Consider The Consequences

Consider The Consequences

Become very, very sweet. Remove even the slightest trace of anger. Whatever you think, whatever you say, consider carefully all the consequences beforehand. By performing actions knowing their consequences, success is definitely experienced.

I also have 6 practical tips for managing information overload.

For now, let's define information overload as "the inability to
obtain the knowledge you need or want from the large amount of
information available to you."

The problem is that there is far too much information flowing our
way, leading us to become overloaded, confused, and sometimes
even a bit paralyzed as we try to sort through and make sense of
it all. This kind of information overload gets in the way of our
productivity in a variety of ways, so if you want to simplify
your life and increase your effectiveness it make sense to look
at the problem and find ways to minimize it.


Tip # 1 - Don't try to know everything


Don't fall into the trap of thinking that you have to know
"everything" that's out there and flowing your way. It's
impossible to truly know everything about any subject, so don't
waste your time and energy even trying.

Instead, figure out what you really need to know right now and
focus on that. Given your current priorities and goals, what
information do you really need to have to accomplish those
things?


Tip # 2 - Know what you need when you start


Before you start to sort through information and read materials,
take a few moments to identify what it is you really need to gain
from the process. In other words, how much detail do you really
need to take in? If all you need is a general idea or overview of
a subject or topic there's no need to waste time wading through
large amount of detail.


Tip # 3 - Focus on relevance, importance and value


Some people feel guilty when they don't read everything that
comes their way; in fact, this is a major contributing factor to
getting caught up in information overload.

You feel guilty about passing up information so you try harder to
absorb even more, creating a vicious cycle of scooping up vast
amounts of information based on the fear of missing something
important.

The key to getting out of this cycle is to focus on the
relevance, importance, and value of information.


Tip # 4 - Centralize your communication and information sources


The fewer places you need to look to get your information the
better. Try consolidating different sources into a single tool
(for instance, route RSS feeds into your email client so you
don't have to look in both places).


Tip # 5 - Establish check times and routines


Don't check for information repeatedly throughout the day because
this is a huge time waster and sets you up to get bogged down in
information overload. Instead, set aside specific times during
the day for checking information (check email, read RSS feeds,
pick up voice mail, etc.)


Tip # 6 - Balance narrow vs. broad


This is one of the challenging parts of establishing an
information management system because you need to take in both
kinds of information; that is, information that's narrow and
specific to your field or discipline, as well as information that
is broad and exposes you to new ideas and ways of thinking.

Spend too much time on narrow information and your thought
processes can become myopic and stagnant. However, if you spend
too much time on broad information you can quickly fall out of
touch with current thinking in your field and get distracted with
irrelevant details.


These tips come directly from a *new* 23-page bonus report that I
just added to the Get Focused course... you can get it along with
the course here:

--> http://www.GoalsToAction.com/GetFocused/

Rodger