Leading Through Information Overload

This requires Downtime, Discipline, Rewiring your Brain.

I went away in January by myself on a Caribbean retreat. I was offline, completely disconnected for two weeks. I had coverage at home and work - worry-free! I did a lot of thinking, writing and walking on the beach. Ah - no more noise! My system calmed down and I found my own voice again. It was heaven.This was a stark contrast to what I experienced upon "re-entry" back into the atmosphere of 21st century constant availability. I came back to a snow crisis, client needs and a backlog of emails.

I tried to do too much, too quickly. I got sick. This slowed me down. It helped me see that I need to be more disciplined in saying "no," deferring or delegating. I continued my meditation practice.

McKinsey's article Recovering From Information Overload offers some additional strategies.If you're already overloaded, here are the key points - information overload makes us anxious and we need to focus, filter and forget.

Easier said than done!The "need" to be connected constantly is an addiction - we get hooked into fear - of missing something, not being current, etc. We can rewire ourselves for greater capacity and reduced reactivity which allows us to be more selective, proactive, clearer thinking.

My (edited) McKinsey comments:

Changing this behavior comes down to better self-management.

1. Understand and manage your own motives,

2. Enforce team norms for support - initially this may require outside support,

3. Rewire different neural pathways in the brain to not be reactive.

We give our clients concrete tools to calm down the mind and rewire the brain for response versus reaction. When one leads by shifting their energy, it impacts everyone around them - their family, their team, department or organization.