Sara Khan

Wri10
Executive Summary
With the rise of technology in the past few years, information overload is at its peak.
People are affected by this inconvenience on a daily basis. Information overload is especially bad
for college students, as they are being hit with a plethora of information from various sources
every minute of every day. On the surface, this could seem like a bad thing: how are students
expected to do well in school when their brains are scattered between a million different things?
However, the problem isnt the amount of information students are exposed to; its their lack of
coping mechanisms to deal with the information. Without these new methods of coping, all of
the information will eventually become unbearable. Information overload can lead to a very
stressful existence. Nonetheless, it has been said that stressing yourself out even further can lead
to better results. Within this proposal, I explore the idea that if students are given the proper
coping mechanisms to deal with information overload, then their productivity and efficiency
levels will increase overall.
Problem/Background
Although it has become more common in recent years, information overload has been a problem
for decades. Information overload, defined in regards to this proposal as a bombardment of
knowledge (both wanted and unwanted) from several avenues, affects many people day in and
day out. Information overload can also be perceived as taking information and turning it into
knowledge (Gleick). The concept of information overload may seem daunting in the age of the
Internet (Fallows). The Internet is a friend to many, but at times can also be called the enemy.
There is so much information readily available at the click of a button thanks to the Internet
how can people not face information overload?
College students face information overload at a higher rate than many other members of
society. It can be a consuming feeling when information is pouring in through professors,
lectures, office hours, friends and then of course information that you look up just for laughs
(Odinaka). Managing this plethora of material can seem like a daunting task, as it should.
Attending lectures and learning things that are required of you is difficult enough on its own, but
throw in storing information that was stumbled upon for your own pleasure and things can get
pretty messy. Not only are students faced with information from classes as well as their personal
lives, they also have to deal with information thrown at them while listening to the radio on their
commute to school, or while watching television at the end of a stressful day (Odinaka).
Information is coming at us at such warp speed, its hard to fully grasp all of it (Edmunds).
Without the proper tools to deal with information overload, life can become pretty hectic
(Odinaka). Thoughts will flow every which direction, students will have trouble remembering
what needs to get done and when it needs to be done by. Not only can information overload lead
to consequences in a students academic life, it can also have a poor effect on a students
personal life. Information overload has been known to cause certain types of anxiety as well as
fatigue (Gleick). The average college students health is potentially at risk based on the amount
of information they are taking in every day. This can lead to troublesome consequences for
university students in particular, such as failing classes or being put on academic probation. The
amount of information that students are expected to filter through is too high in comparison to
the number of ways that they have been given to cope with it. Information overload isnt going
away. Its been around for years, and will continue to haunt students across the world for years to
come.
Solution
The lack of ways that students are equipped with to deal with information overload boils
down to poor time management skills. Productivity specialist, David Allen, has written a best-
selling book, Getting Things Done, and has given several lectures in reference to this exact
problem. Prior to writing Getting Things Done, Allen conducted years of hands on research to
ensure that the methods outlined in his book were efficient. Allen focuses on the idea that stress
is caused by keeping track of due dates, meeting times, birthdays, etc. in ones head rather than
in an organized system (Fallows). By implementing Allens mantra in a college students school
life, information overload will become less of a hassle.
Allen gives lectures and seminars across the world, promoting his ideas on efficient
productivity. The proposed solution to the problem of information overload in a college setting is
to create a mandatory workshop as a part of the ASCEND conference for incoming freshmen
during welcome week (Events help). This workshop would be designed based upon the
principles discussed in Allens Getting Things Done. Allen focuses on five main points that
prove to be helpful in managing information. Allens five-step plan consists of the following
steps: capture, clarify, organize, reflect, and engage. Capture refers to really focusing in on what
needs to be done. Allen suggests creating an externalized to-do list that way brain space is
ultimately freed up. The next step, clarify, consists of taking a look at the to-do list that has just
been created. Does everything seem do-able? Students should make a plan of attack for each
item on the list. Step 3: organize. This step refers to organizing the lists that students have
already made. Allen suggests, Create lists for the appropriate categories calls to make,
errands to run, emails to send, etc. (Five). The next step, reflect, seems to be pretty self-
explanatory. Allen explains it as, Look[ing] over your lists as often as necessary to determine
what to do next. [Students should] do a weekly review to clean up, update [their] lists, and clear
[their] minds, (Five). Students should update their lists as often as necessary. The last step,
engage, is where the students would ultimately take action. Theyve created a list of things to be
done and have a plan of action now they should be putting things into motion (Five).
A key point that Allen makes in Getting Things Done is that people function more
efficiently in times of crisis. Essentially, the busier someone is, the more efficient their work will
be. Allen compares information overload today to information overload hundreds of years ago.
Johannes Bach, a famous composer, had 20 children. Allen makes the point that Bach had 20
children and could still compose brilliant music (Allen GTD, with David Allen). With this in
mind, he proposes that stress-free productivity is really all about organization and a term he calls,
psychic bandwidth (Allen). This idea of psychic bandwidth refers to having space to think.
Students minds are so full of information, they are too busy worrying about when to get certain
things done rather than focusing on how to get things done. By freeing up psychic bandwidth, a
student would be able to complete assignments and study for tests more efficiently in a much
timelier manner (Allen GTD, with David Allen). The small details, such as due dates, should
be organized elsewhere. The brain should be left for creative thinking along the lines of how to
get things done (Allen). Anytime new information becomes available, it unsettles the flow that a
student might already have going in his or her mind (Gleick). By following the plan outlined in
Getting Things Done, this disruption can ultimately not cause as much trouble as it once had the
ability to.
With this in mind, some could argue that students may not follow through with the things
learned throughout the course on Getting Things Done and that it would virtually be a waste of
time. However, in response to that it is fair to say that students that do not wish to follow the plan
outlined in this workshop may have a system that works better for them in place already, or they
may just not care. If the latter is true, then there was really no helping a student in that situation
to begin with. The workshop would be beneficial to those who see the value in it. A testimony
from one of Allens clients points out exactly how advantageous this system can be, When I
habitually applied the tenets of this program it saved my lifewhen I faithfully applied them, it
changed my life. This is a vaccination against day-to-day fire-fighting (the so-called urgent and
crisis demands of any given workday) and an antidote for the imbalance many people bring upon
themselves, (Allen, p. xlv). Many other satisfactory remarks such as this one have been made in
response to Allens methods.
Conclusion
It is a known fact that information overload can lead to a stressful existence. University
students need healthy ways to cope with the amount of information they are exposed to on a
daily basis, whether it is information for personal gain or school related. By creating a workshop
that is essentially, mandatory to all new incoming students, centered on the principles discussed
in productivity specialist, David Allens book, Getting Things Done, students will face a lower
amount of hardship in relationship to processing information and retaining knowledge
throughout their college careers. If these principles are adapted properly, students will feel the
benefits of this workshop long after graduation, as well. Alternatively, health risks, such as
anxiety and depression, which can potentially arise as a result of information overload and stress
will generally be avoided when these principles are put to proper use. By implementing David
Allens productivity tips, students will lead a more fruitful life, both in school and out of it.

















Works Cited
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