Informed but not Overwhelmed

How can you stayed informed without being overwhelmed?

* Choose to acquire knowledge that supports or interests you, not what you simply happen to ingest, or think you have to ingest.

* Look for broad-based patterns and trends, as opposed to quickly disappearing fads and forgettable trivia.

* Learn to delegate some of your reading to your most junior staff. After only 15 minutes of instruction and armed with a list of key words, they will be able to rather easily identify articles of interest to you.

* Prune your files regularly and ruthlessly. Constantly throw out what does not support you.

Too Much Info to Get Started?

Dr. Piers Steel, an expert on the subject of putting off until tomorrow what should be done today, has distilled information on procrastination from 691 other research sources, and estimated that 95% of the population procrastinates sometimes, and about 15% to 20% are chronic procrastinators.

"Essentially, procrastinators have less confidence in themselves, less expectancy that they can actually complete a task," he says. "Perfectionism is not the culprit. In fact, perfectionists actually procrastinate less, but they worry about it more."

The High Cost of Procastination

A recent article “Man returns book overdue since 1960” features the high cost of procrastination! Robert Nuranen of Hancock, Michigan just turned in a book that he had borrowed for a ninth-grade assignment. Mr. Nuranen claimed that his mother misplaced the copy of "Prince of Egypt" while cleaning the house. Every now and then the family came across it, only to set it aside again. (Hardly his mother’s fault.) He found the book again around New Year’s day while goinh through a box in the attic, presuming looking for something else

"I figured I'd better get it in before we waited another 10 years," he reported on Friday with a $171.32 check, equal to 47 years' worth of late fees. Current librarian Sue Zubiena said that the library had long ago lost any record of the book, but she said, "I'm going to use it as an example," she said. "It's never too late to return your books."

If only he had read my book, The 60 Second Procrastinator (Adams Media) Ref: http://tinyurl.com/fedl8. He might have turned it in a bit earlier!

Information is Stored in Spaces

It's important to understand that you control the spaces in your life, because information is stored in spaces--tables, shelves, desks, disks, hard drives, web sites, etc. If your desk is a mess right now, strewn high with piles that are growing higher, remember you're the one who controls that space, as well as your filing cabinet, your shelves, the top of your dining room table, your kitchen counter, your glove compartment, or your back seat. You are the one controlling your space, and this acknowledgment will help you to stay in control of your information.

A Game Plan for Today

You need a game plan for your day, and for your week. Otherwise you'll allocate your time according to whatever information happens to land on your desk or whatever communications begs for your attention. As such, other people's actions will determine your priorities. And you will find yourself making the fatal mistake of dealing primarily with problems rather than opportunities.