: Huh.
I’d say that that huh is the foundational block of curiosity. To get good at the huh i... See morefrom Looking Closely Is Everything by Craig Mod
baja added 2mo ago
- People are starving. To run in the dark across grassy fields holding sizzling sparklers up to the stars, dive into the deep cold blue sea, curl up on the couch with a good book, a big mug of tea, and a nest of blankets near a crackling fireplace. Return to the pure presence of childhood. Experiencing for the sake of experiencing. Unaccountable to s... See more
from the end of our extremely online era. by Tommy Dixon
baja added 3mo ago