Summary of Cal Newport's A World Without Email

By IRB Media

Get the Summary of Cal Newport's A World Without Email in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. Original book introduction: We have become so used to an inbox-driven workday that it's hard to imagine alternatives. But they do exist. Drawing on years of investigative reporting, author and computer science professor Cal Newport makes the case that our current approach to work is broken, then lays out a series of principles and concrete instructions for fixing it. In A World without Email, he argues for a workplace in which clear processes--not haphazard messaging--define how tasks are identified, assigned and reviewed. Each person works on fewer things (but does them better), and aggressive investment in support reduces the ever-increasing burden of administrative tasks. Above all else, important communication is streamlined, and inboxes and chat channels are no longer central to how work unfolds.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Dec 10, 2021
• ISBN: 9781669343745

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

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Insights on Cal Newport's A World Without Email

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The author once worked for a man who was forced to go six weeks without email after a virus attack. He found it was better for him and his team to communicate in person, which forced them to get more work done in person.

#2

The author met with one of the world’s leading experts on email, who explained how his experience working without email changed his life. The author proposed a new way of working that would eliminate the problems with email, while preserving the benefits.

#3

The author believes that the problems with email began in the early 2000s, when companies began realizing the benefits of communication. Prior to that, many thought that if you couldn’t communicate efficiently through written words, you weren’t producing much. But now, with the advancement of technology, this has changed.

#4

The issue is not the tool itself, but the way it is being used. The new workflow is defined as: checking email or instant messaging tools like Slack every six minutes on average.

#5

The hyperactive hive mind is a workplace culture centered around constant, unstructured communication. It is the work culture of the modern knowledge worker, and it requires constant attention.

#6

The first step is to accept that you have a problem, and that the problem is not you, but the way you have to work. The second step is to realize that there are already solutions to this problem, and that you can choose to work with them or not.

#7

The second part of the book focuses on how to rebuild work processes that have been destroyed by the hyperactive hive mind. It encourages companies and teams to go back to more structured, less digital communication methods.

#8

The author believes that the world will not be rid of email, but instead evolve into a new type of work environment that is less stressful and more efficient.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

Many people have commented on how email has become a huge time waster in