Nedra Weinreich of the SpareChange Blog left a pointer to comic this in a comment on my post about RSS as coping tool for Information Overload! Just had to blog it! It would make a great presentation slide!
It kind of says it all.
I've been reflecting a lot on my RSS reading habits lately and how I organize (or don't) my RSS feeds in the reader. Right now, I organize into sub-folders by topics I'm following. I'm about to create a folder called "Circle of the Wise." inspired by Vicky Davis's post. I'm going to identify 10-15 feeds out of the 240 in my collection that I find the most inspiring, causes me to think, or gives me ideas for blogging.
I've been using bloglines for about two years now and am really comfortable, particularly with my work flow for reading and blogging. These two tasks very connected, but must be kept in balanced. I'm hesitating making any change for fear of becoming even less productive while I form new habits. I also hate that feeling of anxiety that happens when you don't know where to click and you're under deadline pressure to get something done. I hate not having the opportunity for reflection when you're crazy busy and overwhelmed!
Learning these tools is about habit change and habit change is uncomfortable unless you make the time for reflection. It is most likely the discomfort that newcomers to blogging, rss feeds, or these other social tools may feel initially and it's always good for me to feel this first hand....
I came across a post by Kevin that describes a newly launched feature in the google reader that gives you some statistics about your RSS reading habits. It could be useful a self-reflection exercise. I had given Google Reader a whirl when it first appeared about a year ago and it was too alpha. So, I was encouraged to give it another try. There are some aspects of the reader I really like, but not enough to disrupt my whole workflow when I'm crazy busy and stressed out anyway ...
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