An important part of what I do for living and how I pursue personal interests is consuming lots of information – be it the news, interesting trends, companies and services, and resources offering data, insight and perspective.
Given the news is coming from anywhere and everywhere, it can be a challenge trying to determine where to go to get the broadest perspective possible in the most efficient way. Here’s how I do it:
1. Twitter: Over the past few months, Twitter has become the place to find out what’s happening and what’s interesting. It’s a rich information resource fueled by a team of more than 200 “reporters” (aka people that I follow), who are scouring the Web on my behalf (and the behalf of others). When I’m looking at Twitter via my iPhone, I’m constantly tapping on “Favorites” to save links for later.
2. Google Alerts: Having the news come to you is huge. With Google Alerts, you can create keyword searches, and have content delivered as it happens or once a day from the Web and/or blogs.
3. Socialmedian: A daily e-mail provides a quick snapshot of stories and blog posts for topics that I’ve pre-configured.
4. Hacker News: A rich resource of not only high-tech news but a variety of fascinating stories on other topics submitted by users. Hacker News provides a nice one-two punch alongside the New York Times on Sunday if you’re into spending a few hours consuming great content.
5. Google Reader While I’m not as enthusiastic about Google Reader these days, it’s still a valuable resource that probably deserves more love and attention.
6. SmartBrief on Social Media – an e-mail service provided by SmartBrief – that provides an information and valuable snapshot of what’s happening within the social media landscape.
7. Tweetmeme: Probably the easiest way to quickly see what’s attracting the most attention on the TwitterSphere.
8. Techmeme – The king of news aggregation within the high-world, Techmeme continues to maintain its status as the destination to see what’s happening.
So, where do you get the news? Any tools or really good Web sites to recommend? Do have a better and more efficient way to consume news?
Technorati Tags: google, Hacker News, tweetmeme, twitter
Great post Mark and wanted to say I have enjoyed your writing since columns in Globe & Mail, etc.
Information overload is a real challenge these days…and survival necessitates that we all have our own systems for managing the *firehose* that is constantly ready to push content into in-boxes and onto screens.
While I have not become a full disciple of the Tim Ferriss 4-Hour Work Week approach, I do find myself being a lot more selective and doing what Radian6′s David Alston calls “media snacking” with scanning headlines or checking Twitter trends.
The basic principle is that if you are plugged into The Grid on at least some level, you’ll manage keep abreast of key stories and since most of us have a day job to work at I remind myself that most time just because the news is out there does not mean I need to know absolutely everything about it, the exact minute it happens…
Keep it up.