Identifying the Right Resources for You & Preventing Information Overload!
Whether you’re just dipping your toe into the world of personal development or you’ve been focused on self-growth for years, identifying the right resources for you and dealing with information overload is something that keeps coming up!
First let’s talk about how to handle resources you think might be helpful but you aren’t totally on board with everything they stand for.
Are the resources antithetical to your core priorities and values?
If there’s a resource you’re not sure you want to take advantage of, start by asking yourself where you don’t align with the resource. There’s a big difference between a grief support group being held in the basement of a church that’s a different religious affiliation from you, and a grief support group that’s actively anti-LGBTQ.
Consider if the misalignment will cause you to not feel fully invested in everything being offered, or if it might be in direct opposition to your core priorities and values.
If it’s in direct opposition to your core priorities and values, it’s time to find another resource. However if you’re more worried you’ll only feel like 75% of the offering will apply to you, it’s probably worth while to move onto the next steps in evaluating a resource.
What value does the resource offer
What value will you get out of the resource? I had a yoga teacher who always said if it was going to cause more stress to get to class than it would alleviate to be there, it wasn’t worth going! However, if you know the inconvenience of dealing with rush hour traffic on the way to class is minor in comparison to the benefit of taking the class, then it’s time to hop in your car and head to the studio!
Think about the resource you’re considering – what benefit will you receive from it? And what positive impact will that benefit have on your life?
Finally, consider if you know of another resource that would be a good alternative? Perhaps something more in alignment which might be an extra 10 minutes drive away, or maybe meets on a day or at a time which is less convenient for you. Weigh the impact of the extra inconvenience of the more aligned resource with the impact of the misalignment you identified in the previous step.
Only you can decide which option is the best for you – and you might even want to give each one a try if that’s an option and see what you prefer! If you want to walk through this process step by step – I’ve got you covered – grab the worksheet for this week using the form below.
Take what resonates and leave the rest
Having said all that, it’s important to remember to take what resonates and leave the rest.
I’ve had amazing yoga teachers offer alignment cues that don’t work in my body. I’ve had brilliant teachers say something I just couldn’t get on board with. And each time I participate in a course, workshop, conference, or read a book, there’s usually one point where I’m on board with the information being offered, nodding along and then suddenly think – hum – actually not so much on that point.
This might be a great chance for you to reflect on old stories and beliefs you’re ready to release. Or it might be a case of us all being different and simply allowing someone to have their own priorities and values which don’t mesh with yours.
Knowing what to leave
Again, only you can decide what to take and what to leave. But here are a few guidelines to help you think about it.
If you just know it’s information that doesn’t align your with core priorities and values, simply allow it to move past you.
Here’s a silly example – but as a proud cat mama – if someone said snuggling cats isn’t a good self-care technique, I’d simply let that information flow past me. Snuggling up with Lada is one of my favorite ways to restore.
That statement tells me a lot more about the person offering the information than it does about the actually validity of the statement.
Watch for the “shoulds”
If you have a strong negative gut reaction that’s tied to a lot of “should” statements. That’s a great opportunity to look at your stories and beliefs and discover if something in you needs to be released instead.
I was participating in a training about a year ago, and the presenter shared how her journey of personal development had been really hard – until she decided it didn’t need to be hard.
My immediate reaction was a nope – this is work – hard work this personal growth stuff. And then I realized I didn’t have anything to back it up except that had always been my experience. So I kept digging and found I had all sorts of old stories around needing to EARN good things, and worthiness, that led me to believe personal growth had to be hard work.
Turns out I had beliefs that were ready to left behind, and in fact, what the presenter said that at first blush I had disagreed with I began to really resonate with.
Dealing with the overload
Ok, having covered all that – the first step in addressing your information overload is applying the framework we just went through to what you’ve already taken in. I’ve laid out all the steps in the worksheet for this episode so if you haven’t grabbed your copy yet, get it using the form below!
If you’re anything like me, you probably have lists everywhere of tools, techniques, mindset shifts, books to read, and so much more that you’re curious about or want to try. Maybe you heard it on a podcast, maybe a friend suggested it, maybe it popped up on social media or in a google search.
Start running these things through the framework to keep what resonates (or anything that triggers the need to examine your beliefs and stories) and then allow yourself to release anything that doesn’t. You can cross it off your list, recycle that note, or delete the electronic reminder.
Deciding where to start
Next, skim through your lists and notes – is there anything that jumps out at you. Anything that feels like it’s somehow more important to start right away?
Maybe it’s been mentioned five times by five different people in the last two weeks. Or perhaps it just feels more important to you than the other stuff.
If you identify something in this step, that’s a great place to start. Gift yourself with the grace to allow the other things to sit in a pending pile while you give the first tool, technique, mindset shift or resource a try. Try it out for a week or two – allow it to begin to become habit, and then consider adding in your next tool or technique.
When you truly don’t know where to start
If nothing jumps out to you, pick the tool, technique, mindset shift, or resource that will be easiest to implement in your daily life starting right now.
For example – you’re considering three options – the first is adding a multi-vitamin or supplement you take each day with lunch, the second is cutting all sugar out of your diet, and the third is eating your entire meal mindfully – using the mindful moment technique on every single bite or sip you take.
Chances are one of those sounds a lot more doable right now than the other two. But all three have been advice either I or someone I know has been given. Start with the thing you think you can actually make happen in your life – if you can follow through on the first step, you’ll be more resourced when it comes to tackling some of the other tools and techniques which require more from you.
Change is like a snowball
Today’s questioner noted they’re dealing with a lot of upheaval in their lives right now. I’ve turned my life upside down and had my life turned upside down several times over the years. I know how overwhelming it can feel when you’re struggling to just take care of the basics like making sure you’re showered, fed and make it to work each day.
Whether or not you’re dealing with a lot of extra stuff in your life right now, we all have a limited amount of energy, focus, and other resources.
The reality of decision fatigue
Fun fact, research has found our decision making ability is actually a depletable resource. Decision fatigue results in struggling with reduced mental resources as the day goes on and the decisions you make pile up.
That means especially if you’re already feeling overwhelmed, the more decisions you have to make the harder it will be to make the next one. And the more willpower you use to execute those decisions, the less you’ll have for the next one.
So while you might have a list of a dozen things that will help you feel better, you most likely simply don’t have the resources to implement them all at once. However, as you begin to incorporate each of these new tools or techniques into your life, you build up your resilience, allowing you take on more.
Think of it like working out – if you walk into the gym today, you might start working out with five-pound weights. But if you create a consistent routine and keep using those weights, in a few weeks you might find yourself stepping up to 7 and a half pound weights. Over time you’ve built stronger muscles and can handle more weight. Similarly, over time you build up your resilience and can handle more complex or “weighter” tasks.
Creating a tickler list
When I left my last 9-5 job, I created a number of “tickler lists” they were designed to help the next person with that responsibility by prompting them when and what the steps were for procedures and events.
Consider creating your own tickler list of all the advice and information you’ve received but aren’t yet ready to implement.
If you keep a paper planner or calendar, add these items to a sticky note and place it two weeks or a month ahead in your calendar. If you do everything electronically, add them as a reminder in your calendar to pop up in a few weeks or a month. You could also type them all into an email and schedule that email to be sent a few weeks in the future.
Once you’ve added them to your tickler list, allow yourself to release them to the future. You don’t need to even think about them now because you’ll be reminded about them when you’ve built up a little more resilience. Right now, all you have to focus on is the one tool, technique, or resource you’ve decided to implement first.
When your tickler list pops up take a moment and check in with yourself – are you feeling sufficiently resourced you’re ready to take on a new tool or technique? Or do you need to push that list out another week or two and keep building resilience with the resources you’re currently using? This is your journey – do what feels right to you!
In practice
All of this building up resilience sounds great in theory, but what does it look like in practice? When I work with coaching clients, one of the first things I do is help them to begin to build resilience with tools and techniques that take just a few minutes and can easily be habit stacked or triggered by behaviors or thoughts.
For instance, a people-pleaser who’s struggling with boundaries and can’t say no to anyone or anything might not be resourced enough to launch into constructing and maintaining boundaries in all aspects of their life. BUT when they begin to feel overwhelmed by everything on their plate, they can take three audible exhales, ground into their feet, or practice the mindful moment.
Next, I might work with them to begin to build boundaries with stuff. For many people, it’s a lot easier to say no to a thing than to a person! Then as their resilience continues to grow and they build up their boundary muscle, they might start working on saying no to people or situations that feel less personal, more peripheral. And finally, they build up the resilience to construct healthy boundaries in even the most challenging of relationships.
Over time I’ve offered steps along a path to their final destination, but if we jumped right to the destination, they most likely wouldn’t have the resilience and resources to follow through.
And finally, remember to offer yourself grace
I know I’ve covered this before, but I want to mention it again – please remember to offer yourself grace.
Sometimes we’re simply more resourced than others and sometimes our resilience doesn’t go as far as it did a few weeks ago. If you’re feeling overwhelmed and overloaded, offer yourself permission to move at your own pace.
If you’re like today’s questioner and dealing with upheaval in your life, remember the impact of decision fatigue. When you’re facing a situation where you need to deal with more unknowns, unexpecteds, and unprecedenteds, you’re going to burn through your mental resources faster. And that means the resilience that got you to point K last week might only get you to point D today. And that’s ok.
Give yourself the grace to be where you are right now. And begin to take each step forward one foot at a time.
Incorporate it into your life!
If you want the framework for evaluating resources and dealing with information overload, grab this week’s worksheet! You can get the worksheet using the form below.
And if you’d like support in building your own personal roadmap from where you are to where you want to be, I’d love to help – schedule a Discovery Session with me today and walk away with your first few actionable steps.
And remember – living your best life isn’t about changing your life – it’s about changing the way you show up for your life!
Show Notes
Additional Resources
Grab the worksheet for this episode with guidelines for evaluating resources as well as the step-by-step process to tackle advice and information overload using the form below 👇.
Revisit the Audible Exhale.
Get the guided audio for grounding into your feet.
Revisit the Mindful Moment.
Schedule a Discovery Session.
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