I read Cal Newport’s Deep Work recently, and came across Enrico Bertini’s essay about tracking deep work sessions. Here’s what my current log looks like:
Like Bertini, I think the idea of tracking Deep Work is a great habit; also like him, I think using the following criteria for Deep Work to be very persuasive:
How do I distinguish between deep and non-deep work? Very easy. I have a simple rule: deep work is work I track. If I don’t track it, it’s not “deep work”. It may seem odd but it works for me. The thing that makes it work for me is that when I track “deep work” I have to consciously think: “this thing I am going to do now is going to be deep work”. In turn, this is a signal to my brain that I am going to shift gear and that it’s time to get rid of distractions. Intentionality (similar to what happens in meditation) plays a big role here: it feels like “tuning” yourself to a specific mode.
Bertini didn’t release his Google Sheets template, but I’ve copied it based on his Medium post, with my limited spreadsheet skills. Feel free to copy this (link to sheet, again) and use it for your own purposes!
I like it. This is how I keep track of billable work, but I probably should do the same for everything else that would warrant “deep” qualification.
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