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深度工作让知识劳动重新获得工匠式满足

读《Deep Work》读到工作的意义时,我开始想,工匠精神通常有一个亲手制作的过程。手工制品、音乐、美术、诗歌和写作都会留下某种产出,自身制作的步骤也是满足感的一部分。当时我接着写:“而我,似乎一直以来都没有做到这一点。要好好思考一下,也许写作目前看来是最实用,且最容易坚持的产出方式。”

知识工作的问题在于结果经常很含糊。铁匠面对的是一把剑,难度高,目标却清楚;写作者、律师或程序员的任务常被邮件、协调和边界不明的问题包围。深度工作把注意力压到一项有难度、能反馈、最后会留下结果的事情上,知识劳动才比较接近手艺。

这里和 Flow 的关系很直接。目标清楚、挑战存在、反馈能回来,人更容易持续投入。它也补充了 工匠精神 的另一面。那边谈职业底线,这里谈制作过程怎样给人满足。后来我把严肃写作定成每日半小时,语音识别留给一般总结和随手感想,机械键盘留给需要逐字推敲的文字。

成功和幸福是投身于意义之后的副产品 把注意力从“我是否成功”移向值得做的事,这里的方向相近。区别在于,深度工作的满足可能在制作时已经发生,不必等到外部成功以后。

This connection between deep work and a good life is familiar and widely accepted when considering the world of craftsmen. “The satisfactions of manifesting oneself concretely in the world through manual competence have been known to make a man quiet and easy,” explains Matthew Crawford. And we believe him. But when we shift our attention to knowledge work this connection is muddied. Part of the issue is clarity. Craftsmen like Furrer tackle professional challenges that are simple to define but difficult to execute—a useful imbalance when seeking purpose. Knowledge work exchanges this clarity for ambiguity. Any pursuit—be it physical or cognitive—that supports high levels of skill can also generate a sense of sacredness. Cal Newport, Deep Work

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