Navigating the accelerating rate of information that is constantly thrown at us is one of the evolving challenges that every one of us are navigating. Add to the mix the new regime in Washington and its information/disinformation compaigns coupled with algorithmic feeds and AI-generated content makes the need to process information more important than ever.
Cedric Chin frames the challenge as Outcome Orientation, and he does it by asking a simple question:
“What is the outcome I am trying to achieve here?”
Outcome Orientation differs from the Information Diet in that rather than curtailing your information sources in order to consume them in a safer manner, you expose yourself to the full range of internet sources, but ask yourself for which goal you are consuming it first:
You may then continue with the action or consumption if you wish, but you must answer the question honestly first.
That’s it. The point is not to control your time allocation, the point is to always be aware of why you are consuming something as you are consuming it. If you do this, you will automatically change your time allocation as a result.
This approach might just work, as it frames the indiviaul as having agency over their environment, both in terms of the sometimes competing realms of self-interest and consequentialism, rather than being the victim of information overload with its related costs.