Information overload is a pretty new term moved into our lives with the internet era. Especially if you are working online, you have to be on top of things all the time.
My regular work day starts with checking my emails and checking my stats on several sites. I have never thought about organizing basic tasks in my regular business day. Of course, for every project or a website we make plans, timesheets, we use project management tools, etc. But how about organizing the very basic daily tasks we do all the time?
Understanding and Accepting the Problem
Since the beginning of 2007, I knew that I was spending so much time on unnecessary things and tasks in my daily life. I didn’t know the solution, but I have finally admitted it was a serious problem for my business and for my daily life. Then, I started looking for a solution.
Finding Tools to Help Me Solve the Information Overload Problem
It was during December 2007, and I was waiting for my international flight at JFK Airport in New York. Even though I had several books, my laptop and magazines to read in my luggage, I was checking some new books at a store in JFK.
I saw a book named; Getting Things Done, and I was curious. I have checked it out. I knew the name “David Allen” as the “Personal Productivity Guru”, but I have never read his books before.
This books has practically changed my life. It gave me a whole new perspective on information overload, and increasing personal productivity.
If you are smart enough to overcome the information overload problem yourself without reading a book or using tools, great, good for you. But I was NOT. I needed somebody or a book to tell me exactly what to do step by step. And it worked.
If you read this book or any other book to help you with overcoming information overload, you don’t want to change everything in your life right away. You have to take a step at a time, otherwise it will be very hard. Think about quitting coffee. Start decreasing one cup a day, then once every two days, etc. This is how I have implemented the tips into my life from “Getting Things Done“.
I have also found a FREE tool online called FlowChart.com. It is great to create flow charts, or mind maps. I highly recommend this tool. You can also share your flow charts with your friends, partners, employees, and create a collaboration.
Other than Getting Things Done by David Allen, I have also heard great things about Taming Your Gremlin: A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way by Rick Carson which I will be ordering soon.
You can check out the best selling books about information overload at amazon.com. You need to overcome the information overload before it is too late, and become more productive.
Article by Ahmet Kirtok
Ahmet KIRTOK is a New York City based entrepreneur and small business consultant. He is the founder & owner of Small Business Arena
Ahmet has contributed 70 articles.
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
If you’d like a tool for managing your projects, you can try this application inspired by David Allen’s GTD:
http://www.Gtdagenda.com
You can use it to manage your goals, projects and tasks, set next actions and contexts, use checklists, schedules and a calendar.
A mobile version and iCal are available too.
Hope you like it.
If you haven’t been exposed to David’s material like the original author I highly encourage it. David has a great mind and his ideas on alleviating the log jams in our own minds are indispensable.
Excellent information and resource. Found you through KillerStartups.com
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It takes an incredible amount of discipline (a naughty word in these narcissistic times) to be an entrepreneur in the era of information data overload. In my experience you have to have a system and habituate it!
I’ll check out that book. I highly recommend the 80/20 rule.
I totally agree with you. We are all inundated with so much information. Especially small business owners. I would encourage people to embrace the chaos. There are myriad number of communities out there and those conversations can be very meaningful if businesses get involved. For example, a business owner may be bombarded with superfluous amounts of information from sale reps telling them what customers want. However, the owner find out what customers really want by joining online communities where their target audience mingle and find out what they are discussing.
Not only do I suffer from information overload myself, but I also have to spend what seems like an extraordinary amount of time answering routine questions from other people. I’m thinking about automating some of my customer-service back end with something like SuFaq. Are any of you familiar with it?