The Age of Information Overload: Managing Information in the Digital Workplace
We live in the age of information overload. Our modern digital workplace bombards us with emails, cloud apps, and constant notifications. The dictionary definition of information overload is receiving too much information and being unable to think about it in a clear way. It might mean you start to tune some things out. It might mean you shut down and need to take more breaks. Digital information comes in faster than our brains have evolved to handle. We must wade through this information, including irrelevant noise, just to make reasonable decisions. New technologies, including AI, threaten to make information overload even worse.
Smarter information management improves productivity and focuses by mitigating the problems caused by information overload.
The Real Cost of Information Overload
Information overload affects your brain and the way you work. It impacts productivity in various ways, which include:
- Decision fatigue. If we must make too many decisions in a day, our brain literally gets tired. We start making worse decisions. Information overload increases the number of inconsequential decisions you have to make, potentially impacting your cognitive capacity to make more important ones.
- Increased stress and burnout. Information overload can skyrocket our stress levels and even result in burnout. We may not even notice that background information is affecting our stress and mood.
- Lost or duplicated work. One aspect of information overload is not being able to keep track of everything. When one of those balls drops, it can result in not being able to find critical information, such as where we stored a file. We may even think it is gone and do it over.
- Difficulty finding critical documents. Another element of this is losing track of where we put a critical document and not being able to find it when we need it quickly.
Information overload can also cause us to spend too much time trying to handle information instead of doing our jobs.
Common Sources of Information Overload
So, what makes information overload worse? Poor information management is the biggest factor. We can only do so much about the information that hits us every day, but we can address these common sources:
- Fragmented storage. What happens when you have some stuff in the cloud, some on the C: drive, some in that archived email, some in your desk drawer? You need to keep track of an unnecessary extra piece of information, which storage space did you put the information in?
- Excessive emails and notifications. Many of us get hundreds of emails a day. Some people might get thousands. Then add in the phone apps, text messages, social media notifications, etc. This can lead to something called alert fatigue, which then results in important notifications being missed. For example, ignoring a critical text from your boss because you thought it was another app notification.
- Poor file naming conventions and inconsistent folder structure. If you don’t name a file in an intuitive way, your brain must work harder to remember what you called it.
- Duplicate files and outdated versions. We’ve all done the TextFINALVERSION3FINALNOREALLYTHISTIME naming convention that causes you to lose track of versions and send somebody the wrong one.
All of this can be mitigated with good information management.
Why Traditional Search Isn’t Enough
Some people just use file search to find things. However, traditional native OS and cloud search tools can only find the file if you remember its name. You may have to switch between different search engines for different locations. Search results lack context and relevance. It’s great for if you know you named the file X, but not so much for contextual searches.
Strategies for Managing Information Overload
Here are some tips and strategies for managing information overload and improving productivity:
1. Centralize Access to Information
Using a unified search tool such as Copernic allows you to search across local, cloud, and email content. You can look for a file without remembering where you put it, or even for a phrase from a file that you remember. No more switching between apps and you don’t have to retain the location.
2. Improve Search and Retrieval
Advanced search can help too. You can search not just by file name, but by content, such as the name of a customer. You can use filters and previews to eliminate irrelevant files and quickly see whether you have the right one. Saved searches help for frequently retrieved files.
3. Organize Smarter, Not Harder
We tend to solve our organizational problems by creating rigid folder structures on the grounds that everything is then in its place, until it isn’t. Using advanced search reduces our reliance on these structures and helps us find files accidentally put in the wrong place.
Use practical tips such as file naming systems, visual organization using colour, and file tagging systems that can then combine with search to help you bring up all the files you need.
4. Reduce Digital Noise
Start by turning off those app notifications. Many apps, especially social media apps, default to the highest possible number of notifications. Check the settings on all your apps and turn off any notifications you don’t need. Avoid adding new notifications. Ideally, all your notifications should be important.
Unsubscribe from digital newsletters and mailing lists you don’t read, use spam filters, and turn off email alerts. Again, all your emails should matter.
Set boundaries on information intake and feel free to tell people when they are sending you too much.
How Copernic Helps Reduce Information Overload
Copernic Desktop & Cloud Search can help reduce your information overload. Our fast, secure search operates across multiple data sources and devices, while keeping your sensitive data local (unlike using a web search to search files).
No more switching between different apps and search engines. No more wracking your brain because you can’t remember if you stored a file locally or in the cloud. Email is integrated too, so you can track down that pesky attachment.
Best Practices for a More Focused Digital Workplace
The first rule for your workplace should be to establish information management guidelines. Individual employees need to be taught to do things like reduce digital noise and make use of standardized naming conventions. Standardized conventions also improve collaboration by helping people find a file another team member was working on.
Train your teams on how to effectively search for files and data, including using advanced search to locate files by their content. Regularly review your digital assets and make sure you don’t have unnecessary apps throwing notifications at everyone.
Turning Information into an Advantage
Information overload can reduce productivity, increase stress and decision fatigue, and slow everyone down. Proactive information management ensures that all your team members have the information they need at their fingertips without being overloaded.
Information overload is not inevitable. It’s a problem you can solve or at least mitigate. If your team is struggling with information overload, explore how Copernic can help them work smarter. Contact us for more information or start your trial today.