If you’re trying to be productive, what if the answer isn’t to do more… but to do less, better?

On today’s episode, we welcome back Cal Newport — Georgetown computer science professor, bestselling author of Deep Work and Slow Productivity, and one of the most influential voices on focus, sustainable achievement, and the hidden costs of our digital lives.

Cal and Dr. Mike pick up where their first conversation left off — exploring why the human brain can’t do its best work while juggling five active tasks, how context switching quietly crushes output, and what leaders can do to build cultures that protect focus without adding headcount.

On the human side, Cal dives into digital fatigue, rethinking our relationship with phones, and how parents can create healthier tech norms at home. Finally, he looks ahead to AI — not with fear, but with clarity about how it can remove friction and restore our ability to think deeply.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why doing fewer things at once leads to faster, better results
• How to reduce context switching and build deep work into team culture
• The difference between true productivity and “pseudo-productivity”
• How to counter digital fatigue at work and at home — with different strategies for each
• What parents should know about phones, social media, and attention
• How AI can actually protect deep work when used wisely

The heart of this conversation: mastery in the modern world isn’t about speed or volume — it’s about depth, clarity, and choosing what truly deserves your attention.

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Links & Resources

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The most powerful way to enter a new year is not with resolutions, but with a deeper understanding of how to connect with the people who matter most.

As we close out the year, the Finding Mastery team is taking time to rest, re-calibrate and reflect — practicing the same principles we talk about on this podcast.

So today, we’re sharing a conversation from the Finding Mastery Vault with two legends in the science of relationships: Drs. John and Julie Gottman.

Together, they’ve spent more than 50 years studying what makes love last — from small moments of connection to the hidden habits that quietly erode trust. In this conversation, we explore the daily rituals that deepen intimacy, how to repair after conflict, and why the best relationships aren’t perfect — they’re practiced.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How to turn conflict into closeness through repair
• The four behaviors that quietly destroy relationships (and how to replace them)
• Why “love is a verb” — and what that means in action
• The difference between bids for connection and real listening
• How to communicate needs without criticism or defensiveness

From the entire Finding Mastery team, we wish you and your loved ones a very happy, healthy New Year. We’ll see you in 2026! Enjoy this episode with The Gottmans.

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Links & Resources

Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for more conversations at the intersection of high performance, leadership, and wellbeing: https://www.youtube.com/c/FindingMastery

Get exclusive discounts and support our amazing sponsors!

Go to: https://findingmastery.com/sponsors/

Subscribe to the Finding Mastery newsletter for weekly high performance insights: https://www.findingmastery.com/newsletter

Download Dr. Mike's Morning Mindset Routine: findingmastery.com/morningmindset

Follow on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the greatest gift you could offer this season isn’t something you buy—but rather the way you choose to meet yourself and others—with kindness?

As we pause new releases over the holidays, the Finding Mastery team is taking time to rest, reflect, and be with our loved ones — because we believe relationships are part of the practice of mastery itself.

So today, we’re re-releasing a powerful, audio-only episode from the Finding Mastery Vault: a conversation with THE Sharon Salzberg, one of the world’s leading teachers of wisdom, mindfulness and loving-kindness meditation.

Sharon shares how love can be trained as an ability, why discernment and gratitude sharpen performance, and how to meet fear without hardening. She also walks us through a simple loving-kindness meditation you can use right away. Her lessons are as relevant now as they were when we first shared this conversation — maybe even more so in a world that could use a little more gentleness right now.

So, Happy Holidays from all of us here at Finding Mastery and with that, enjoy this week’s From The Vault conversation with Sharon Salzberg.

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Links & Resources

Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for more conversations at the intersection of high performance, leadership, and wellbeing: https://www.youtube.com/c/FindingMastery

Get exclusive discounts and support our amazing sponsors!

Go to: https://findingmastery.com/sponsors/

Subscribe to the Finding Mastery newsletter for weekly high performance insights: https://www.findingmastery.com/newsletter

Download Dr. Mike's Morning Mindset Routine: findingmastery.com/morningmindset

Follow on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.