There’s a gravity and sense of importance inherent in deep work — whether you’re Ric Furrer smithing a sword or a computer programmer optimizing an a… - Cal Newport

Self-Determination Theory (SDT), which is arguably the best understanding science currently has for why some pursuits get our engines running while others leave us cold.8 SDT tells us that motivation, in the workplace or elsewhere, requires that you fulfill three basic psychological needs — factors described as the “nutriments” required to feel intrinsically motivated for your work: Autonomy: the feeling that you have control over your day, and that your actions are important Competence: the feeling that you are good at what you do Relatedness: the feeling of connection to other people

A shutdown habit, therefore, is not necessarily reducing the amount of time you’re engaged in productive work, but is instead diversifying the type of work you deploy.

These are the knowledge work equivalents of speeding up the craft method of car manufacturing by giving the workers faster shoes.