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
deep work
Writing an essay or short story or book is a personal project that directs our energy in one direction for a period of time. It gives me something to stay focused on, a north star, a vector for movement.
Luke Burgis • Why I Write
In our busy and distracted society, deep reading is increasingly rare. Deep reading changes people.
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 moreMihaly Csikszentmihalyi • Flow: The Psychology of Happiness
Here’s Kreider’s explanation: Idleness is not just a vacation, an indulgence or a vice; it is as indispensable to the brain as vitamin D is to the body, and deprived of it we suffer a mental affliction as disfiguring as rickets … it is, paradoxically, necessary to getting any work done.
Cal Newport • Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
The question is not whether algorithms can ever foster greatness—they cannot. Their design is fundamentally at odds with the qualities that define great art: depth, complexity, and the capacity to provoke discomfort or transformation. The question is whether we, as creators and consumers, are willing to resist their influence.
Resistance does not me... See more
Resistance does not me... See more
Dr. Felix S. Grenwood • Algorithms of Mediocrity — william
One of my (many) contrarian beliefs is that we do not have strong enough preferences. We often blame social media or the speed of information as the reason why we’re easily distracted, but the real reason behind our inability to focus has less to do with the sheer quantity of media and more to do with our laziness when it comes to distinguishing wh... See more
the need for a meaningful anchor
the brain is commonly regarded as a thinking machine, but it’s more often the opposite: a machine that tries to circumvent thinking. This is because cognition costs time and calories, which in our evolutionary history were scant resources.
a machine that tries to circumvent thinking