While I appreciate not having to visit every site I like one by one, I find the long list of RSS feeds makes me feel more stressed than assisted lately. Always working to make things better, I decided that it was essential to try a new system. I would edit down my subscriptions to the few I never missed; that I searched for in the list of hundreds. But before I did that, I looked at what I needed/was looking to gain from the feeds I read.
Those three things are: to be better at my job (and more efficient), to be savvy about world events (I do not watch the news on television), and to be amused and have my brain expanded (really, my two favorite things).
This doesn’t mean that I’ll give up the rest forever, or that it won’t evolve. All good systems should. I’ll still be reading the Twitter feed, and there I’ll see posts when people have a new blog entry or when there’s a new relevant article. If one sparks my brain or is timely, I’ll read it.
What are you looking to gain from your feed?
I will list the ones I settle on in a future post.
I’ve definitely experienced the RSS overload, my current reader has 30+ sites. However, I find that using software like NewsFire helps me better organize and quick scan for relevant articles. Admittedly, I have started following the more important (to me) blogs via Twitter.
Have you heard about Feedly? I haven’t had a chance to put together my “digest” but it’s supposed to put everything in a nice tidy place and reads like magazine….many are saying they could divorce twitter feeds for it…
Thank you Imen. Sounds like just what the doctor ordered. : )
To be honest, and I’m almost embarrassed to admit it, I’m officially feed free. I don’t save a site unless I know immediately I can’t live without it. In my mind, if I can’t live without it, I’m going to go back and check it out on a regular basis anyway. Is that so wrong??? I see that little RSS icon and it makes me smile because I know that hundreds, thousands and millions of people can and will visit that site to pay it credit when I’m not around.
I’m not sure if I’m lazy, clever, if I have “I’m only one person” syndrome or if I’m just overwhelmed with all the options. Sometimes I feel blessedly oblivious about things in the world and “other stuff.” Sometimes I’m armed with a little too much knowledge. I realize this disconnection can lead to a lack of caring, but that’s not my style. As far as news goes, I can only take so much (email and news) and I look for highlights that pertain to me and the world around me often. With respect to the “other things,” I find those too when the mood strikes me.
LeJoy, thank you for your comments and thoughts about the subject. Not wrong at all, not even a bit. I like your approach very much. Knowing your limits=essential.