Cal Newport

Is it really just I'm looking at my calendar and I want to see time scheduled for each of these three areas, which, I mean, obviously work will be scheduled, but the other one was relationships and self.

Or what else should we be thinking about when we sit down with our calendar to plan for the week?

Now, what about rules?

Because if you had an electronic calendar, you could have recurring calendar items for, oh, I always do this on Wednesday mornings, etc.

But you use an analog calendar.

Do you have your sort of house rules written down somewhere that you're referencing?

Or is it, look, you're going to internalize this pretty quickly.

How do you actually mechanically deal with that piece of this puzzle?

I love this mindset shift.

I mean, I'm just reflecting on all the things you're saying, right?

And the mindset shift, I'll sort of summarize for my listeners, that really affects me is this idea that free time is not by itself the goal.

We think that's the goal.

I want free time.

But actually what we want is what free time gives you, which is the ability to make choices about what you're doing with your time.

You actually want your schedule to be pretty full of interesting stuff mixed in with obligations.

You don't want a lot of free time.

You want choice.

And so

The goal is, did I get a good mix of things in my waking time this week that deal with different parts of my life?

Does that feel like an interestingly balanced, interesting, delightful, engaged, meaningful week?