Comments on: Reflections on Information Overload

By: Eric Lukazewski

Eric Lukazewski — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:48:25 +0000

As always, your comments are appreciated Jeff. I especially enjoy your analog of the information available in our libraries. I’ve not heard Clay Shirky’s quote before, but it’s a very valid point. Our listening skills need to evolve with the changing environments, unless we want to continue receiving our news as we always have. However, this comes with extreme disadvantages, or like you say, unlearn and adapt, or suffer from it.

By: Jeff Hurt

Jeff Hurt — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 20:23:03 +0000

Eric:

Nice post.

Here’s a different spin on information overload.

I don’t walk into the library and feel information overload when there are hordes of books, magazines and articles begging to be read. I don’t log on to the Internet and immediately feel overwhelmed by the World Wide Web. I don’t go to Craig’s List and feel overwhelmed by all of the ads. As Clay Shirky says, “It’s not information overload. It’s filter failure.”

I think we blame information overload for something else: the rapid rate of digital change. The speed of change in this digital world requires individuals to learn anew, face novel conditions, and adapt at a record pace. Learning never ends. “How we know something” has changed radically versus “how we used to know something.” What’s right today could be wrong tomorrow. Change is the constant. Our minds are not hard wired for constant change so we have to learn some adaption skills.

Today, we have to be able to unlearn something quickly or suffer the consequences. I believe that we mistakenly blame information overload as the reason we have to change. Today we have to learn how to judge reliable information and sources. It’s not so much about having to learn everything or read everything. It’s about filtering and judging which are important to our lives.

Unlearning is a trait we should all embrace.

By: Eric Lukazewski

Eric Lukazewski — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:40:17 +0000

Thanks for your comments Lindsay! I appreciate the feedback. The way information is delivered is constantly changing and it’s our listening/reading skills need to evolve and adapt to these changes or it will become increasingly difficult to stay informed.

By: Lindsay

Lindsay — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:39:22 +0000

Thanks Eric. I do in fact feel that I can be inundated with information and its true, I really have to use strategies to digest what it is that I’ve tasted, smelled, touched, heard, saw, and felt each day. There’s a lot going on around us and to observe it without doing anything (organizing, processing, digesting, etc.) it can be wasted information. Thanks for your posts. They’re very meaningful.

By: Eric Lukazewski

Eric Lukazewski — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:23:39 +0000

Traci, thank you for commenting. It’s great to see other fans of GTD. I’m looking forward to applying what I’ve learned so far and digging deeper as I continue to read it.

It really is tough to weed through information. You hate judging a book by its cover, but I’ll admit I don’t get past 90% of the headlines I see without deleting or ignoring. I’ve become selective about the blogs I subscribe to and have limited it to individuals who’s information has been proven invaluable to me on a number of occasions. I believe having a set of ‘trust’ filters is an important asset with managing content.

By: Eric Lukazewski

Eric Lukazewski — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:18:08 +0000

Greg, thanks for your reply and additional insights. I’d be very interested to read that Economist report as well. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it once you’ve digested it.

As you point out, having confidence is very important to managing with information overload. It’s something I’ve had to personally work on. It’s easy to try and put on a cape and take on as much information as possible, but understanding limitations, letting go of a part of the bulk, and doing so with proper filters and tools, is largely important. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts!

By: Traci Browne

Traci Browne — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:08:41 +0000

Hi Eric, I’m also a fan of GTD…but I have to admit have slipped on it and am now experience of feeling of losing control. Structure definitely helps as does getting over the panicky feeling that you might miss something if you don’t read all those blogs you subscribe to and just hit delete every now and again…of course not your blog!

Thanks for the reminder

By: Eric Lukazewski

Eric Lukazewski — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:52:42 +0000

Jenise, as always, your comments are greatly appreciated. It’s great, as you mentioned, to have a group of individuals that are in the same boat to share strategies with. The future is uncertain, and that’s scary, because information will only become more rapid, but having a realistic outlook on how much you can actually process is crucial.

I appreciate your tips Jenise. It was actually one of your blog posts that turned me on to Google Alerts and I thank you for sharing that information with your readers!!

By: Greg Strosaker

Greg Strosaker — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:47:11 +0000

Eric,
The Economist this week has a special report on data overload; I haven’t read it yet but look forward to seeing what they have to say. However, I don’t fundamentally believe that information overload is a problem. There are plenty of tools and processes out there to help you filter down to what is important, so it is largely a matter of personal discipline, plus maintaining a confidence that you will see what is important to you because the ability to search through information has grown so powerful.

I am a big fan of the GTD system, and would say it has been a real life-changer for me. My colleagues at work are always amazed at my capacity to process information, and its largely because I am quickly able to organize and track commitments and references, using David Allen’s approach.

By: Jenise Fryatt

Jenise Fryatt — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:15:53 +0000

Absolutely I have experienced this! I really relate, Eric. With regard to RSS feeds, I use Google Reader and iGoogle. I have 4 email addresses, and one by one I’m working on unsubscribing to every e-newsletter. I like the RSS feeds better, especially on my iGoogle page, as it’s like having my own newspaper. I can see it all at once and click on what I want, when I want. Each feed only shows 3 headlines at a time, so it never becomes overwhelming.

Information overload is a constant problem, especially for the tech savvy. The more we share tips on ways to manage info effectively, the better off we will all be. Thanks for another thoughtful post!