Schedule Type 2: Periodic
Carve out regular periods each week, month, or entire parts of the year to focus on deep work. The book stresses that the period should be at least one full day to reach the maximum intensity of deep work. (As we’ll see in the following schedule suggestion, it’s possible to do a few daily hours of deep work, but those few hours won’t be at the intensity you would achieve in a full day of deep work.)
Example: You might carve out a three-day block of the week where you aren’t contactable while preserving the other two days for shallower work.
The advantage of this schedule is that it’s more realistic than the seclusion schedule. Setting aside at least one full day of deep work helps you reach your maximum level of focus. However, despite being more realistic, it’s still impractical for many workers, who have to perform certain tasks daily.
(Even if you’re a 9-5 office worker, it may be possible to adopt a periodic schedule—especially as companies normalize remote work. In The Effective Executive, Peter Drucker recommends working from home at least one day per week, and planning to do your most mentally demanding tasks in this isolated, focused time.)
…to be continued
