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Summary of Do Nothing 

4.5 . 894 reviews

Short summary

The more we succumb to the influence of our work-obsessed culture, the more we live harder instead of smarter and become more lonely and anxious. These days, only a few of our daily activities are focused on helping us become more naturally playful, thoughtful, or social. Our work schedules don’t allow for play or creating and maintaining meaningful relationships. In Do Nothing, award-winning journalist, public speaker, and author Celeste Headlee shares some simple yet effective insights into how we can break free from our obsession with efficiency. She shows how each of us can reclaim our time and humanity by harnessing the power of leisure. In this summary, you will learn how to increase your time perception and become more productive by investing in quality leisure time. “The key to well-being is shared humanity, even though we are pushing further and further toward separation.” ~ Celeste Headlee

Table of content

  • Summary of Do Nothing
  • About the author
  • What is Do Nothing about?
  • Who should read Do Nothing
  • Topics in Do Nothing
first key point

Our culture of overwork has driven us to lose sight of what really matters

Listen the first key point
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We work overtime during the week and answer work emails on the weekend. We read tons of books on how to hack our brains to achieve more productivity. We continue reaching for a bar that keeps rising higher and higher, leaving us overworked and overstressed, constantly dissatisfied. We are members of the “cult of efficiency,” and we’re killing ourselves with work.

Surprisingly, this cult wasn’t created by our advancement in technology; it was simply added to an existing culture. For centuries, we have made ourselves miserable while we’ve worked feverishly.
We’ve driven ourselves for so long that we’ve lost sight of where we are going and our capacity for light-heartedness and play.
According to Celeste Headlee, the cult of efficiency is a group whose members have an intense belief in the virtue of constant activity — in finding the most efficient way to accomplish just about anything and everything. They are always busy, and they believe that all their effort is saving time and making their lives better. Unfortunately for them, they are very wrong. The efficiency they think they've achieved is an illusion. They believe they’re efficient when they’re actually wasting time. Sadly, the vast majority of us have been lured into the cult of efficiency.

We are driven, but we've long forgotten what we were driving toward. We judge our days based on how efficient they are, not how fulfilling.

We invest our time, energy, and hard-earned money in things we think will make us more efficient, but those things end up wasting our time, exhausting and stressing us out without bringing us closer to our goals. We sacrifice our relationships and our well-being to become more productive, only to become less so.

In the following chapters of this summary, you will discover how our society got into the rut of the incessant pursuit of efficiency and how this toxic culture affects all of us. You will also learn how to get more done and become more productive by doing less.
second key point

Our generation's obsession with work can be traced back to the Protestant Reformation in 16th-Century Europe

During the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, German professor Martin Luther taught that hard work is a gift from God and that the most faithful people work hard and do their labor efficiently. Luther also believed that idleness should be enjoyed only after death.
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third key point

Getting out of the cult of efficiency requires a change in time perception

fourth key point

Perfection is a myth; stop comparing your life to that of others

fifth key point

Invest in quality leisure time; take your foot off the pedal from time to time

sixth key point

Practicing random acts of kindness can help you break free of the obsession with efficiency

seventh key point

Focusing on your ultimate goals will help you approach life with flexibility

eighth key point

Conclusion

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What is Do Nothing about?

Who should read Do Nothing

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Do you find yourself staring at your computer for long minutes, unaware of time slipping by? Do you enter a room and suddenly cannot remember why you stepped in the first place? Is it a herculean task for you to sit through ten pages of a book without reaching for your phone? If yes, your focus needs some work and fast.

Actually, yours is not a unique situation. Many adults like you have issues concentrating on a given task. However, in this fast-paced world of ours, you can’t afford to be not focused at all times. Thankfully, this article comes to your rescue! With the tips and tricks from Hyperfocus by Chris Bailey, you will get in the top percent of folks who have mastered the art of concentration.

Do you find yourself staring at your computer for long minutes, unaware of time slipping by? Do you enter a room and suddenly cannot remember why you stepped in the first place? Is it a herculean task for you to sit through ten pages of a book without reaching for your phone? If yes, your focus needs some work and fast.

Actually, yours is not a unique situation. Many adults like you have issues concentrating on a given task. However, in this fast-paced world of ours, you can’t afford to be not focused at all times. Thankfully, this article comes to your rescue! With the tips and tricks from Hyperfocus by Chris Bailey, you will get in the top percent of folks who have mastered the art of concentration.