To live in the modern world is to live with a practically infinite number of choices and possibilities. Consider for a moment the average person throughout human history. This person spent the majority of their time and energy meeting basic needs. He or she had limited access to both information and other people. Knowledge and network advantages were real and significant, but there’s been a massive shift with the widespread availability of the internet. Access to information and people from around the world are increasingly available to almost anyone. The advantage is no longer about access, but what you do with it.

With this shift, our lives have become infinitely more complex. With more of us having our basic needs met, our time has become a commodity creating an entire attention economy. We can browse social media, binge watch videos on YouTube or Netflix, or get lost in immersive games that create alternate realities. Unfortunately, we haven’t suddenly evolved in such a way as to inherently possess the tools necessary to deal with this new reality. We’re fundamentally wired for a simpler existence. We need to be more proactive and intentional about how we live in the modern world, yet few of us are as effective at this as we could be.

Thus there are two distinct problems that arise: How to make optimal use of our time and how to take advantage of the increased availability of information.

An abundance of choice

More free time and constant competition for our attention have combined to make this a defining issue of our time. It can manifest itself in a sort of decision paralysis or in not really having any control over one’s own life. To combat this, the key is to be both more aware of and more intentional with our time.

Start by answering three simple questions:

1. What kind of person do I want to be?
2. What is import to me?
3. What do I want to accomplish in my life?

If you’ve never done this, take some time to think through and write down the answers to these questions. It’s an incredibly useful exercise. Knowing what you want is the difference between having things happen to you and creating the life you want to live. It’s okay if you don’t have all the details figured out, the important thing is to actively think about it and revisit over time as you and your priorities evolve.

Once you have a general idea of what you want out of life, reflect on how you spend your time and take note going forward. Everything you do should align with the person you want to be. This is not meant as productivity advice, rather, if you enjoy binge watching movies on Netflix, scrolling through social media feeds, or playing games with your friends, keep doing these things! The key is to understand why you do them and align with what’s important to you. Personally, I enjoy browsing social media, but if I’m not careful I get in a state where I’m no longer enjoying it or getting anything out of it. I haven’t cut this out of my life, but I’ve become more intentional about why I’m doing it and how it’s serving me.

In summary, figure out what you want out of life, take note of how you spend your time, and make sure these things are in alignment.

Processing information

We’ve established that there is an abundance of information available to us and that the real challenge is in making practical use of it. So what are the obstacles to doing so and how can we overcome them?

The primary issues relate to information overload and lack of retention. Social media is a great example of both and how they relate to one another. Depending on who you follow or connect with, you can consume a tremendous amount of useful information in a short amount of time simply by scrolling through your Twitter or Facebook feed. This would be great, except that you likely don’t retain much of it, and when you do, it’s often at a very basic level. We’re constantly scrolling to the next thing and our brains simply aren’t wired to process all this information. You can apply this to almost anything: reading a book, listening to a podcast, etc. It’s not realistic to expect to quickly scan information and retain it in any sort of meaningful way. This is a problem as people tend to be much better at consuming information than processing it.

So how can we improve? One simple technique is to stop and get the information out of your head. Write it down. I like to think of this as a symbiotic relationship between a human and a computer. Computers have a phenomenal memory, humans do not. Humans are excellent at thinking and being creative, computers are not. Learn to use this to your advantage.

It’s not enough, however, to simply write down verbatim that which you wish to understand. Be active in the learning process. Our minds work by connecting new information to things we already know. Use this opportunity of transferring information to think about it in your own way. Struggle with it and fill in the gaps as you go. You’ll be surprised at the number of new questions and insights that arise from this process. As a bonus, you’ll create a map of your thoughts and ideas over time that you can later revisit and refine.

The final step is to apply what you’re learning to your everyday life. Sometimes it will be obvious how to do this, as when learning a specific skill. When learning something more abstract, you’ll need to get a bit creative. Perhaps you’re reading about psychology. How can you use this to better understand the people in your life and create more meaningful relationships? This is not only a critical step in retention, but also represents the action of building your life. What’s the point in learning new things if not to apply them in some practical way?

If you’re wondering what it is you should spend your time learning, there are essentially two paths to follow: Learn something practical (job or skill related) or follow your curiosity. Don’t overthink the latter, as you’re unlikely to regret learning much of anything. It’s more likely that you’ll be pleasantly surprised by where you end up. You’ll begin to notice interesting connections between seemingly unrelated things and refine your interests in the process.

In summary

Figure out what’s important to you, make time for it, eliminate what isn’t serving you, and give whatever you’re doing your full attention. Once you’ve decided that what you’re doing at any given moment is the right thing to do, you’ll find that you’re less distracted by the endless possibilities. This, in my opinion, is the key to living a meaningful and fulfilling life.