Digital Minimalism: On Living Better with Less Technology
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-05 13:58:10
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Cal Newport
- ISBN：0241453577
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Most of us know that addiction to digital tools is costing us both productivity and peace。 But giving them up completely isn't realistic。
We're addicted to texting， Instagram， Facebook and Twitter not because we're stupid or shallow， but because they provide real value in the form of connection， community， affirmation， and information。 Instagram is how you see new photos of your school friend's baby。 Texting is how you let your mum know you're safe in a storm。 Twitter is how you hear about breaking news in your industry。 But these tools can also disrupt our ability to focus on meaningful work and live fully in the present。 Must we choose between one or the other？
Newport's answer is no。 In Digital Minimalism， he outlines a practical philosophy and plan for a mindful， intentional use of technology that maximises its benefits while minimising its drain on our attention， focus and time。 Demonstrating how to implement a 30 day digital detox， this book will help you identify which uses of technology are actually helping you reach your goals， and which are holding back。
If you care about improving your effectiveness but don't want to become a Luddite or a social dropout this book can lead you to increased control over your time， attention， and energy and ultimately， a richer life。 Read Digital Minimalism and you'll never again mindlessly sacrifice your productivity to clickbait or lose 40 minutes of your evening to your Instagram feed。
Cal Newport is a tenured professor of computer science at Georgetown University。 He is the author of five books， including So Good They Can't Ignore You and the bestselling Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World。 Newport's ideas have been published in top print publications， including the New York Times， the Wall Street Journal， the Economist， the Financial Times and the Guardian， but as a dedicated digital minimalist， Newport has never had a social media account。
On Cal Newport's bestselling book Deep Work:
'Cal Newport is a clear voice in a sea of noise， bringing science and passion in equal measure' - Seth Godin author of Purple Cow
'A compelling case for cultivating intense focus， and offers immediately actionable steps for infusing more of it into our lives' - Adam Grant， author of Originals
Reviews
Lucy Kellison
，
Author is remiss to not acknowledge the privileged place this book/these ideas come from。 Good takeaways re: consumption of 'breaking news'， science behind why our brains can't handle all the multitasking we do now， etc。。。 Author is remiss to not acknowledge the privileged place this book/these ideas come from。 Good takeaways re: consumption of 'breaking news'， science behind why our brains can't handle all the multitasking we do now， etc。。。 。。。more
Michaela
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Just another white dude blathering on about productivity。 Though there was some good information in the book， I can't help but roll my eyes at all of the references of introspective/productive people being historic figures like Aristotle， Thoreau， and Lincoln。 Just another white dude blathering on about productivity。 Though there was some good information in the book， I can't help but roll my eyes at all of the references of introspective/productive people being historic figures like Aristotle， Thoreau， and Lincoln。 。。。more
Danny Mindich
，
cal newport wrote a book。 it was ok。 not particularly well written and i don’t think the case for why technology should be decluttered was necessarily well articulated。 i would love more focus on what the benefits of technology are， what the costs are， and how they interact。 fine grained details that will show the reader why technology is used the way it is now and what specific mental health repercussions they have。 significantly more insightful examples could have been included。 however， i did cal newport wrote a book。 it was ok。 not particularly well written and i don’t think the case for why technology should be decluttered was necessarily well articulated。 i would love more focus on what the benefits of technology are， what the costs are， and how they interact。 fine grained details that will show the reader why technology is used the way it is now and what specific mental health repercussions they have。 significantly more insightful examples could have been included。 however， i didn’t read so far past page 80。 read if you’d like！ 。。。more
Jemshid Kake
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A book that makes one think about many aspects of the social media and engagement intensive life offered by modern technologies。
Minna
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Thought provoking， as I hoped it would be。 His philosophy starts with identifying what you value most and then choosing specific technologies based on their ability to support those values。 Most surprising to me was his connection between phone use and the need to develop high quality leisure- “For many people， their compulsive phone use papers over a void created by a lack of a well-developed leisure life” （71）。 Have to keep thinking about this。
xeoreads
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Definitely a must-read by every single human being。 ✨
Sugato Bagchi
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minimize（this book） = slide
Natalie
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a book full of good ideas that have already had an effect on how i use my devices and how much i use them， however at times the presentation of these ideas were grating and there was a little too much reverence for henry david thoreau and walden
Marten
，
The right book at the right time。 Loved Deep Work and this book continues in the same vein。 It gives a clear alternative for having a unhealthy dependency on digital services of the current age with good suggestions on how to achieve a more healthy attitude towards them。The only thing I disliked was the fact that almost all the examples given were very much on the beaten path: Notable white （American） men from history。 These examples aren’t misplaced， but apply to a very specific subsection of p The right book at the right time。 Loved Deep Work and this book continues in the same vein。 It gives a clear alternative for having a unhealthy dependency on digital services of the current age with good suggestions on how to achieve a more healthy attitude towards them。The only thing I disliked was the fact that almost all the examples given were very much on the beaten path: Notable white （American） men from history。 These examples aren’t misplaced， but apply to a very specific subsection of possible lives。 Which makes it harder to imagine alternative ways of implementing digital minimalism in a rigoureus way。 。。。more
Lauren
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Easy to read book with several helpful tools to minimize the digital noise in your life。 I would have enjoyed a section about the author's personal journey with no social media at all and what it's like for him （maybe this is discussed in one of his earlier works？）， as the book mostly discusses ways to keep social media in your life， but to a lesser extent。 As someone who is considering getting rid of social media altogether， I would have enjoyed hearing the author's experience with this。 Also， Easy to read book with several helpful tools to minimize the digital noise in your life。 I would have enjoyed a section about the author's personal journey with no social media at all and what it's like for him （maybe this is discussed in one of his earlier works？）， as the book mostly discusses ways to keep social media in your life， but to a lesser extent。 As someone who is considering getting rid of social media altogether， I would have enjoyed hearing the author's experience with this。 Also， I strongly disagree with the author's statement that "doing nothing is overrated"， as it often leads to mindless swiping and lower quality leisure time。 While this might be true， we as humans should set aside time for nothingness and stillness。 Every hour doesn't have to be filled with productive activity。 What about sitting outside， watching the birds or taking in a sunset - or having a bath， or a nap， or meditation？ Rest and stillness are essential to humans， as we often struggle with always doing instead of just being。This is also an odd statement to make in a book that， earlier on， quotes Blaise Pascal， "All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone"。 。。。more
Hugh Carter
，
If I had read this book at another time I might have hated it。 Newport has Gladwell moments - where he extrapolates from a single source （trend， personal anecdote， book， historical event） a grand theory of something， or some kind of timeless wisdom。 Those parts of the book are the weakest。 It's still one of the best tech books I've ever read。 At its' core this book is fantastic。 He's not advocating anything drastic。 Use technology with intent （hint: use Facebook like you use Goodreads）。 By focus If I had read this book at another time I might have hated it。 Newport has Gladwell moments - where he extrapolates from a single source （trend， personal anecdote， book， historical event） a grand theory of something， or some kind of timeless wisdom。 Those parts of the book are the weakest。 It's still one of the best tech books I've ever read。 At its' core this book is fantastic。 He's not advocating anything drastic。 Use technology with intent （hint: use Facebook like you use Goodreads）。 By focusing our time on where we can draw the most benefit from each technology engagement （i。e。 stop following brands， meme pages and high school friends on Facebook）， you'll naturally find that you get a lot more value out of each usage， and a lot more free time back to do things of other， longer-lasting， equally high value。 Looking at some of the more critical reviews here， it seems a lot of people rushed to judgement of this book without actually digging in。 Newport isn't advocating doing away with any tools that we need for our professional or personal lives。 Rather， he suggests we revisit the reasons why we signed up for these technologies， and make sure that's what utility they serve in our lives， and nothing more。 Short read。 Good advice for both me and my teenage kid。 Will certainly change the way I use technology。 。。。more
Nadya Estefani
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This book provides a deep understanding on how harmful social media could be as it wastes our time。 This book also provides some exercises to reduce our dependence on social media。 I enjoyed this book so much and will practice the exercises！
Gyandutt Pandey
，
Excellent read。 Sold to the idea。 Looking now at my smart phone with entirely different view point。
Lindsey Pauwels
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Eye-opening。 Really puts your social media use into perspective。 Must read if you want to stop mindless scrolling and give social media a more qualitative role in your life。
Corina Markovich
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“Your time is their money。” Love Cal Newport SO much。 I feel like this should be read hand in hand with his book Deep Work。 Love his practical words on how technology is affecting our generation and how we can take back our time by pushing against the digital attention economy。
Em Vespa
，
Personally， I was already aware of many of the concerns about social media and technology that arose in Part 1， so it wasn’t as helpful for me， but Part 2 was a great guide on strategies to use technology more intentionally
Matin
，
با یک کتاب توسعه فردی تکراری روبه رو نیستید چون اساسا نویسنده روی موضوعی نسبتا نو دست گذاشته。 کتاب ۲ بخش کلی داره。 «اصول مینیمالیسم» و «تمرینات» که راهکار پیشنهادی یعنی «پاک سازی دیجیتال» در انتهای بخش اول آورده شده。 در واقع برای فهمیدن راهکار پیشنهادی نیوپورت احتیاجی ندارید کل کتاب رو بخونید که این کار نویسنده حسن نیتش رو حداقل برای من ثابت می کنه。 اگرچه فکر نمی کنم مثل من به خوندن بخش اول بسنده کنید。 ادامه ی کتاب هم ایده ها و شواهدی برای تحکیم و اثربخشی این سبک از رفتار دیجیتال ارائه می ده。 اگ با یک کتاب توسعه فردی تکراری روبه رو نیستید چون اساسا نویسنده روی موضوعی نسبتا نو دست گذاشته。 کتاب ۲ بخش کلی داره。 «اصول مینیمالیسم» و «تمرینات» که راهکار پیشنهادی یعنی «پاک سازی دیجیتال» در انتهای بخش اول آورده شده。 در واقع برای فهمیدن راهکار پیشنهادی نیوپورت احتیاجی ندارید کل کتاب رو بخونید که این کار نویسنده حسن نیتش رو حداقل برای من ثابت می کنه。 اگرچه فکر نمی کنم مثل من به خوندن بخش اول بسنده کنید。 ادامه ی کتاب هم ایده ها و شواهدی برای تحکیم و اثربخشی این سبک از رفتار دیجیتال ارائه می ده。 اگرچه بعضی توصیه هایی که می کنه شاید ظاهر شعارگونه ای داشته باشند اما معمولا هرجا که توصیه ای کرده راهکار یا مستندات قابل قبولی هم براش ارائه داده。 با دقت در نحوه بیان پژوهش هایی که توی کتاب می خونید به راحتی به زمینه ی آکادمیک نویسنده پی می برید。 اگرچه نثر کتاب ساده است، اما امانت داری علمی هم رعایت شده。 بخشی که به نظرم نیازی نبود راجع بهش مانور داده بشه توضیحات راجع به نحوه برنامه ریزی بود。 حداقل من این کتاب رو برای آموزش نحوه برنامه ریزی نخوندم！ ترجمه ی کتاب هم واقعا روان بود و با ابهام خاصی روبه رو نشدم。 خوشبختانه。چندسال پیش این کلیپ از تریستان هریس رو دیده بودم که اتفاقا توی این کتاب هم بهش اشاره شده بود:لینک تدتاکhttps://www。ted。com/talks/tristan_har。。。در ادامه بعضی بخشها که هایلایت کردم رو آوردم。بسیاری از ابزار های جدید به اندازه ای که در نگاه اول به نظر می رسد بی ضرر نیست。 دلیل تسلیم شدن مردم در برابر این صفحه نمایش ها تنبلی آنها نیست؛ نه دلیل این امر میلیاردها دلار سرمایه گذاری ای است که برای اجتناب ناپذیر کردن این تسلیم صرف شده است。نمی توانید انتظار داشته باشید برنامه ی کاربردی ای که در اتاق خوابگاه یا در بین میزهای پینگ پنگ مرکز رشد کسب و کارهای نوپا در سیلیکون ولی ساخته شده، با موفقیت، جایگزین انواع تعاملات غنی ای شود که ما در طول هزاران سال به سختی با آنها سازگار شده ایم。 اجتماعی بودن ما بسیار پیچیده تر از آن است که بتوانیم آن را به یک شبکه ی اجتماعی بسپاریم یا تا سطح پیام های فوری و ایموجی ها تنزلش دهیم。امروزه، بسیاری از مردمْ دنیا را از طریق صقحه نمایش تجربه می کنند。 ما در دنیایی زندگی می کنیم که تلاش می کند «لمس کردن» را در قالب یکی از حواس ما از بین ببرد و استفاده از دست را برای انجام دادن کارها، به جز برای ضربه زدن روی صفحه ی گوشی ،به حداقل برساند。 نتیجه، عدم تطابق بین تجهیزات و تجربه های ماست。 。。。more
Christine McGoveran
，
Loved this！ Lots of good strategies and lessons to take from it。 Going to be changing my relationship with technology moving forward thanks to this book。 Highly recommend。
Tabitha A
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Helpful， doable information of how to create a digital minimalist lifestyle and use less social media and other distracting technology。 The basic premise is to go off on all social media for 30 days to detox， find ways to use your time different like leisure and hobbies， evaluate your values， and then figure out how to reintroduce technology to enhance your leisure and values。 Basically dont let your phone distract you， and use technology with purpose and intention， rather than a boredom buster
Ryan McCarthy
，
A compelling and surprisingly actionable philosophy for addressing the increasingly ubiquitous nature of technology in our lives today。 Ted was right; here's what you can do about it。 A compelling and surprisingly actionable philosophy for addressing the increasingly ubiquitous nature of technology in our lives today。 Ted was right; here's what you can do about it。 。。。more
Michael Young
，
The last chapter is great but overall I felt like the book was going in circles。 However I did appreciate how the author did not give blanket solutions/suggestions for everyone - each suggested practice had multiple 'levels' of minimalism。 The book itself was not great but it did end up sparking some great ideas:While I listened to this book I had the idea to change my phone color settings to grayscale， testing how it would change the way I use it。 Surprisingly it has made a significant differen The last chapter is great but overall I felt like the book was going in circles。 However I did appreciate how the author did not give blanket solutions/suggestions for everyone - each suggested practice had multiple 'levels' of minimalism。 The book itself was not great but it did end up sparking some great ideas:While I listened to this book I had the idea to change my phone color settings to grayscale， testing how it would change the way I use it。 Surprisingly it has made a significant difference。 I rarely get sucked into the cycle of checking apps other than the one I got my phone out to use。 。。。more
Karen
，
Longwinded
Mathijs Breedveld
，
Een goed boek met duidelijke tips en een goede onderbouwing van die tips。 Een beetje （zelf）kennis gaat ver wanneer je gewoontes wil veranderen。 Soms heeft de schrijver wel de neiging het kind met het badwater weg te gooien。 Daarbij komt nog dat hij vanuit een bevoorrechte positie schrijft。 Sommige tips kosten tijd en geld， iets dat niet iedereen over heeft。 Toch een aanrader， 8/10。
Sarah
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This book was a tough pill to swallow living alone during a pandemic， BUT the over-arching point is totally right。 Social media is trash （I write on this social media app） and we should prioritize more meaningful uses of our time and use technology more thoughtfully。 Certainly worth reading。
Ellen
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He makes a convincing argument about why and then how to get off our devices。 His argument isn’t about the technology but about quality of life。
John Strohm
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Should have been a magazine article。It's a 250 page book on how to quit Facebook。 Generally， there are two camps of people: Those who know Facebook is destroying society， and those who know that Facebook is destroying society but want to see how racist their relatives are。 The first group has already quit Facebook， and the second group won't quit。Maybe this book will be useful for the small sliver of people who want to quit all things Zuck but don't quite know how。 Should have been a magazine article。It's a 250 page book on how to quit Facebook。 Generally， there are two camps of people: Those who know Facebook is destroying society， and those who know that Facebook is destroying society but want to see how racist their relatives are。 The first group has already quit Facebook， and the second group won't quit。Maybe this book will be useful for the small sliver of people who want to quit all things Zuck but don't quite know how。 。。。more
Alex
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Interesting overview of the changes and impact that technology has had on individuals， includes a number of suggested ways to interact with technology。 Focuses on social media but also explores mobile technology in general。
Lauren Rohland
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My "digital declutter" starts today。 I read part one of this book soon after the reality of extended quarantine was starting to set in （Fall 2020）， and the idea of disconnecting to such an extreme was far too scary。 I read the rest of the book just today （Spring 2021） and I feel ready。 Cal Newport doesn't just tell you that you're giving your attention to places/people/things/screens that don't deserve it， he proves it- and without demonizing you for your habits。 A great read。 My "digital declutter" starts today。 I read part one of this book soon after the reality of extended quarantine was starting to set in （Fall 2020）， and the idea of disconnecting to such an extreme was far too scary。 I read the rest of the book just today （Spring 2021） and I feel ready。 Cal Newport doesn't just tell you that you're giving your attention to places/people/things/screens that don't deserve it， he proves it- and without demonizing you for your habits。 A great read。 。。。more
Akhdiyat Saputra
，
Open minded bookThis book open my eyes about how we use technolgy supposely， for out better life。 Must read book and worthy。
Tom
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