Deep Questions with Cal Newport

Only 8% of people finish their yearly goals. At the same time, the percentage of people feeling a sense of meaning of purpose in their life is falling. These two numbers are connected: the more we struggle to accomplish meaningful projects, the less meaningful our lives might feel. In this episode, Cal looks back to a classic article he wrote nearly twenty years ago to both better understand why this problem is getting worse and how we can solve it.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) How do I finish meaningful projects?

(39:36) A new study about children with cellphones having poorer reading comprehension

(43:14) A nurse practitioner in search of deep work

(45:45) Using AI to improve both your work and life

(52:24) A recent Wall Street Journal article about AI and jobs

(1:00:07) What Cal is up to

July 2026 Books

Orality and Literacy (Walter Ong)

Lost (Rachel Harrington)

Sapiens (Yuval Harari)

More Everything Forever (Adam Becker)

Disneyland the Rise of Automation (Roland Bethencourt)

A Brief History of Intelligence (Max Bennett)

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/

Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?

https://www.inc.com/marcel-schwantes/science-says-92-percent-of-people-dont-achieve-goals-heres-how-the-other-8-perce.html

https://news.gallup.com/poll/711836/gen-zers-missing-sense-meaning-purpose-life.aspx

https://calnewport.com/the-einstein-principle-accomplish-more-by-doing-less/

https://futureoftuesday.substack.com/p/techno-analog

https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/owning-a-cell-phone-associated-with-poorer-reading-comprehension-schoolchildren

https://www.wsj.com/business/big-companies-are-starting-to-hire-again-defying-predictions-of-ai-wipeout-f4974e99?mod=hp_lead_pos10

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Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
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Cal Newport takes a critical look at recent AI News.

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) Does Open AI’s Astra mean AGI has arrived?

(3:07) What actually happened?

(11:35) What does this mean for mathematics?

(21:35) What does this mean for OpenAI?

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

https://x.com/polynoamial/status/2083467194663571701

https://x.com/deanwball/status/2083545756003176724?s=61

https://x.com/kevinroose/status/2083632335438905441

https://x.com/mattshumer_/status/2083595078233202919

https://x.com/polynoamial/status/2083478171975082334

https://x.com/__alpoge__/status/2083898804563243033

https://x.com/polynoamial/status/2083476852216369294

https://x.com/thomasfbloom/status/2083444983592284465

Sponsor:

https://www.donedaily.com

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this replay of a classic episode from January 1st, 2024, Cal walks through the process of learning hard things. The good news is that most people can learn most things. The bad news is that learning is harder than we think. This advice has never been more relevant for those looking to move past the easy dopamine hits offered by their devices and find something deeper.



Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) Learning hard things

(21:19) When it comes to taking notes, what really matters?

(27:32) Can I fit all of my hobbies into my week?

(31:12) Can YouTube teach me to be a better student?

(37:37) How do I figure out what to learn next?

(39:54) How do I learn something fast when I already have a busy schedule?-

(46:24) CALL: How does “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” relate to “Slow Productivity”?

(56:17) CASE STUDY: Slow Productivity affinity group

(1:02:23) The 5 books Cal read in December 2023

Thanks to our Sponsors:

https://www.monarch.com (Use code “DEEP”)

https://www.calderalab.com/deep

This show is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/deepquestions

December 2023 Books:

Home Economics (Wendell Berry)

Panora’s Box (Peter Biskind)

Where the Deer and the Antelope Play (Nick Offerman)

Who Wrote the Bible (Richard Elliott Friedman)

The Exodus (Richard Elliott Friedman)

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Cal Newport takes a critical look at recent AI News.

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) Did OpenAI’s model “go rogue”

(11:29) The implications

(11:42) Did this attack reveal surprising new capabilities we didn’t know AI systems possessed?

(12:48) Did the system’s decision to escape the test environment and autonomously attack another company indicate an emerging malicious intent in AI?

(16:28) What changed led to this attack occurring?

(27:32) Who should care about this story?

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

https://huggingface.co/blog/security-incident-july-2026

https://openai.com/index/hugging-face-model-evaluation-security-incident/

https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/openai-models-escaped-and-hacked-a-company-in-cybersecurity-test-gone-wrong-ee388506

https://thehill.com/policy/technology/5987397-openai-hugging-face-hack/

https://apnews.com/article/skynet-ai-terminator-artificial-intelligence-eb85da03a0161beaa5f3babc4331e93b

https://www.ft.com/content/7e558951-0c69-459b-8bc8-2c6021d4402d?syn-25a6b1a6=1

https://federalnewsnetwork.com/all-news/2011/08/dhs-anonymous-used-rudimentary-tools-to-hack-contractor/

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why do digital detoxes fail to create lasting change? What works better? To answer these questions, Cal draws from the book “A Brief History of Intelligence” to reveal the relevant neuroscience at play, and then use this understanding to figure out a better method for improving your relationship with your devices.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) Why do digital detoxes fail?

(28:28) An article on the phone algorithm addiction

(35:13) Follow up on the Brad Stulberg interview

(40:21) A policy article on digital addiction

(52:34) Deep work in the age of AI

(57:46) What Cal is up to

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/

Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/04/us/politics/online-addictions-cut-back-screen-time.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/14/opinion/culture/phone-algorithm-addiction.html

https://www.splunk.com/en_us/blog/learn/goodharts-law.html

https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/digital-addiction-public-health-problem-public-health-law-solution

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Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices