MasterClass Launches Rebuild Your Focus & Reclaim Your Time With Cal Newport to Help Members Escape Burnout and Work Smarter

Learn how to break free from busyness and build a path to career growth

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- MasterClass, the streaming platform where anyone can learn from the world's best, today announced the launch of Rebuild Your Focus & Reclaim Your Time, taught by Georgetown professor and bestselling author Cal Newport. In the class, Newport reveals how to accomplish more by doing less—shifting focus away from busywork and toward impact. The class is available now exclusively on MasterClass.

With more than 66% of U.S. professionals reporting burnout in 2025, according to research by Censuswide, Newport's class arrives at a critical time. Newport aims to provide a concrete framework for rethinking how we work. He outlines a three-part approach rooted in his slow productivity philosophy: Do fewer things, work at a natural pace, and obsess over quality. Newport illustrates these principles through historical and modern examples—showing how Benjamin Franklin freed himself from daily operations in order to pursue his most important contributions, and how Lin-Manuel Miranda produced his breakthrough work by stepping away for long stretches and returning with renewed focus.

Across four lessons, members will learn how to reduce overload by managing low-value tasks, redesign their calendars using time-blocking, and create space for deep, uninterrupted thinking that leads to lasting results.

Members will walk away with the tools to:

• Do Fewer Things. They'll explore how limiting obligations can increase the quality and impact of their work. Newport explains the trade-offs between shallow and deep work, and introduces tools—like AI, quotas, and boundary setting—to help reduce distraction and administrative tasks.
• Work at a Natural Pace. They'll learn how to establish rituals that will help them reflect and recharge. Newport explores why rest and reflection are essential, citing historical and contemporary figures who embraced deliberate pacing to support creative breakthroughs.
• Obsess Over Quality. Newport explains how improving the substance of work, rather than increasing its volume, leads to more fulfilling and sustainable results. He discusses how building expertise and tracking progress over time can enhance both autonomy and satisfaction.
• Design a Calendar to Do More, Achieve More, and Work Less. They'll get a practical introduction to time-blocking—a planning method that helps protect focused time and create boundaries around the workday. Newport shares how to design a schedule that balances productivity with rest and personal commitments.

"If you're feeling overwhelmed, unfocused or stuck in a cycle of doing too much and achieving too little, this class is for you," Newport said. "My goal is to help members reclaim their time, refocus their efforts and produce work that gets noticed—and that they can be proud of."

Embed & view the trailer here: https://youtu.be/LRuI0NtnAOU

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Credit: Courtesy of MasterClass

About MasterClass:
MasterClass is the streaming platform that provides the insights, tools and lived experiences of the world's best so that members can become their best at work and in life. An annual membership provides unlimited access to 200+ instructors and classes in a variety of formats and subjects, including business and leadership, communication, health and wellness, writing and more—available anytime, anywhere, on mobile, tablet, desktop, Apple TV^®, Android^™TV, Amazon Fire TV and Roku^® players and devices. Get negotiation tactics from Chris Voss. Win big in business with Mark Cuban. Cook with Gordon Ramsay. Write with Shonda Rhimes. Learn how to navigate relationships with Esther Perel or make bold choices with Samuel L. Jackson. MasterClass On Call and MasterClass Certificates are separate product offerings for personalized learning: MasterClass On Call lets members practice and prepare for high-stakes conversations with AI roleplays and real-time coaching from the AI of the world's best, while MasterClass Certificates, developed with leading companies, equip learners with in-demand skills to adapt and thrive in fast-changing careers. For organizations, MasterClass at Work provides flexible training solutions that teach holistic and core skills for employees at all levels. 

Media Contact:
Susan Scott, MasterClass
[email protected]

SOURCE MasterClass