Deep Work - readable, enjoyable, and mostly forgotten a few months later

This book prioritises readability over memorability.

I saw someone recommend it in a YouTube video, and it was hyped a lot from various places, so I gave it a go. A few months after finishing it, I can hardly remember the main points. There is limited deep work you can do. Doing deep work is what really gets you ahead. Do the hardest thing first. Actively make strategies to maximise your deep work. That’s about all that stuck.

To be fair, one of those points did stick in practice. I do try to plan out my tasks for the day and then tackle the hardest thing first, and it helps.

But it’s the kind of book that makes you feel like you’re learning something while you’re reading it, and once it’s finished there’s not that much substance left behind. Atomic Habits was much more actionable and memorable, and I wish Deep Work had been structured more like that.

It wasn’t bad though. It was still very easy to read and interesting, and I even enjoyed it, which is why it still lands a 4/5 from me. But given how little of it stays with you, I’d only hand it to someone who reads a lot. Everyone else is better off starting with Atomic Habits.