Don’t Go on a Crash News Diet
photo credit: Guacamole Goalie
I’ve read on several of the blogs I read that in the interests of productivity and wellbeing you should go on a ‘news fast’ to cut down on stress, information overload and reclaim some time.
Apparently all the killings and violence will make you sad, angry and stressed out.
But going on a crash diet isn’t a sustainable way of losing weight, so why should it work in the field of information? I’m looking for something a little more sophisticated than that.
Besides, cutting it out completely means you’ll lose a lot that you might actively want to see. Personally I’m interested in politics so I wouldn’t want to miss out on the latest developments in that area.
Nonetheless I can see the time benefit in not watching 30 minutes of non-personalised news each night. What you want is something targeted to your needs and preferences.
So here are my five suggestions for going on an intelligent news diet. Not the crash diet recommended elsewhere, but one you can stick to with a low Glycaemic Index yet high in vitamins and minerals:
- Cut out TV news: it’s not tailored to you, and these days you can do better and get more perspectives on the news websites. My preferred method is to listen the BBC’s Newspod on my way to work in the morning. Many other newspapers offer similar services.
- Get RSS updates on the topics you’re interested in: science & technology, sport, politics, the opinion page.
- Check favoured news sites once a day or get a daily digest of the news: in the UK the Guardian newspaper offers a free pdf bulletin on a number of topics at the end of the day, perfect for reading on the way home from work. This is an uncommon offering, but it’s balanced coverage and covers international news. Being customisable, you can make it relevant to your country or particular area of interest.
- Don’t miss the big stories: trust me, if something major happens you’ll know, you can’t escape it. You’ll likely hear about the bigger issues from your friends and colleagues. If you do hear about something this way, you can then choose whether to check it out.
- Ditch newspapers in favour of a weekly news magazine: good examples include The Economist or a news digest like The Week. And don’t feel you have to read it all. If you’re resistant to doing this because you’ll miss your favourite regular column, see if it’s republished on the newspaper’s website. Most make all their content available free online or via RSS (see above).
Now depending on your appetite for news even this pH balanced diet might seem too restrictive for you. But give it a shot and see if it frees up some brain space. You might just find you’re having ideas that’ll see you make the news.
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