2. The Four Rules of Deep Work

Free Course: Deep Work 2. The Four Rules of Deep Work

Welcome back to this short mini-course on Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World.

In our first lesson, we covered the difference between deep work vs shallow work.

Here’s what we’re looking at today:

The Four Rules of Deep Work

There are four rules for doing deep work:

Rule #1: Work Deeply

Rule #2: Embrace Boredom

Rule #3: Quit Social Media

Rule #4: Drain the Shallows

Let’s go over each of the four rules individually.

Rule #1
Work Deeply.

It’s not enough to have the intention to work more deeply. We need to systematically install new routines and rituals to create new habits that will lead to more and more deep work. This is a hallmark of nearly every extraordinarily successful professional.

Rule #2
Embrace Boredom.

For some reason these days, the MOMENT we have a lull in our lives—whether that’s a few minutes before a friend arrives for lunch or in line at the grocery store or whatever—most of us immediately grab our smartphone for some screen time (aka: distraction time.) If we want to create the capacity for more deep work, then feeding that beast is NOT a good idea. Rather than immediately splashing around in the shallow end of the distraction pool, we need to EMBRACE BOREDOM. Use those moments to think or breathe deeply. Anything other than our habitual, addictive, impulsive, focus-crushing behaviors.

Rule #3
Quit Social Media.

If there’s a poster child for shallow living, it’s social media. Sure, there are some benefits to social media (e.g., business, staying connected to old friends, family, etc.), but that doesn’t mean it’s actually worth ALL of the time we give it. If we REALLY want to live deeply, let’s stop wasting away our time on social media. Having said that, here’s the most controversial principle of deep work: if you want to fully embrace the deep life, quit your social media addiction completely.

Rule #4
Drain the Shallows.

The Shallows is the name of a book written capturing the essence of superficial living, written by a man in retreat, dedicated to doing deep work. As we cultivate deep work, we need to systematically drain the shallows from our own lives. Here’s how: schedule + time-block everything. Everything? Yep, everything. The purpose of time-blocking/scheduling is NOT to drive yourself nuts, but to bring more mindfulness to your day.

Actionable insights

Create dedicated time blocks to focus on your most important work.
- For example: you might want to schedule a 4 hour time-block between the hours of 8am–12pm, Mon-Fri, in order to focus on your #1 project at this time.

Remember to be flexible, rather than rigid. The key is to be conscious with where you’re dedicating two of your most valuable assets: your TIME, and your ENERGY.