"Technology is wonderful when it isn't in the way."
–Steve Hogarth

Like many readers of this blog, I think about data just about every day. I don't ponder it abstractly, though. I contemplate frequently about the intersection of business, data, technology, and people. I am amazed when I see people doing things manually that could be done in a few seconds–if they only knew a better way. Lest I be hypocritical, I love it when people show me time-saving tricks.

In a recent Medium piece, Sarah Gooding writes:

It’s never been easier to be productive, but it’s also never been harder. With technology and a flood of information at my fingertips every time I turn on an Internet-connected device, my resolve crumbles. I reflexively click on headlines and tab upon tab opens with tantalizing news. This is why Woody Allen never bought a computer (sticking instead with his trusty typewriter) and still churns out a feature-length film every year.

It's an interesting and timely article, although Gooding is hardly the first to raise questions like: Who here is lacking for content today? Are you able to process every source of information relevant to your business? Can you read every book or blog that you like or you should? I'm betting that the answers to these questions are resounding no's.

Data and Work: Changing the Equation

Blame technology if you like. It's a convenient scapegoat and always has been. Ask yourself if, despite your protestations, you really like being too busy. Are you afraid to hit the off switch? We all like to feel important, but what does receiving 300 e-mails per day actually achieve, especially when only 30 are relevant?

If you are able to change the equation, then you may find that you're not as overwhelmed. But make no mistake: leaving your phone off isn't the only change that you'll have to make. Consider the following tips for handling the incessant data deluge:

• Embrace better tools.
• Feel overwhelmed by e-mail? Try an RSS reader like Feedly.
• Don't managed projects over e-mail. Why not try a tool like Asana instead?
• Unsubscribe to e-mails that you never read. Use tools like RightInbox or Boomerang to manage your e-mail.
• Create e-mail filters.
• Refuse to respond to e-mail chains.
• Occasionally insist upon actual, you know, conversations.
• Realize that, like e-mail, Excel isn't the answer to everything.

(For more on this, see my Inc.com piece on the real reason that your inbox is overflowing.)

Simon Says: Embrace Better Tools

To far too many people, data is a problem. Completely solving the data problem may not be feasible, but adopting a new mind-set enables people to work smarter, not harder.

Feedback

What say you?