Techgeek

This week, I'm going to talk about something that's been affecting more people every year, Information Overload. The term was actually popularized by the futurist Alvin Toffler in his 1970 book Future Shock, well before the Internet turned his theory into a daily reality for so many people. He described the world of today as one in which new information would be coming at us so quickly that there would never be enough time to adapt to it all.

And he's right. Between the daily and weekly newspapers, weekly and monthly magazines, 24-hour news channels, email, and hundreds of news websites, it's a wonder that we aren't all completely overwhelmed with the volume of information available at our fingertips. A single Sunday Edition of the New York Times already contains more printed words than the average villager would come across in their entire lives up until the end of the Middle Ages.

But fortunately, there are a few things you can do to take the edge off and bring some sanity back when everything starts getting overwhelming. 1. Set goals: What are you trying to get out of all this media? Do you really need to spend all that time with email chain letters? 2. Pick your sources: Trying to get information from everywhere at once is a sure-fire recipe for getting swamped. Try to limit yourself to just the sources that provide the media you need to meet your goals. 3. Set aside time for reading: Making a schedule for your media consumption can help you spend less time with information that's less important. 4. Learn to ignore: Even with a limited number of sources, you're still going to get information you don't care about. Skim the headline and move on. 5. Get some rest: You can't be at your best when you're exhausted. A good night's sleep can clear away the cobwebs.

If you'd like to learn more, visit the Buffalo Press website at LeonCountyToday. com and read the online version of this column. But if you're already overwhelmed, maybe you should have a nap first?