Shallow work is the non-demanding, often administrative activity that fills the gaps of a workday — email, quick messages, status updates, minor scheduling. It is easy to do while distracted and easy to replicate.
Why it matters
Shallow work is not useless, but it is easy to let it crowd out everything else. Naming it helps you cap it deliberately rather than letting it silently consume the hours you meant to spend on deep work.
How to apply it
- Batch shallow tasks into a couple of dedicated windows a day.
- Set a rough daily budget for shallow work and stick to it.
- Ask of each task: would anyone notice if this went undone?
- Protect mornings for deep work; push shallow work later.