Paying less attention to news

There is a significant downside to the easy availability of news.

The problem is, that with an algorithmically-enabled pipeline of news constantly vying for our attention, it becomes increasingly difficult to discern between useful signals and distracting noise.

It's not just the volume of content that poses a problem, the news today is also packaged to generate an emotional reaction to it. It's designed to embed itself like a vice into our contemporary psychological makeup.

And it's everywhere; news-like content bleeds into our entertainment and social media channels, ensuring that we cannot escape the triggers trying to muscle in on our point of view.

Guarding our emotional integrity under these conditions takes stoic dedication.

The risk is that this manipulation can start to affect the quality of our decision-making. We react to our environment from a place of fear rather than from a position of being informed from a well-balanced source.

For those wanting to develop their strategic thinking capabilities - news is truly toxic.

The solution is an awareness of this growing problem and a conscious redesign of our daily habits.

Obviously purposefully limiting social media use is key; even platforms like LinkedIn and Substack are problematic.

Staying informed is obviously still important, but rather than assigning that task to unregulated providers, find reputable aggregators that are able to de-sensationalise news: The Associated Press, Reuters and 1440.

Sign up for a weekly e-mailed round up of the top stories, or subscribe to a physical news magazine like The Economist, where the chances of getting sucked into a rabbit hole of gloom are minimised.

The point is that our mental integrity is under attack and preserving sanity is a task that requires design.

Don't let your mind become a victim, take the quality of your thinking back for yourself.