Ep. 339: Let Brandon Cook

Deep Questions with Cal Newport

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In a recent appearance on the Tim Ferriss podcast, the prolific fantasy author Brandon Sanderson revealed how he reshaped his media company to help him do what he does best. In this episode, Cal explores the idea, and asks the key question: why is this not more common? While exploring an answer, Cal uncovers a bigger issue in modern digital knowledge work and points towards potential answers. He then answers listener questions and concludes with a tech corner about Alan Turing.

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

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

Deep Dive: Let Brandon Cook [4:56]

- What is your opinion on mind mapping and have you ever used it? [32:35]

- What “really matters” to develop career capital for a civil servant? [36:28]

- What’s your view on Daniel Immerwahr’s recent New Yorker article on the attention crisis? [42:23]

- How does mentoring fit into knowledge work development? [49:54]

- Is it possible to use Paul Jarvis’s approach to start a company to merge the divide with Slow Productivity? [57:20]

- CALL: A 15-year-old and a smartphone [1:03:28]

CASE STUDY: Using AI to expand work skills [1:07:59]

TECH CORNER: Let Turing Cook [1:21:41]

Links:

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

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

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

tim.blog/2025/02/05/brandon-sanderson/

spectrum.ieee.org/alan-turings-delilah

podcast.feedspot.com/computer_science_podcasts/

Thanks to our Sponsors:

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Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for the slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.