You Already Own Cal Newport’s Favorite Productivity Tool

You Already Own Cal Newport’s Favorite Productivity Tool | Deep Questions Podcast

Рет қаралды 10,762

Күн бұрын

Cal Newport talks about WorkingMemory.txt in a "Habit Tune-Up" segment.
Working memory limitation is a HUGE issue when trying to plan something complicated, or make sense of a complicated issue, or process through a huge array of diverse tasks.
WorkingMemory.txt is a simple text file where you constantly add stuff to it. Always look at it. Let it grow. Clean things off.
Visit it on your daily shutdown to clean it up and process the important items.
Listen to Episode Here (Scroll down to #195DeepQuestionsPodcast) : bit.ly/3eEefHK
0:00 Cal's intro
0:33 Everyone owns this piece of productivity software
4:17 Grouping and organizing items in the text file
5:40 Cal talks about when he discovered this method
9:16 Jesse asks Cal for his method when not a computer
Connect with Cal Newport:
🔴Visit Cal's BLOG and website: bit.ly/3luGhca
🔴Check out Cal's books: bit.ly/3ppaafc
About Cal Newport:
Cal Newport is a computer science professor at Georgetown University. In addition to his academic research, he writes about the intersection of digital technology and culture. Cal's particularly interested in our struggle to deploy these tools in ways that support instead of subvert the things we care about in both our personal and professional lives.
Cal is a New York Times bestselling author of seven books, including, most recently, A World Without Email, Digital Minimalism, and Deep Work. He's also the creator of The Time-Block Planner.
The videos are considered to be used under the "Fair Use Doctrine" of United States Copyright Law, Title 17 U.S. Code Sections 107-118. Videos are used for editorial and educational purposes only and I do not claim ownership of any original video content. I don't use said video clips in advertisements, marketing or for direct financial gain. All video content in each clip is considered owned by the individual broadcast companies.
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#WorldWithoutEmail #DeepQuestionsPodcast

Пікірлер: 25

@lmack6596 2 жыл бұрын

For the last few years I've been doing similar, but on old fashioned paper. I have a blank (ideally A3) pad on my desk under my keyboard - and as things come up, I write/draw all over it. I'm incredibly visual, and for me having colours/highlights and seeing it on my own handwriting somehow helps. But the magic step (and I think I may have got this from you Cal - so thank you!) is to review it frequently - ideally daily (though sometimes it slips to weekly) and check things are either "done" or transcribed to "more robust" systems - i.e. my calendar, my todo list, or a reference notebook/document.

@lmack6596 2 жыл бұрын

My main problem with this system though is that the more I have to do/juggle - the more likely I am to drop the ball on transcribing things to more robust systems. This is a big problem, because when I'm busy is when this system becomes most valuable and important - and that's when I tend to stop doing it - because I don't have the energy/time. It reminds me of my old yoga teacher. She used to say "when you're really busy and stressed and feel you don't have time for yoga - that's when you'd get the most benefit from doing yoga." I think it's the same with these systems.

@freepat101 28 күн бұрын

@@lmack6596I agree with you both. I love having a physical notebook in front of me throughout the day, but sometimes I need to work off of my phone, iPad, or computer with no access or desire to use a notebook and it just slows me down. I think the notebook is better when I’m less busy and struggle with completing the mundane daily work and it’s better to scrap it all together when the $hit hits the fan so to speak.

@TheMarmite09 2 жыл бұрын

It would be great if you could show us examples of these things as you mention them, for example show them on the video as a screenshot. That would be super helpful.

@mariemelberriri1905 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the Follow up questions / answers

@matthewhayes9734 7 ай бұрын

Why not use Google keep or Apple notes? I love the idea of plain text files but how do you access while on the go?

@anon-guy-dude 2 жыл бұрын

Have been doing my own version of this for years. The plain text file is a great tool.

@Ddiakova 2 жыл бұрын

I love this tool. I have a note in Apple notes called Working mind and I use it almost daily in combination with a to-do list app (Todoist). Sometimes I'll just write down straight up tasks in my Todoist inbox and leave them there, and sort them at the end of my working day where I've blocked a piece of time just for that (End of work shutdown ritual, thanks Cal for this one!). I just wonder, like many before me here in the comments - do you clean up the note daily or you just type and type away..?

@tubo1812 2 жыл бұрын

You can use Markdown in a txt file and use a viewer for easier reading, tables, links

@ThomasToPC 2 жыл бұрын

I bring with me at all times my “invention” - a foldable passport holder with sleeves inside to hold small pieces of paper, slotted on one of its inside is a stack of Post-It notes, and clipped to the passport holder is a Pilot 3-colour FriXion erasable pen.

@freepat101 28 күн бұрын

I used to carry a notecard around with me that I used to keep track of things for each day. This was before smartphones but it was the incredibly helpful.

@diane-s3391 Жыл бұрын

That's a good idea. How does text file compare to using Microsoft Word or using Notepad?

@Magiclampis 2 жыл бұрын

Hello i am a computer science student from south korea. I really love your books! Can you make a video about the best way to study computer science as an computer engineer

@trent797 2 жыл бұрын

I've kind of been doing this, but you gave me ideas for how to do it better. Do you recommend erasing the contents at the end of the day? Or archiving it somehow?

@RaquelHernandez-ol8tv 2 жыл бұрын

Do you clear it at the end of the day? I’ve started implementing that, but I’ve been keeping everything.

@indrajitbm5643 2 жыл бұрын

A really nice technique if you want to offload your working memory when walking is the "memory palace". Recall some familiar place (say your apartment), and use different locations in your apartment as placeholders for concepts you want to remember. Make the thing you want to remember as vivid and bizarre as possible so it sticks. For example, if you want to remember to order a new keyboard on Amazon, you could visualize Jeff Bezos shouting "where's your keyboard!" at you when you open your apartment's fridge. After a little practice, you will get proficient at this, and you can store and revisit ideas that occur to you when walking without disrupting your "creative walk". Once you get back to your desk, you can offload your memory palace to your WorkingMemory text file!

@readandrap283 2 жыл бұрын

Everytime I do that my mind starts jumbling together concepts that I have previously used within the memory palace.

@cleadbetter9911 2 жыл бұрын

I love this idea. Do you clear it out, start a new one, or just keep a running .txt file?

@19mtcg76 2 жыл бұрын

I have the same question.

@Arkansya 2 жыл бұрын

in another vid hé sais he clears it every day

@19mtcg76 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you John

@extremeintelligence 2 жыл бұрын

I just use one note and create a new page every day or week

@dot5816 2 жыл бұрын

I wonder what he thinks about grooming? How often does he do it, what things does he skip?

@User24x 11 ай бұрын

GTD in-tray

@jesselangel4939 2 жыл бұрын

It sounds like too many steps (as to email). Let's just discipline ourselves to get rid of email. Tim Ferris knew in 2007 that not using it was the play. A good book on this is The Tyranny of Email. My goal is to eventually get an assistant to deal with business email so I never have to look at it again. Google/Gmail is playing us all like a fiddle.