book summaries ali abdaal

• Define Your Direction , Plan Your Path , Work Your Plan
• Feature , Mindset , Motivation , Productivity

Feel-Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal: Book Summary & Notes

Estimated read time: 13 minutes

What is Feel-Good Productivity about?

Feel-Good Productivity feels part autobiography and part productivity master class.

Author, Ali Abdaal, walks the reader through his progression from newly trained but already dissatisfied young doctor to productivity researcher and YouTube guru (my descriptive, not his) and the lessons he learned about productivity along the way.

In Feel-Good Productivity, Ali presents a series of 18 research-backed productivity tools; each presented with insight into why it was meaningful to him on his journey.

Sound good?

My Key Take-Aways from Feel-Good Productivity

As I read through Feel-Good Productivity,  there were quite a few tools that were completely new to me. I was excited to discover these fresh strategies and incorporate them into my toolkit.

However,   I found also found that I was already familiar with some of the tips and tricks that Abdaal presented. As someone who is interested in personal development and productivity, I have come across similar ideas and concepts before (see these connections in my notes below).

Here are my key takeaways from Feel-Good Productivity:

• Everyone has one or more play personalities. Not everyone has fun in the same way.
• Even when you are in a situation that you dislike, you are in charge of how you think and feel.
• It is easier to form a new habit when you set an implementation intention around when you will perform the habit.
• Fear leads to avoidance and procrastination.
• You are not always in a spotlight. People don’t care nearly as much as you think they do.
• The more internally-focused your motivation is, the more likely you will be able to keep going. Conversely, the more externally-focused your motivation is, the more likely you will burn-out.
• Breaks are important. Schedule them to make sure they happen.
• You can’t do everything. Invest in what’s most important.

Keep reading for more of what I found fascinating in Feel-Good Productivity.

My Full Notes on Feel-Good Productivity

The following sections are a direct transcription of my handwritten notes from my Remarkable  2. While taking notes, I tried to indicate direct quotes as such to distinguish from my  interpretation of the content. It’s probable that I missed some.

I use the zettelkasten method and  Obsidian.md, so I’ve included any mental connections that I made while reading, along with a  summary of keywords from each chapter.

Introduction

• mood and creativity #read-more-from Alice Isen
• “broaden and build” #read-more-from Barbara Fredrickson
• broaden – “take in more information and we see more possibilities”
• build – “build up a reservoir of mental and emotional resources”
• Why it works…
• Increase energy – endorphins, serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin
• Decrease energy – negative emotions have long-term physical impact
• ‘undoing hypothesis’ – Barbara Fredrickson
• enriched life – “more sociable, optimistic, and creative. They also accomplish more.” – pg 12

Keywords from Introduction

Part 1: energise, chapter 1: play.

• Play is restorative
• Play doesn’t need to be separate from work

Make life an adventure

• Play personalities #read-more-from Dr Stuart Brown
• Storyteller

Do the Side Quests

• “Seek out fun everywhere” – pg 33

Find the Fun

• “What would this look like if it were fun?” – pg 34
• find a way to find flow

Find ways to decrease stress

• It’s ok to fail
• Be sincerely engaged #read-more-from Alan Watts

My Connections

This section about stress and failure ties to Brene Brown and letting go of shame. Many times we are so afraid of failure and the shame that it brings that we won’t let ourselves even try.

When we do try, we can allow ourselves to get so stressed about the possibility of failure that we don’t enjoy what we’re doing and eventually just give up.

Brene-Brown, letting-go-of-shame, Brene-Brown_The-Gifts-of-Imperfection

Keywords from Chapter 1

Chapter 2: power.

• self-empowerment creates energy #read-more-from Albert Bandura
• “when the going got tough, those that believed they could do it – regardless of their ability – were the ones who actually could.” – pg 53
• self-efficacy – “how much belief we have that we’re able to achieve our objectives” – pg 54
• exercise: visualize how it would go, if you were confident.
• vicarious mastery – look for examples to model #listen-to-more Indie Hackers podcast

Skill development

• enactive mastery – learn through doing
• beginner’s mind – Shoshin approach
• “It’s worth remembering that the people we learn from best are often the one who are just a step ahead of us in the journey” – pg 68
• intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation
• find a way to do it your way
• You are in charge of how you think and feel #read-more-from Viktor Frankl

Keywords from Chapter 2

Chapter 3: people.

• Relational energy – our interactions with others affect our mood
• energy map #read-more-from Cross, Baker, Parker 2003

Scenious – Find your scene

• greater results can be achieved when you work within an group of like-minded people
• collaboration – ‘working in parallel’ versus ‘working together’
• synchronicity – literally working in sync

Helper’s high

• “when we help others, our brains release a flood of chemicals that create a natural high.” – pg 88
• can be small tasks to make someone else’s day better
• assume that people want to help
• ask in person, if you can
• frame request positively

Overcommunicate

• active and constructive response
• #read-more-from Shelly Gable
• #read-more-from Kim Scott, Radical Candor
• be objective
• focus on the result/consequence
• focus on solutions for next time

Keywords from Chapter 3

Part 2: unblock.

• Getting things done is not always just about motivation and discipline. Legitimate blockers could be preventing you from doing it. If you can figure out what’s blocking your progress, you can address it and move forward.
• Common blockers: confusion, fear, inertia

Chapter 4: Seek Clarity

• confusion can lead to uncertainty paralysis
• people have different levels of tolerance for uncertainty

Auftragstaktic – prioritize understanding why over how

• understand your purpose
• How does this task meet with my overall purpose?

Determining what (end state)

• Input-based
• Controllable
• Crystal ball method – risk assessment

Ask ‘when?’

• “If x happens, then I will Y.” – pg 130 #read-more-from Peter Gollwitzer
• time-blocking

Keywords from Chapter 4

Chapter 5: find courage.

• Fear leads to avoidance/procrastination

Know your fear

• affective labeling
• Rather than giving yourself/taking on a negative label, find a way to give yourself a positive one

Labeling theory connects to Brene Brown’s shame work…

Shame comes from labelling ourselves negatively, e.g. “I am a terrible singer.” When you  are something, it is part of your identity and you don’t feel like you can change it.

If you can separate your performance from your identity, e.g. “I didn’t hit that note this time,” it is easier to move forward and try again.

In this case, a more positive, less shame-triggering label might be “I am a practicing singer.”

Brene-Brown, shame

Reduce your fear

• Cognitive paralysis – “When we’re scared, we become paralyzed.” – pg 145
• 10:10:10 rule – cognitive reappraisal
• just get started without worrying about the outcome
• “self-confidence = perception of ability – perception of standards” – pg 149

Overcome your fear

• Spotlight effect – people don’t care nearly as much as we think they do.
• #read-more-from Rachel White

Keywords from Chapter 5

Chapter 6: get started, reduce friction.

• physical environment
• emotional friction – 5-minute rule

5-minute rule connects to Mel Robbins’ 5-second rule. Intention of both is to just get started…

5-minute rule: Do something for just 5 minutes and then keep going if you want.

5-second rule: Count down 5-4-3-2-1 and then go do the thing.

The 5-minute rule is a softer, more forgiving aproach and generally works better for me. Sometimes, though, there are things that just have to be done and then the 5-second rule is the best option.

Mel-Robbins, 5-second-rule

Take action

• what’s the next step? #read-more-from Tim Pychy
• track your progress

Support yourself

• “find ways to encourage yourself as you work towards your goals” – pg 172
• accountability buddy
• give yourself grace – “find the why”

Keywords from Chapter 6

Part 3: sustain.

• sustainability to avoid burn-out
• overexertion
• misalignment

Chapter 7: Conserve

• Overexertion burnout

Do less, take a break

• “Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.” – Jobs
• List A – Things you’d like to do at some point
• List B – Projects you’re actively investing energy into right now .
• Keep list B limited by the amount of time you have to spend.
• “every yes is a no to everything else we could have done with that time and energy” – pg 191
• #read-more-from Juliet Funt, A Minute to Think

Resist distraction

• switching costs
• increase the activation energy required to task switch
• give yourself permission to be distracted temporarily
• Schedule breaks to make sure they happen – ‘self-regulatory exertions’
• “energising distractions” – pg 205

Keywords from Chapter 7

Chapter 8: recharge.

• Depletion burnout
• Not all things we do while “resting” actually recharge our energy

Recharge creatively

• Find hobbies and projects that are CALM.

Recharge naturally

• #read-more-from Roger Ulrich
• “Nature replenishes our cognitive abilities and boosts our energy” – pg 217
• even small doses have a big impact
• get up and walk outside

Recharge mindlessly

• Let your mind wander – default mode network
• Reitoff principle – intentionally write-off a day and relax

Keywords from Chapter 8

Chapter 9: align.

• misalignment burnout
• #read-more-from Kennon Sheldon – motivation
• external motivation – doing it for others
• introjected motivation – doing it out of guilt
• identified motivation – doing it because you want the outcome you will get from it
• intrinsic motivation – doing it for the love of doing it
• “the only type of extrinsic motivation that correlated to greater happiness was identified…” – pg 235

Long-term horizon

• “What does a meaningful existence look like to you?” – pg 238
• eulogy method
• current path
• alternate path
• radical path
• what is possible?

Medium-term horizon

• values affirmation intervention – remind yourself of what’s important to you #read-more-from Akira Miyaki, Science journal article
• wheel of life exercise

The wheel of life exercise comes from The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. Ali’s professor must have gotten it from there and shared it with his students.

Hal-Elrod, Hal-Elrod_The-Miracle-Morning

The wheel of life is also the source of the popular bullet journaling activity, “level 10 life.” I have an article, ‘ How to Build Your Level 10 Life ,’ and a  free worksheet printable  for this activity on Flipping BA.

level-10-life, bullet-journaling

• 12-month celebration – For each area of life, what would you love to be celebrating in 12 months?

I used this “12-month celebration” idea as the definition step of the level 10 life exercise I did for this quarter (more of a 3-month celebration). It was useful to set guideposts for rating my current state and where I want to be at the end of the quarter.

level-10-life, 12-month-celebration, 3-month-celebration

Short-term horizon

• make daily decisions that align with the values, vision, and goals that you’ve set.
• choose three tasks each day that will move you towards your goals.
• experiment with making change in areas where you feel out of alignment. See what feels good.

Keywords from Chapter 9

misalignment-burnout, Kennon-Sheldon, motivation, extrinsic-motivation, external-motivation, introjected-motivation, identified-motivation, intrinsic-motivation, meaningful-existence, eulogy-method, odyssey-plan, Bill-Burnett, Bill-Burnett_Design-Your-Life, values-affirmation-intervention, Akira-Miyaki, wheel-of-life, 12-month-celebration, daily-decisions, tasks, task-prioritization, daily-planning

Last Word: Think Like a Productivity Scientist

No notes taken.

Go Beyond the Book Notes for Feel-Good Productivity

While these notes share the ideas that were important to me in this book, there’s no substitute for taking it in yourself. Consider reading (or listening) on your own to find what fascinates YOU!

Where to Go for More from Ali Abdaal

Ali started out on YouTube. At the time of this writing, he has over five million subscribers! If you’re not yet one of them, I highly recommend checking out his main channel ( https://www.youtube.com/@aliabdaal ). His videos are not only informative and helpful but also incredibly engaging and entertaining.

In addition to his main channel on YouTube, Ali has a few others:

• Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal – A podcast where Ali discusses more on productivity topics. Also available on Apple and Spotify.
• Ali Abdaal – Appendix – A second channel with more informal vlog and behind-the-scenes content.
• Not Overthinking – A podcast that Ali and his brother, Taimur, host discussing life and the human condition.

Apart from YouTube, Ali also has a blog ( https://aliabdaal.com/ ) and a site specifically for this book ( https://www.feelgoodproductivity.com/ ). These platforms serve as additional resources for those who want to dive deeper into the topics discussed in Feel-Good Productivity.

Whether you’re looking for more tips and tricks, behind-the-scenes content, or simply a community of like-minded individuals, Ali Abdaal has got you covered.

What to Read Next if You Like Feel-Good Productivity

If you like Feel-Good Productivity , check out these books that came to mind while I was reading. They elaborate a few of the topics that Ali touched on more briefly.

• Brene Brown’s The Gifts of Imperfection
• Mel Robbins’ The 5-Second Rule
• Hal Elrod’s The Miracle Morning

All three of these books have been instrumental in my personal growth journey and are good complements to Abdaal’s Feel-Good Productivity. These books explore the themes of self-acceptance, taking action, and establishing successful routines – all of which are crucial for improving productivity and overall wellbeing.

Check back for notes on these. I read them before I got my Remarkable, so I need to go dig out my old notebooks!

Wrapping Up: My Final Thoughts on Feel-Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal

I found Feel-Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal to be an insightful and inspiring read. My journey into this realm of what Ali has coined as ‘feel-good productivity’ has paralleled Abdaal’s in many ways, although I’ve never been a doctor.

As someone who puts a heavy emphasis on getting as much done with as little friction as possible, I appreciated the unique perspective that Abdaal brought with his focus on finding joy in the process rather than just achieving results.

Through his personal anecdotes, practical tips and exercises, and scientific evidence, Ali Abdaal has created a practical guide to help individuals become more productive while also finding happiness and fulfillment in their lives.

Whether you’re a student, professional, or simply someone who wants to make the most out of each day, Feel-Good Productivity is a must-read that will provide valuable insights and strategies to help you reach your goals.

“What does a meaningful existence look like to you?” – Ali Abdaal

• March 24, 2024

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Feel-Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal: Summary & Notes

Rating : 8/10

Available at : Amazon

Related : Atomic Habits , The Checklist Manifesto , Essentialism

Get access to my collection of 100+ detailed book notes

A fresh take on how to be more productive in your life, without having to sacrifice anything or feel terrible.

Abdaal provides a fun combination of science and personal anecdotes, along with lots of concrete suggestions in the form of experiments that can help you live a more aligned, productive life.

Even those who consider themselves well-versed in productivity (like I do) will find something useful in this book.

• Feeling good boosts our creativity and energy, and reduces our stress.
• Approach your work as play. Ask yourself: what would this look like if it were fun?
• Reframe failure. It’s not a failure, it’s an experiment that tells you to try something new.
• Strive to feel empowered in your job and life. Ask yourself: what would it look like if I were really confident at this?
• Try to imagine yourself teaching what you’re working on to others. Take ownership of the process, even if you can’t own the situation.
• Use positive self-talk, and reframe situations using phrases like “I’m blessed to do this.”
• Find people who naturally uplift your energy, and try and work with others, even if you’re not working on the same thing. View them as “on your team” and treat people like they’re you’re teammates.
• Do nice things for other people, and ask other people for help. Both make them feel good.
• Overcommunicate, and be enthusiastic when celebrating others. Be candid in giving feedback as well as praise.
• Procrastination is often caused by something that’s blocking us: uncertainty, fear, and inertia.
• Overcome uncertainty by getting specific about the purpose, desired end state, and path to get there for each objective. Remind yourself why you’re doing it as often as you can.
• Change how you think about goals, and try and set process goals that are within your control, short-term, and will energize you. Set SMART goals for the future as complementary goals if you want.
• Plan what can go wrong ahead of time with a pre-mortem.
• Schedule when you’re doing to do something in your calendar, including things like “nothing time.”
• To overcome fear, be more specific about what you’re afraid of. Remind yourself of the spotlight effect, where we all think others think about us far more than they do. Remind yourself “nobody cares.”
• Ask yourself, will this matter in 10 minutes? 10 weeks? 10 years?
• Use an alter ego, like Batman, and pretend to be them. Act like you think they would. Pretending is actually a great way to get past those fears.
• To overcome inertia, make the thing you want to start on easy, the default. And make the things you want to avoid hard.
• Use the five-minute rule, committing to work on a task for just 5 minutes. Often, you’ll keep going much longer than that.
• When procrastinating, ask yourself: what’s the next step?
• Track your progress, and be encouraged by moving forward. Forgive yourself when it doesn’t happen and celebrate small victories.
• There are three types of burnout: overexertion burnouts from taking on too much work; depletion burnouts from not getting enough rest; and misalignment burnouts which come from not doing work that brings your joy or meaning.
• Take breaks when you do your work, and reduce the number of things you try to accomplish. It may seem like not enough, but it will let you be productive in the long-term.
• Use Derek Sivers’ “hell yeah, or no” filter to only say yes to the things that really excite you.
• Resist distraction by removing apps or environmental cues that tend to distract you, and when it happens, just say “begin again” to yourself and get started.
• To rest, find activities that make you CALM: Competent, Autonomous, Liberated and Mellow.
• Spend more time in nature, or at least keep more pictures of nature around you.
• Don’t feel bad about booking nights off for “nothing.”
• To better align your work and your values, ask yourself: what would I feel good about someone saying in my eulogy?
• Pick out your values, and how you might align yourself better with them. Pretend it’s 6 months from now, and you’re celebrating some changes or accomplishments with your friends. What would those be? Write them out.
• Then think about what 3 actions you could take today, that would better align yourself with your values and those celebrations.
• Treat your life as an experiment: form a hypothesis, make a change, and see what works. Keep what does, discard what doesn’t.

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Ali is the absolute master on how to be productive without sacrificing your own happiness. This is the book we've all been waiting for.

Dr Julie Smith

Author — Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?

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🔥 …while enjoying the journey

Plus, you'll get exclusive access to the bonus materials and expanded concepts to make the book an integral part of your life. This includes:

🥅 My ultimate evidence-backed method for reflection and goal-setting

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🎙️ The recordings and all the resources we’ll use during the workshop - in case you’re not free at the time

I'd love you to join me and make 2024 your best year ever.

The secret to

Productivity

isn't Discipline.

It's Joy.

You won’t just accomplish more. You’ll feel happier and more fulfilled along the way.

We think that productivity is all about hard work. That the road to success is lined with endless frustration and toil. But what if there’s another way?

In Feel-Good Productivity , Dr Ali Abdaal uncovers an easier, science-backed path to success. He demonstrates that the secret to productivity isn't grind, it's feeling good . And he reveals how to make your projects feel so enjoyable that productivity takes care of itself.

10 Things This Book Will Teach You

Learn how to...

Build your own productivity system that doesn’t feel like a grind

Make any work (however dull) feel more energizing and enjoyable

Stay focused in a world of constant distractions 

Beat procrastination forever without just relying on motivation and discipline 

Reduce the stress of your work while staying productive 

Get clarity on what you really want from your work and your life 

Stay consistent with what really matters to you over the long term 

Set meaningful goals that help you feel good while achieving more 

Recharge your energy through science-backed strategies 

Find alignment, fulfilment, and enjoyment in all that you do 

...and much, much more.

🗣️ What people are saying...

Clinical Psychologist

Ali is the master of productivity. Nobody has a talent for distilling complicated ideas into fun, accessible and actionable insights quite like him.

Steven Bartlett

BBC's Dragon's Den and host of The Diary of a CEO

Productivity doesn’t have to be toxic. Ali is rewriting what we thought we knew about getting stuff done. You can indeed be both happy and successful.

Dr Alex George

TV Presenter & Mental Health Ambassador to UK Gov

A much-needed antidote to hustle culture, this book is a reality check for any ambitious person who wants to build sustainable success. It offers the most practical approach to productivity that no one says yet all of us need to hear.

Mark Manson

Bestselling author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

Feel-Good Productivity debunks the misconception that productivity has to be painful. Ali uses his scientific training to provide a set of principles and practical strategies that you can use to enjoy their work, not just endure it. Ali is the leading voice in personal productivity for our generation - a must-read for anyone interested in the topic.

Tiago Forte

Bestselling Author of Building a Second Brain

In this eye-opening and important new book, Ali Abdaal flips the conventional narrative on productivity: accomplishing important things is not about creating more efficient systems but instead about cultivating a deeper energy for your work. This really got me thinking!

Cal Newport

Professor of Computer Science & Author of Deep Work

As a doctor, entrepreneur, and educator, Ali has a unique and practical perspective on productivity. His book is science-backed, filled with real-life stories, and refreshingly joyful. A nuanced guide to productivity that will unlock more honest conversations about our relationship to work

Anne-Laure Le Cunff

Educator, Writer & Researcher

Unlike the typical grumpy striped suit teacher of productivity, Ali, this chearful, optimistic, incredibly productive teacher of millions uses his same engaging style online to write a book that will change you to the better. Must read!

Former CBO at Google & Happiness Expert

I have learned more about mindful productivity from Ali than anyone in the world. He is a master of simplifying complex topics and delivering actionable insights. This book is a tour de force!

Sahil Bloom

Entrepreneur & Investor

As a doctor, entrepreneur, and educator, Ali has a unique and practical perspective on productivity. His book is science-backed, filled with real-life stories, and refreshingly joyful. A nuanced guide to productivity that will unlock more honest conversations about our relationship to work.

Founder of Ness Labs

Ali’s approach to productivity is exceptional and life-changing. This is a must-read if you want to experience the power of productivity in a whole new way.

William MacAskill

Philosophy Professor at Oxford University

📖 About Feel-Good Productivity

Introduction

The Art & Science of Feel-Good Productivity

Ali shares his journey from stressed-out doctor to successful entrepreneur, and how he discovered the science of Feel-Good Productivity. You’ll understand the psychological and neuroscientific evidence for why positive emotions fuel success, and explore how feeling good in your work can boost your energy, reduce your stress, and enrich your life. 

Ali shares the three fundamental energizers that make us feel good and lead to true productivity. You’ll discover the strategies that Nobel laureates and trailblazing founders of multimillion-dollar enterprises use to maintain motivation and outperform expectations, all by finding the fun in their projects.

This section outlines a groundbreaking method for beating procrastination that doesn’t rely on temporary motivation or painful discipline. You’ll learn about the three biggest blockers that run down our feel-good emotions and so derail our productivity - as well as the simple strategies you can use to stay focused and consistent.

A guide to eradicating burnout, by focusing on how to make our work enjoyable and sustainable in the long run. Ali introduces the science of doing less to achieve more and the art of zooming out to gain clarity on what truly matters. You’ll learn that these intentional pauses and reflection are crucial for sustaining your productivity. You’ll uncover practical strategies that help align your everyday actions with your core values, crafting a life rich with fulfilment and joy. And here's the best part - you don't need to have everything figured out yet.

✍🏽 About the Author

Ali Abdaal is a doctor, entrepreneur, amateur magician, and the world's most-followed productivity expert.

Ali became intrigued by the science of productivity while juggling the demands of medical training at Cambridge University with building his business. While working as a doctor in the UK's National Health Service, Ali started to document his journey towards living a healthier, happier, more productive life online. In the years since, Ali’s evidence-based videos, podcasts and articles about the human mind have reached hundreds of millions of people all around the world. In 2021, Ali took a break from his medical practice to focus full-time on his work popularising the science of human flourishing and high performance. In this book, he reveals everything he has learnt from a decade studying the secrets of feeling better and achieving more.

Feel -Good Productivity introduces the simple changes that change everything. By making your work feel Good , you'll generate energy. This boosts your creativity and Productivity in your work, but it'll also leave you with more energy to give to the other important things in your life.

🌏 International Editions

Feel-Good Productivity is also available in the following countries:

🇦🇺 Australia

🇳🇿 New Zealand

🇳🇱 Netherlands

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for you & a friend

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Book Summary Feel-Good Productivity , by Ali Abdaal

We’re all familiar with the daily grind, but what if it doesn’t have to be a grind? In Feel-Good Productivity , productivity expert Ali Abdaal says that most people have the wrong ideas about how to be productive: He argues that getting things done should feel natural, easy, and—most importantly—enjoyable. He provides a comprehensive system for rejecting the “grind” mindset, boosting your emotional well-being, and learning how to work in ways that energize you instead of drain you.

Our guide will explain why and how emotional well-being will boost your productivity. We’ll then discuss how to work in a way that feels good to you, how to stop procrastination at its source instead of trying to force your way through it, and how to avoid or recover from burnout. Our commentary will compare Abdaal’s suggestions with those from other self-help books. We’ll also dive into what research says about Abdaal’s ideas, as well as provide tools and actionable strategies to help you implement feel-good productivity in your own life.

1-Page Summary 1-Page Book Summary of Feel-Good Productivity

We’re all familiar with the daily grind, but what if it doesn’t have to be a grind? In Feel-Good Productivity , Ali Abdaal says that most people have the wrong ideas about how to be productive: He argues that getting things done should feel natural, easy, and—most importantly—enjoyable. He provides a comprehensive system for rejecting the “grind” mindset, boosting your emotional well-being, and learning how to work in ways that energize you instead of drain you.

Abdaal is an entrepreneur, YouTuber , and podcaster , as well as a popular productivity expert. Abdaal studied medicine at the University of Cambridge and worked as a doctor in the...

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Feel-Good Productivity Summary Introduction: What Is Feel-Good Productivity?

Abdaal’s model of productivity is based on the idea that work not only can be enjoyable but should be enjoyable. When work feels good, it energizes you instead of drains you, meaning you can get a lot more done. Therefore, feel-good productivity not only boosts your emotional well-being, it also benefits the people who rely on you. (Shortform note: Interviewing Abdaal, Cal Newport ( Deep Work ) describes feel-good productivity as “philosophically aligned” with his idea of slow productivity —going after purposeful accomplishments without burning out. Both authors present an alternative form of productivity that pushes back against hustle culture.)

Abdaal bases his model of feel-good productivity on the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. The broaden-and-build theory states that feeling good isn’t just a brief reward for accomplishing something; those positive emotions directly lead to even greater accomplishments .

When you feel good, you’re more receptive to new information and more likely to think of...

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Feel-Good Productivity Summary Tap the Three Sources of Good Feelings

Abdaal begins by explaining the three sources of positive emotions, which he calls energizers . While there are any number of things that can help you feel good—and therefore make you more productive—they all tie back to one or more of these fundamental sources.

In this section, we’ll discuss each of Abdaal’s three sources of well-being: having fun, empowering yourself, and connecting with other people.

Source #1: Fun

Abdaal says people are hardwired to have fun, and fun is a key part of emotional well-being. You most likely know this from experience: As a child you probably spent countless hours running around, making up games, and playing with whatever had your attention at the moment. There wasn’t a career goal or life plan behind any of this; you were simply having fun because that’s what came naturally to you.

Unfortunately, Abdaal adds, many people lose that sense of fun as they grow up. This happens because our culture teaches that adults are supposed to stop playing games and take life seriously. However, you can recapture that youthful feeling of joy and excitement by finding the little games in everything you do. Abdaal provides three game-based...

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Feel-Good Productivity Summary Overcome the Three Sources of Procrastination

Along with the three sources of emotional well-being, Abdaal discusses three things that harm your emotional well-being and your productivity. He calls them blockers and says that they’re the cause of all procrastination. Therefore, you can stop procrastinating simply by figuring out which of the three is getting in your way and removing it.

In this section, we’ll discuss Abdaal’s three causes of procrastination: confusion, habit, and anxiety.

Procrastination Cause #1: Confusion

Abdaal’s first cause of procrastination, confusion , is the most straightforward. This simply means that you procrastinate when you aren’t sure what to do—or, more often, you aren’t sure how to do it. Thankfully, the solution is equally straightforward: Usually a few simple questions will clear up any confusion so that you can proceed confidently.

First of all, if necessary, ask some clarifying questions about what you’re supposed to do. What exactly is this task? What, specifically, are you trying to accomplish?

With that said, the more common cause of confusion is how to approach that task. Abdaal’s solution is not to simply ask how a task should be done, but rather to ask _why...

Feel-Good Productivity Summary Avoid the Three Kinds of Burnout

Now you’ve read about harnessing your emotional well-being, as well as overcoming the obstacles that cause you to procrastinate. This final section will teach you how to make your productivity sustainable. In simpler terms, this section discusses how to avoid burnout.

Abdaal begins by saying that burnout sets in when work stops feeling good and starts to feel tedious, meaningless, or overwhelming instead. This means that your work is harming your emotional well-being instead of boosting it. Many people misunderstand this fundamental concept; they assume that burnout is just another word for exhaustion , and they can fix it by simply resting for a day or two.

(Shortform note: As Abdaal notes, burnout is more than simple fatigue. In reality, it’s a serious condition with symptoms including anxiety, insomnia, heart palpitations, and mental fog that leaves you unable to make even simple decisions. Furthermore, recovering from burnout often takes much longer than people expect: Severe cases can require up to a year of rest, and [forcing yourself to...

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Shortform Exercise: Design Your Productivity Experiment

Now that you’re familiar with Abdaal’s model of feel-good productivity, think about which of his ideas resonated with you the most and how you might start integrating them into your life. Remember that Abdaal wants you to take a scientific approach: Experiment with different ideas and see what works for you.

What’s one specific thing you could do, starting today or tomorrow, to make your work support your emotional well-being? Remember that the three fundamental sources of well-being are fun, self-empowerment, and connection with others. So, for example, perhaps you could empower yourself by looking for ways to be more autonomous at work.

Table of Contents

• Bet on Yourself.
• Wander but don’t get Lost.
• You Go First.
• Don’t Worry, Prepare.
• Connect Before You Direct.
• Keep the Faith
• Do The Work.
• Pressure is a Privilege.

Book Summary: Feel-Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal

In Feel-Good Productivity: How to Do More of What Matters to You, a former doctor turned YouTuber, podcaster, and entrepreneur Dr. Ali Abdaal argues that the key to productivity isn’t discipline but joy. He provides a framework and various experiments for making projects more enjoyable so that productivity takes care of itself.

Three Parts of the Book

• Part 1 explains how to use the science of feel-good productivity to energise yourself.

The Three Energizers: Play, Power and People

• Part 2:  Examines how feel-good productivity can help us overcome procrastination.

The Three Blockers: Uncertainty, Fear and Inertia

• Part 3: How feel-good productivity can sustain us in the long term.

The Three types of burnout: Overexertion burnout, depletion burnout and misalignment burnout

The Three Sustainers: Conserve, Recharge and Align

‘If the treatment isn’t working, question the diagnosis.”

Feel-good Productivity

An approach that didn’t hinge on exhaustingly hard work, but on understanding what made hard work feel better. An approach that focused on my wellbeing first, and used that wellbeing to drive my focus and motivation second.

The Candle Problem – Karl Duncker

This is the ‘candle problem’, a classic test of creative thinking. First developed by Karl Duncker, and published posthumously in 1945, it has since been used in countless studies testing everything from cognitive flexibility to the psychological fallout of stress. In the late 1970s, psychologist Alice Isen used it as the basis for an influential experiment to study how mood affects people’s creativity.

 It showed that when we’re in a positive mood, we tend to consider a broader range of actions, be more open to new experiences, and better integrate the information we receive. In other words, feeling good boosts our creativity – and our productivity.

“broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions.

According to the broaden-and-build theory, positive emotions ‘broaden’ our awareness and ‘build’ our cognitive and social resources. Broaden refers to the immediate effect of positive emotions: when we’re feeling good, our minds open up, we take in more information, and we see more possibilities around us. Consider the candle problem: in a positive mood, participants were able to see a broader range of potential solutions.

Build refers to the long-term effects of positive emotions. When we experience positive emotions, we build up a reservoir of mental and emotional resources that can help us in the future – resources like resilience, creativity, problem-solving skills, social connections and physical health. Over time, these two processes reinforce each other, creating an upward spiral of positivity, growth and success.

Feeling Good

Positive emotions are bound up with a set of four hormones – endorphins, serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin – which are often labelled as the ‘feel-good hormones’. All of them allow us to accomplish more.

• Endorphins are often released during physical activity, stress or pain and bring about feelings of happiness and diminished discomfort – and elevated levels usually correlate with increased energy and motivation.
• Serotonin is connected to mood regulation, sleep, appetite and overall feelings of wellbeing; it underpins our sense of contentment and gives us the energy to tackle tasks efficiently.
• Dopamine, or the ‘reward’ hormone, is linked with motivation and pleasure and its release provides a satisfaction that allows us to focus for longer.
• Oxytocin, known as the ‘love’ hormone, is associated with social bonding, trust and relationship-building, which enhances our capacity to connect with others, boosts our mood and, in turn, impacts our productivity.

All this means that these feel-good hormones are the starting point of a virtuous cycle. When we feel good, we generate energy, which boosts our productivity. And this productivity leads to feelings of achievement, which make us feel good all over again.

“Success doesn’t lead to feeling good. Feeling good leads to success.”

Play and Noble Prize Winners

• James Watson and Francis Crick, who discovered the structure of DNA in the 1950s, described the generative process they used to come up with the structure as ‘constructing a set of molecular models and beginning to play’.
• Alexander Fleming, the scientist who discovered the antibiotic penicillin, once described his job as ‘playing with microbes’.
• Donna Strickland, the 2018 Nobel laureate in Physics, described her career as ‘getting to play with high-intensity lasers’.”
• Konstantin Novoselov, who shared the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for helping discover graphene, put it most simply: ‘If you try to win the Nobel, you won’t, he reflected. ‘The way we were working really was quite playful.

The 8 Play Personalities

• The Collector loves to gather and organise, enjoying activities like searching for rare plants, or rummaging around in archives or garage sales.
• The Competitor enjoys games and sports, and takes pleasure in trying their best and winning.
• The Explorer likes to wander, discovering new places and things they’ve never seen, through hiking, road tripping and other adventures.
• The Creator finds joy in making things, and can spend hours every day drawing, painting, making music, gardening and more.
• The Storyteller has an active imagination and uses their imagination to entertain others. They’re drawn to activities like writing, dance, theatre and role-playing games.
• The Joker endeavours to make people laugh, and may play by performing stand-up, doing improv, or just pulling a lot of pranks to make you smile.
• The Director likes to plan, organise and lead others, and can fit into many different roles and activities, from directing stage performances to running a company, to working in political or social advocacy.
• The Kinesthete finds play in physical activities like acrobatics, gymnastics and free running.

What would this look like if it were fun?

Think of a task that you don’t want to do right now, and ask what would it look like if it were fun? Could you do it in a different way? Could you add music, or a sense of humour, or get creative? What if you set out to do the task with friends, or promised yourself a treat at the end of the process?

Lower the stakes

Children are more likely to play when they’re in a comfortable, non-threatening environment. And studies of adults in the workplace have found that the feeling of relaxation promotes playful behaviours, as well as promoting creativity and wellbeing.

“Motivation and discipline are useful strategies, but they’re band-aids covering up deeper wounds. They might sometimes work to treat the symptoms, but they don’t change the underlying condition.”

  The Five Whys

In its original form, the five whys offered a simple method to work out why something had gone wrong. Whenever there was a mistake on the production line, Toyota’s staff would ask ‘why’ five times. Asking ‘why’ repeatedly reminds us of what we should really be focusing on – and allows us to home in on it. Suddenly, those irrelevant pressing tasks seem less important. The greatest purpose – the big ‘why’ – comes into sharp relief.

Implementation Intentions

Implementation intentions have been the research focus of Peter Gollwitzer, a psychology professor at New York University. They offer a method that builds moments for your new behaviour into your daily routine, just like the cues in that Boston study. If you decide beforehand when you’re going to do something, you’re much more likely to do it.

According to Gollwitzer, the best formula for implementation intentions is a conditional statement: ‘If X happens, then I will Y.’

If you want to practise mindfulness but aren’t sure how to fit this practice into your schedule, create a trigger: ‘When I get up for my regular midday cup of tea today, I will take five deep breaths before walking to the staff kitchen.

All the Best in your quest to get better. Don’t Settle: Live with Passion.

Lifelong Learner | Entrepreneur | Digital Strategist at Reputiva LLC | Marathoner | Bibliophile [email protected] | [email protected]

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High Performance Psychologist: The Secret To Happiness Is Vulnerability Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal

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We’ve all experienced moments when we want to express vulnerability, but our mind holds us back. I often find myself in this situation, and in this candid conversation with Dr. Aria, I delve into my inner thoughts on the matter. Dr Aria is a high-performance psychologist and mindfulness specialist who developed a science-based method called Focused Insight Training to help people stay mentally and physically fit for life. Enjoy!  📚If you want to increase the number of books you read but you're not sure where to start, then check out my top 100 book recommendations! 👉 https://aliabdaal.com/books-to-live-your-best-life/  Check Out My New York Times Bestselling Book Feel-Good Productivity! 👉 Amazon Website (00:00) Intro(03:35) The struggle with being vulnerable(22:40) Intuition vs rationalisation(26:20) Intuition evolves into change(31:25) Fear as a core value(35:30) When reality clashes with expectation(42:30) Pleasure vs joy(52:45) The mind thinks, the heart knows(56:20) How to know your truth(59:33) Sharing in the face of fear 🔗 CONNECT WITH DR ARIA🎥 YouTube Channel🐦 Twitter📸 Instagram💻 Website👥 Linkedin 🔗 CONNECT WITH ALI📲 Join My Telegram Community🎥 YouTube Channel🐦 Twitter📸 Instagram💻 Website👥 Linkedin 📄SHOW NOTES & TRANSCRIPT Visit the website for the transcript and highlights from the conversation - https://aliabdaal.com/podcast/ 🎙 ABOUT THE PODCAST Deep Dive is the podcast that delves into the minds of entrepreneurs, creators and other inspiring people to uncover the philosophies, strategies and tools that help us live happier, healthier and more productive lives. Want to start your own podcast? We use Transistor! https://go.aliabdaal.com/transistor 🎧 LISTEN FOR FREE Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast...Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7gZkflC...RSS - https://feeds.transistor.fm/deep-dive 🙏 LEAVE A REVIEW  If you enjoyed listening to the podcast, we'd love for you to leave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the show :) https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... 👋🏼 GET IN TOUCH  You can also Tweet @AliAbdaal with any feedback, ideas or thoughts about the lessons you've learnt from the episodes and we can thank you personally for tuning in 🙏 PS: Some of the links in this description are affiliate links that I get a kickback from 😜

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About Ali Abdaal

Hey, I'm Ali Abdaal. I'm an ex-doctor turned YouTuber , Podcaster , entrepreneur and  author . I've been creating YouTube videos for over 7 years and have a following of over 4 million over on my main channel.

My YouTube journey started over 7 years ago when I was studying medicine at Cambridge University, I was creating videos to help people pass the entrance exams (This is when I started my first business too). Since then, the channel has grown to over 4 million subscribers.

Nowadays, I make content aimed at helping people live their best lives and be more productive. Aswell as hosting my podcast, Deep Dive which has featured guests like Mr Whostheboss , Alex Hormozi , MKBHD , Grace Beverley , Tiago Forte , Ben Francis and so many more.

I've been featured in all sorts of places, including The Times, Business Insider and Mens Health . I've also been a guest on a few podcasts like Diary of a CEO , Smart Passive Income , and the School of Greatness . I've even given a few talks on productivity and entrepreneurship, and have helped over 3000 people on their YouTube journey through my Part-Time Youtuber Academy .

If you want to learn even more about me and how I got started, there's a whole page here 🙂

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