Cal Newport, author of the Study Hacks blog and best-selling books like So Good They Can't Ignore You, talks with me about the importance of building skills over "finding your passion," choosing a major, and building deep habits.

Full show notes

Things mentioned in this episode:

Study Hacks - Cal's blog on pursuing deep work habits. Has an amazing backlog of student-focused posts as well. (Ryan, the med student from episode 26, cited Cal's Four Weeks to a 4.0 series as the inspiration for his study system)

So Good They Can't Ignore You - Cal's latest book, which focuses on why building skills is much more important than trying to find your passion

How to Win at College - One of the first college success books I ever read. It influenced a lot of the decisions I made early in my college career.

How to be a High School Superstar - The book that explores Cal's discovery of why the highest performers are often the most relaxed.

How to Become a Straight-A Student - Cal's advice on planning, studying, learning quickly, acing exams, and writing great papers.

Bryan Caplan's Signaling Model of Education

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