Dealing with Information Overload
Why talk about information overload? Because it takes up our time and energy!
Even though we appear to be keeping up and things seem to be moving along at a pace that is sustainable, there is a point when it will all be too much! We are taking in more information today than ever before and our brains are getting overloaded. Without getting too scientific about it, our brains are wired to take in information, organize it, and then retrieve it.
If we think of our brain as a big walk-in closet, we could say that there are different compartments and drawers to hold everything. Sometimes, things don’t get put into the correct places and other times things just don’t get put away at all so they just pile up on the floor and the closet gets all messy. If we are not able to find something, it may just be because it was put in the wrong place. The same thing happens with the information we take in! We can’t always retrieve the information we need because it hasn’t been organized correctly in our brains. Other times we will retrieve the wrong information or jumble it all up.
The fact of the matter is, sometimes we need to declutter and reorganize information to gain some clarity about what is important and what isn’t. We have to determine what we want to spend time and energy thinking about and what we don’t.
With so much information getting fed to us, I feel like it has somehow become difficult to make “simple” decisions because we have too many options. Our brains are overstuffed with things so it becomes overwhelming to make choices and it is increasingly difficult to focus on any one thing.
How can we deal with information overload in such a fast-paced world?
Here are a few tips to get started:
1. Set a timer to help limit the amount of information that you take in.
In our digital world there is a tremendous load of information right at our fingertips and it is inundating us at speeds faster than ever before. However, our brains can only take in so much without being exhausted.
There are times when we do need information or when we need to research something. Internet searching and social media scrolling could be never-ending. We will take in way more information than we actually need while doing research and oftentimes we will get distracted from the task at hand because we have access to so much information.
One way to limit information gathered and minimize the information overload is to set a timer. Only allow yourself to look at something or research something for a set amount of time.
2. To avoid getting overwhelmed by information, set parameters around things you need to research or want more information about.
It seems like everything we do today requires some level of information gathering. We look online to find a new restaurant, or to verify the author of a book, or to figure out where in the world Lesotho is. If we want to purchase something, we may find ourselves comparing reviews, colors, and items that are similar.
We can look up just about anything at any time. This can lead to information overwhelm!
One thing I have come to realize is that we rarely look up ONE thing…we get sucked into looking at several pieces of information no matter how much we try to focus. Some questions that you could potentially ask yourself include:
What am I looking for & why?
Do I have a deadline or a timeline?
Is this a reputable source?
Are there other people who may have already done the research?
What are my three best options?
It is easy to get overwhelmed when so much information is coming at us at such a fast pace all the time, but there are definitely limits we can put on the types of information we take in during the day.
3. Organize the information that you do want to retrieve.
If you find an article or website that is interesting as you are scrolling through a news feed or while doing an online search, and know that you want to spend more time on it, either send yourself a copy or a link to read later. Alternatively, put it directly into a folder of things to go back to.
Then, set aside “reading time” to thoughtfully review things that previously caught your attention. Batching information or organizing it in a way that is manageable to absorb helps with the processing of it all. If something doesn’t serve you or isn’t what you need, be sure to delete it!
Once you deem something worth saving, file it electronically into a topic-specific folder. That way, if you want to retrieve information later about that topic, you know where it is.
Conclusion
Just because we limit the amount of information we take in doesn’t mean we aren’t working hard enough or being more productive - it is actually more sustainable for us in the long run. It allows for us to take in only what we need and leave behind what we don’t. Furthermore, it gives our brains an opportunity to slow down and get organized! Ultimately, we will help conserve some of our time and energy so that we can use it in more meaningful ways.
I want to support people in finding the time and energy to do things that are meaningful in their lives. Limiting information intake and overcoming that feeling of being overwhelmed is something I like to explore with people. Together we can work towards having less stress and more clarity.
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