Too Busy? 5 Books to Take Back Control of Your Time and Attention

Back in 2016, Cal Newport tapped into the rising anti-distraction movement, coining the concept of Deep Work with his bestselling book of the same name. At the time, the book (and its follow up Digital Minimalism) shared paradigm-shifting perspective on how to focus the mind in the connected age. Now, Newport is back with a new book that argues in favor of slowing things down, focusing on quality, and doing less things at once to solve our current distraction epidemic. (Out 3/5)

A doctor and one of the world's most-followed productivity experts claims the secret to productivity isn't discipline. It's joy. So stop hustling harder, and start hustling happier. “Readers overwhelmed by their daily routines will find comfort, inspiration, and a game plan,” remarked Booklist. (Out 12/26)

The latest by the author of the acclaimed How to Do Nothing has an equally ambitious call to action: liberating ourselves from the ticking clock. Inspired by pre-industrial cultures and geological timescales, it’s “an ambitious project that takes on time-management, self-help, climate nihilism, our fear of dying and the grind of corporate life, ultimately asking us to see time itself through different lenses,” remarked the Washington Post.

For anyone who’s ever daydreamed about tossing their iPhones into the drink, this one’s for you. It’s a practical, hands-on plan to break up--and then make up--with your phone by the author of 101 Places Not to See Before You Die, who the New York Times called "The Marie Kondo of brains… for the first time in a long time, I'm starting to feel like a human again."

Can I kick it? Yes, you should. That’s the leisurely take-away in this thoughtful ode to hanging out and doing everyday activities with pals that pushes back on our technology supercharged lives. "Hide your phone, stop hustling for a second, and read this passionate argument for the importance of unstructured pre-digital hang," declared People Magazine.