| What information consumes is rather
| |
| | habits. Don't go dark and succumb to
|
| obvious: it consumes the attention of its
| |
| | unconscious habituation. Establish clear
|
| recipients. Hence, a wealth of
| |
| | boundaries such that if you cross them,
|
| information creates a poverty of
| |
| | you know you're at risk of falling into a
|
| attention and a need to allocate that
| |
| | pattern of addiction. And if that ever
|
| attention efficiently among the
| |
| | happens, it's time to immediately begin a
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| overabundance of information sources that
| |
| | new fasting period.5. Let It GoIf you
|
| might consume it.
| |
| | find yourself repeatedly succumbing to
|
| - Herbert SimonOnline forums, message
| |
| | forum addiction or other negative usage
|
| boards, and newsgroups are now
| |
| | patterns, you may decide it's best to
|
| ubiquitous. These powerful communication
| |
| | simply do without. At the time of this
|
| tools offer many strong benefits.
| |
| | writing, I no longer regularly
|
| However, forum participation can also
| |
| | participate in any online forums or
|
| become a destructive addiction, where the
| |
| | message boards. When I clarified my
|
| benefits are overshadowed by negative
| |
| | intentions, I realized my #1 reason for
|
| side effects.Here are some potential
| |
| | participation was to contribute and to
|
| benefits of regular online forum
| |
| | help people. But using forums as a
|
| participation:* Intellectual exchange*
| |
| | contribution outlet was inefficient,
|
| Learning new ideas and refining old ones*
| |
| | since it would too often lead to lengthy
|
| Enjoying community membership*
| |
| | (and mostly unproductive) debates. I
|
| Influencing the forum's evolution*
| |
| | found that sticking with one-to-many
|
| Contributing to others* Making new
| |
| | outlets like writing articles and
|
| friends and contacts* New business leads*
| |
| | maintaining a blog were a much better use
|
| Keeping up with current events* Learning
| |
| | of my time. Blog comments still allow
|
| about new opportunitiesHere are some
| |
| | some interactivity, but the time required
|
| potential negative effects of excessive
| |
| | to manage them is reasonable and the
|
| forum usage:* Reduced concentration and
| |
| | personal relevance of most blog comments
|
| focus* Reduced productivity* Chronic
| |
| | is extremely high.6. Replace Online
|
| procrastination* Increased pessimism and
| |
| | Socialization With Face-to-Face
|
| or apathy* Being distracted by endless
| |
| | ContactRegarding the social aspect,
|
| debates and idle gossip* Gradually
| |
| | online forums are a poor substitute for
|
| substituting tribal group think for your
| |
| | meeting people in person. While there's
|
| own intelligence* Impaired social skills,
| |
| | certainly some social benefit to forums -
|
| neglected relationships, and a weakened
| |
| | many people have met their spouses in
|
| social circle (a consequence of
| |
| | online forums, including me - it's
|
| substituting online socialization for
| |
| | important to physically spend time with
|
| face-to-face conversations)* Reduced
| |
| | human beings instead of via a computer
|
| energy (forum participation is sedentary
| |
| | screen. If you need a new social outlet,
|
| compared to more active social outlets)*
| |
| | join a local club or association,
|
| Reduced self-esteem* Career and income
| |
| | especially one that meets weekly. I found
|
| may suffer (including loss of
| |
| | that when I joined Toastmasters
|
| employment)* Forum addictionSince the
| |
| | International and began attending
|
| early 1990s, I've participated in many
| |
| | meetings and competing in speech
|
| different online forums, message boards,
| |
| | contests, my interest in socializing via
|
| and newsgroups and have experienced many
| |
| | online forums fell dramatically. Even the
|
| of these positive and negative effects at
| |
| | best online communication pales in
|
| various times. I ran a popular game
| |
| | comparison to face-to-face,
|
| developer forum for almost two years, so
| |
| | belly-to-belly contact.7. Be a Dabbler,
|
| I've had experience both as a participant
| |
| | Not a FixtureAnother tip is to treat
|
| and a forum operator. On the positive
| |
| | forum participation as temporary. If your
|
| side, I've learned many great ideas, made
| |
| | goal is to make new business contacts,
|
| valuable new business contacts, and even
| |
| | then dive in and participate actively for
|
| met my wife on a local computer bulletin
| |
| | a while, maybe 30-90 days. Make new
|
| board system. On the negative side, I
| |
| | friends and contacts, collect private
|
| found excess participation to be a huge
| |
| | contact info, and then abandon the
|
| time drain (and very addicting as
| |
| | forums. Continue to develop your new
|
| well).Here are some suggestions for using
| |
| | relationships via one-to-one
|
| forums effectively and avoiding the
| |
| | communication like email, phone calls,
|
| negative side effects:1. Take a Forum
| |
| | and if possible, face-to-face meetings
|
| FastFirst, if you're currently active in
| |
| | (such as at industry conferences).
|
| any forums, go on a forum fast. Stop
| |
| | Temporarily dabbling in many different
|
| visiting all forums for a while; don't
| |
| | forums is a more effective way to build
|
| even lurk. I recommend a fasting period
| |
| | contacts than pushing a single forum far
|
| of 30 days, with a bare minimum of 14
| |
| | beyond its usefulness.You can also use
|
| days. This will help you break any
| |
| | the dabbling method to gather general
|
| unconscious habits and regain your
| |
| | information on a subject. Seek out a
|
| perspective, so you can intelligently
| |
| | number of relevant forums and bookmark
|
| evaluate the role forums should play in
| |
| | them. Then spend a few hours scanning
|
| your life. Otherwise, you may be coming
| |
| | each forum once every six months to soak
|
| from a place of unconscious habit and
| |
| | up the current wisdom. Whenever you have
|
| will likely overestimate the value of
| |
| | a specific question, pop in and search
|
| continued participation. If you're
| |
| | the forum archives. If searching turns up
|
| currently a forum moderator, take a forum
| |
| | a blank, feel free to post a new message,
|
| vacation, and enlist someone to
| |
| | harvest the answers, and disappear.8.
|
| temporarily assume your moderation
| |
| | Avoid AddictionOnline forums are tricky
|
| duties. Redirect the time you would have
| |
| | beasts. At the time of this writing, my
|
| spent in online forums to something
| |
| | feeling is that ongoing daily
|
| positive like exercising or reading
| |
| | participation in any single forum for
|
| books. If you don't think you have the
| |
| | more than a few months is almost
|
| discipline to do this, simply make a post
| |
| | invariably unproductive. Eventually the
|
| in each forum explaining that you'll be
| |
| | initial benefits like gaining knowledge
|
| taking the next 30 days off, and if any
| |
| | and making new contacts produce
|
| forum member catches you online, you'll
| |
| | diminishing returns. And then the
|
| pay the first person that emails you
| |
| | negative effects like forum addiction set
|
| about it $100. This should give you
| |
| | in. Regular participation (even from
|
| enough leverage to stick with your
| |
| | unconscious habituation) will still
|
| fast.2. Reassess Your Forum Usage
| |
| | provide some benefits, but the longer you
|
| HabitsOnce you've completed the initial
| |
| | participate, the less efficiently those
|
| fasting period (and not before), take a
| |
| | benefits are realized.Close cousins of
|
| fresh look at your forum participation
| |
| | forum addiction include online gaming
|
| habits. Imagine that you just discovered
| |
| | addiction, web surfing addiction, blog
|
| each forum today for the first time. What
| |
| | addiction, email addiction, and news
|
| are the pros and cons of participation?
| |
| | addiction. The common pattern is that
|
| Is this the best use of your time, or can
| |
| | unconscious habituation overrides
|
| you imagine something better? If you're
| |
| | conscious, clear-headed decision-making.
|
| using forums to get specific information,
| |
| | If you ever find yourself with such an
|
| would it be better to simply read books,
| |
| | unproductive habit, take steps to
|
| articles, or blogs? If you're using them
| |
| | reassert conscious control. Use a period
|
| as a social outlet, would it be better to
| |
| | of fasting to regain your perspective,
|
| join a local club and meet people
| |
| | reexamine your motives, set clear
|
| face-to-face? Looking back on your
| |
| | boundaries, and find alternative outlets.
|
| previous pattern of behavior, would you
| |
| | Manage your forum usage consciously to
|
| say you were addicted? Did your usage
| |
| | serve your goals, and avoid the trap of
|
| pattern become unconscious? If so, how do
| |
| | addiction.Online forums can be a powerful
|
| you intend to prevent that from happening
| |
| | productivity tool, but self-awareness and
|
| again?3. Clarify Your ExpectationsIf you
| |
| | discipline are required to prevent them
|
| decide to participate in online forums,
| |
| | from becoming a pitfall of
|
| clarify your expectations. Whether you
| |
| | procrastination.Copyright © Steve
|
| intend to use forums for market research,
| |
| | PavlinaSteve Pavlina
|
| to make new contacts, or as an outlet for
| |
| | Personal Development for Smart People
|
| your humorous wit, get clear on why
| |
| |
|
| you're there.4. Establish Reasonable
| |
| | (blog)
|
| BoundariesTo limit the risk of forum
| |
| | (articles)Steve is intensely
|
| addiction, set clear boundaries for
| |
| | growth-oriented. He trained in martial
|
| yourself and write them down. You can
| |
| | arts, ran the L.A. Marathon, and
|
| limit the number of times per week you
| |
| | graduated from college in three semesters
|
| check each forum, the total amount of
| |
| | with two degrees. He can juggle, count
|
| time you spend participating, or the
| |
| | cards at blackjack, and make damn good
|
| number of posts you'll allow yourself to
| |
| | guacamole. Steve is also a polyphasic
|
| make each week. Track your weekly usage
| |
| | sleeper, sleeping just 2-3 hours per day
|
| on a scrap of paper to keep yourself
| |
| | and only 20 minutes at a time. So chances
|
| consciously aware of your participation
| |
| | are good that he's awake right now.
|
