Growing City

The age-old adage The more I know, I realise how much I don't know, tells the true story of how we are trying to cope up with information...

The age-old adage The more I know, I realise how much I don8217;t know, tells the true story of how we are trying to cope up with information explosion in this digital age. Information and knowledge are multiplying every minute- and it8217;s hard to keep pace with the speed at which new information is being generated all over the world.

There is a lot of information around us. If you are a student, you would be overwhelmed with the number of choices available to you to choose from a large number of professional courses, knowledge and information database. As a professional, you would realise that you have to learn new things every day to keep pace with new work methods, modern technology and current information in your trade. At the personal front too, it8217;s becoming increasingly difficult to manage information just look at your personal1diaries, you will find half a dozen numbers you can8217;t remember.

Information overload is affecting each one of us irrespective of our age, sex and professions. In fact psychologists and medical specialists dealing with stress these days regard information overload as a lethal stressor which can turn dangerous if not managed effectively. So, do we reduce our information intake? If yes, how do we keep pace with the fast-changing world?We should balance our information intake by selecting the right sources and have a disciplined approach in recognising information around us.

One has to be very selective in choosing the right information and organise it smartly. The simplest way is to register or toss8217; the information you receive at any point of time. Register record or memorise the useful information, else discard it immediately don8217;t sit on the information. Newspapers, in my opinion, are the cheapest and amongst the best sources of a wide variety of information. Learn to make good use of newspapers. It8217;s the only medium which gives us an opportunity to update our personal information daily.

If you have a paperless personal information system, use the Internet edition of newspapers. Fine tune your information system every now and then to get rid of the garbage or obsolete information and make way for new things. In case you don8217;t have any personal information system, it8217;s time to have a formal system in place. There is no substitute for good and relevant information, which can be retrieved just as you require it.

I feel information is like a nuclear bomb 8212; if we use it judiciously, it would stimulate us to grow as better performers and enhance our quality of life, both personal and professional. On the other hand, if we are carried away by an information overload, it would prove to be counter-productive. I think each one of us has a control button: We can either be masters of the information and lead lives full of purpose and commitment or perish without making any use of this great resource.

The writer is working with a multi-national in SAS Nagar