We live in a time when we can consume news and gather information
as it is happening in real-time. We get
the details of a disaster from the news media (internet, television, and
newspapers) almost immediately. In the case of some of the coverage of recent
disasters, the information can sometimes be misleading or not accurate as the
reporters sometimes run with any information that they receive without first vetting
the source or the information. On top of
this there are several media outlets, journalists, and bloggers who share or
publish their own opinions instead of providing only the facts and allowing the
public to form their own opinion.
Information is also only a click away today - whether from our
computer or smart phones. We get hundreds of results back that in itself can be
overwhelming. How do we choose which
article, blog, or source to read? That is what I find to be the hardest part.
For me trying to decipher where to start
and determining the difference between fact and fiction can lead to a state of
feeling either very overwhelmed or to a state of confusion. As you dig deeper into gathering more
information one can get a sense of being overwhelmed.
Wikipedia
states that "information overload"
refers to the difficulty a person can have in understanding an issue and making
decisions that can be caused by the presence of too much information [1]".
In reviewing my searching habits, I have found that I tend to
always go to the same sources, internet pages, blogs, that I believe provides
me with the information that I need to
make a valid opinion or judgment about a particular subject - whether it be
personal, business, political, etc. Sometimes this helps eliminate the feeling
of being overwhelmed but sometimes it adds to it especially for those issues
that are social, political, or religious in nature. It can lead you to feeling that you are
losing control.
Living in an age of technology is great but I find that it
leads me to a sense of losing control -
being pushed and pulled by it - rather than a sense of being in control of my
thoughts and ideas. I have come to realize that I need to consciously consume
information. That is to figure out what
I want to know or gain more knowledge of and be hardnosed about sticking to
certain ideas or thoughts.[2]
What are your strategies in dealing with information
overload? How do you decide what to
absorb or just skim through? And how do we make our blog one of those that is
on your "go to" list?
As always we value your thoughts and opinions and would like
to hear your ideas on this topic.
Robert L.
Harris, Jr.
Senior
Solutions Consultant
[1] Yang, C.C.;
Chen, Hsinchun; Honga, Kay (2003). "Visualization of large category map
for Internet browsing". Decision Support Systems 35 (1):
89–102. doi:10.1016/S0167-9236(02)00101-X.
