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Another update on my (info) diet

April 15, 2009 | Personal

It has been nine months since my last update on my info diet, which I started ten months ago, but I’m glad to say that I’m still on it and it’s working better than ever.

For those of you that know me well, I talk about it all the time, but rarely provide the details.  So here are some specifics…

It all started with reading the “Four Hour Work-week”.  (For the record, I did not like that book because of the premise behind it of doing everything for yourself.  I believe life is more about what you can do for others than what you can get for yourself.)  But the basic time management concepts were interesting.

So I started my diet by un-subscribing to every email newsletter I ever got.  Now I am only down to three:

1.  MarketingVox daily newsletter
2.  SearchCap daily news
3.  Web Marketing Now monthly newsletter

Anything else that comes into my inbox that is automated gets sent directly to a folder I call “noteworthy”, and I check that a couple times per week.  So my inbox is simply for real people who send me real emails.

But that does not mean I don’t stay informed.  When I drive and/or workout, I listen to and watch the below audio and video podcasts time permitting.

1.  This Week in Technology
2.  Ad Age Video
3.  Duct Tape Marketing
4.  NPR 7 AM ET Daily News
5.  TED Talks
6.  Tekzilla Daily
7.  Buzz Out Loud

As for actual physical mail, I get the below magazines/info…

1.  The Net Effect (I read it cover to cover)
2.  Wired Magazine (I don’t read it, I scan it)
3.  Fast Company (I don’t read it, I scan it)
4.  Charlotte Business Journal (I don’t read it, I scan it)

I also rely on several of my local SEO, Social Media, and Marketing colleagues to keep me informed via Twitter (time permitting), e-mail, and most importantly in person at monthly meetups.

Lastly, I do use an RSS reader, but the only blogs it has in it are friends and the various official search engine blogs.  That reader synchronizes to my two desktops, two laptops, my ipod touch, and my cell phone. 

I read them when I am bored.  (Like when my wife watches HGTV and/or House Hunters.)

Overall, this is what I’m down to and it suits me well.  I now work only four days per week and almost never work during evenings or weekends.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 6:52 pm and is filed under Personal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

  • Oh! And I now also subscribe to ReadWriteWeb and Mashable email newsletters. I wish I could just go down to one of those but I have not been able to figure out which one I like better - yet.

    And I gave up on an RSS reader.
  • It's been 8 months since the above post and I've held to it pretty well. My email is really reduced and the only thing that comes into my inbox is email from a person I know.

    Regarding podcasts, the primary ones I listen to now is...

    Ad Age Video (Awesome!)
    This Week in Technology
    This Week in Google (sometimes)
    This Week in Startups (Awesome!)

    That's about it. The others are sports and personal stuff.

    As for magazines, I only read THE NET EFFECT.
    I still get FastCompany and Wired but just thumb through them or leave them around the house for when I'm bored.

    Any other industry news I get through my colleagues and/or Twitter.
    But honestly, I don't do much on Twitter these days.

    All of this is making me very efficient and I'm getting more done on my business and for my students than ever before.
  • My latest favorite podcast is www.ThisWeekInStartups.com. It's fantastic. Occasionally I catch it live but normally I catch it on my iPod Touch a few days after they air.
  • Yes, exactly. Read NOTHING but what I write. Haha.

    Not hardly. But I do recommend trying to unsubscribe from EVERYTHING. When you do, you quickly realize that there are only a couple of sources that you will miss. To me, the big ones are Search Engine Land and MarketingVox. Those are two great sources for actual Internet marketing NEWS. After that, most things are a waste of time.

    And podcasts are the way to go. They are extremely informative, more interesting, more enjoyable, and you can listen to them when you are doing other things.

    Seminars are also incredible. Instead of reading blogs for hours ever day, try going to a two-day class or seminar. Dedicate yourself to learning for a day or two like that and the results are awesome.
  • Wes
    Corey - so if we want to go on a diet because we are majorly overwhelmed, do you suppose we could just read your newsletter and be good to go?
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