Summary

The article discusses the concept of "Elite Laziness" and distinguishes it from "Foundational Laziness," offering strategies for productivity and time management based on Cal Newport's insights.

Abstract

The article "Do You Suffer From ‘Elite Laziness’?" explores the idea that high achievers may experience a form of laziness characterized by the pursuit of constant improvement and the feeling that they could be doing more. This concept, coined by Cal Newport, is contrasted with "Foundational Laziness," which is marked by a lack of structure and control over one's obligations. The author, Dave, reflects on his own experiences with trying to balance learning through podcasts with the demands of daily life. He outlines Newport's advice for overcoming "Elite Laziness," which includes embracing lower workloads for impressive goals, and for "Foundational Laziness," which involves implementing a "Total Loop Closure system" encompassing calendar management, a full capture system for tasks, multi-scale planning, a shutdown ritual, and task automation. The article emphasizes that these states of laziness are responses to one's environment and suggests that understanding and addressing them can lead to improved productivity and personal organization.

Opinions

The author believes that walking is an underrated activity that benefits health, thinking, creativity, learning, and mental health.
It is suggested that podcasts and audiobooks are modern tools for learning from top performers, a privilege not widely available a decade ago.
The author criticizes himself for not always following through with his learning goals and feels pressure to optimize his time.
Cal Newport's "Elite Laziness" is described as a state where individuals are already successful but strive for more efficiency and productivity.
"Foundational Laziness" is depicted as a chaotic state lacking basic life structure and consistent habits or systems.
The article posits that the cure for "Elite Laziness" involves recognizing one's limits and adopting the "Inverse Law of Accomplishment," where ambitious goals should correlate with a lighter workload.
For those with "Foundational Laziness," the solution is to establish order through a comprehensive system that includes calendar use, task capture, planning across different time scales, a daily shutdown ritual, and automation of regular tasks.
The author concludes that neither "Elite" nor "Foundational Laziness" should be a source of self-criticism but rather understood as environmental responses that can be managed with the right strategies.

Do You Suffer From ‘Elite Laziness’?

Redefining Laziness for a Productive Life

Image designed by the Author using Figma

Walking is one of the most underrated pastimes you can have.

Here’s why:

It’s good for your health
It allows you space to think
It allows you to spark creativity
It allows you to learn via Podcasts and audiobooks
It gets you into nature (proven to improve your mental health)

I try to walk twice per day and for at least one of those, I listen to podcasts.

It’s a no-brainer — if you want to improve your skills, learn from those who are elite in that skill.

Ten years ago, you needed a mentor. Now, you have direct access to the top 1% through podcasts.

But here’s the thing:

I don’t always follow through.

Juggling the various demands in my life while attempting to carve out an additional two hours for learning is a big ask.

Every time I fail, I berate myself for not ‘optimising’ my time.

This is what Cal Newport classifies as ‘Elite Laziness’, in his most recent podcast.

What is Elite Laziness?

If you fall into the Elite Lazy category, things are already going well in your life.

You’ve got a basic structure to make the most of your time and you’re producing good work, week in and week out.

But.

You’re always searching for more.

You’ve constantly got the feeling, that if you could just manage to refine and optimise your time, you could be doing so much more.

Elite Laziness vs. Foundational Laziness

On the opposite end of the spectrum is Foundational Laziness.

A life of Foundational Laziness is characterised by chaos.

You lack basic structure in your life and no control of your obligations.

You regularly try to build habits and systems but time and time again, things fall apart after just a few days.

The Cures

Elite Laziness Cure:

Cal explains that the standard advice for those suffering from Elite Laziness is to just ‘chill out’.

Stop putting so much pressure on yourself and just work on things when you can.

The problem with this advice he explains, is that it’s not complete.

How do we know if we are mentally maxed out — or if we have more in the tank?

The solution for this is what he refers to as The Inverse Law of Accomplishment.

Simply put:

The more impressive the goal you are looking to achieve, the lower your workload should be.

Foundational Lazy Cure:

In contrast, the Foundational Lazy, need to get their ‘house in order’.

While Cal’s advice is great for those whose life is defined by chaos, there are multiple elements of this cure that could be beneficial for everyone — even if they already have a structure in place.

Cal argues that in order to make progress in your life, you first need to take control of your obligations.

And you do so by implementing a Total Loop Closure system.

It consists of these 5 elements:

Calendar — All meetings/obligations should be in your calendar (basic but crucial)
Full Capture System — You need an area where you can capture each and every task that you need to accomplish
Multi-Scale Planning — You need to plan your life over multiple timelines — day/month/year
Shut Down Ritual — At the end of each working day, you take the time to ensure you’ve captured all tasks and planned for the next day. See Cal’s book ‘Deep Work’ for more here.
Automate — Any tasks that are regular requirements, you try to automate to the best of your ability.

Here’s The Thing

If you find yourself falling into either of these categories, it’s easy to regularly berate your efforts.

Cal explains that neither of these things is what he actually classifies as Laziness.

They’re simply reasonable responses to your current environment.

If you suffer from Elite Laziness, maybe you’ve just got too much on your plate right now.

If you’re suffering from Foundational Laziness, perhaps you’re just unorganised and you don’t know where to start to get your life back on track.

Take a moment to reflect on where you stand today.

Are you chasing constant improvement, or are you struggling to establish a baseline?

What do you think of these concepts? Do you have any other strategies for overcoming laziness?

Let me know in the comments!

About the Author

My name is Dave 👋

I’m always on the hunt for strategies to unlock high performance and dedicated to assisting others in their journey towards self-improvement.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider following me and subscribing to receive my articles directly to your inbox.

Note: This article contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase through these links. There is no extra cost to you, and I only recommend products and services that I believe in.