DBR 080: Information Overload Is Simpler Than You Think

Eradicating information overload.

The goal of personal information management is to put processes and tools around our information so we can “manage” it – that means control it, tame it, have fewer emergencies around it. Our fear that we don’t have it well-managed causes us stress and anxiety – we call this ‘information overload’.

So, a feeling of information overload is an indication that we don’t have our information managed well. After all, if you have a feeling of “bill overload”, you would look at your finances and budget, right?

But is information overload a USEFUL term? Does it help us understand and deal with the problem? Or is it just a clickbait?

Here, we’ll look into the definition of information – understanding the situation is a key to success.

If Information Overload and/or the associated stress is a primary concern for you, this is your episode.

Definition of information

• We don’t really have a good one – and that’s coming from an expert
• We think we can dimly grasp what information is… its related to some way of conveying ‘something’.
• We even use information to convey ‘something’ to ourselves with notes, etc.
• For more, see James Gleick’s book The Information

But is information an independent thing?

• Information and attention are symbiotic.
• Example – regular radio pulses from astronomy. Is that information?

How does this relate to overload?

• Information itself is not something that impinges on us. It can’t do that.
• But we do feel stress – meaning we feel like there’s more than we can deal with – about ‘something’.

Is our problem really communication overload?

• Communication impinges on us.
• Communication means information used in a way that has a message (content) and usually has a signal. (we refer to both content and signal as information)
• We get shouted at – communicated AT

Is our problem really content overload?

• There’s no such thing as information overload in a library – content, in itself, has no means to impinge on us
• If books hollered at you and they weren’t well organized, the library would be a horror show.
• So, this is Information that’s well managed and has organizational schemes.
• In personal information management, one of the better metaphors is to have one’s own personal library

Is our problem really signal overload?

• The amount of incoming signal has never been so high
• The informational content of a signal itself is pretty low.
• Phones ring, computers beep, screens flash. We think this the right approach. But almost every signal is under our control
• It’s signal overload. So, we’ve also got to think about the signals that we allow and those that we create for ourselves

Conclusion/recap