It’s been a long and tumultuous year, but finally the last few minutes of 2018 are upon us. The ball drops in Times Square, we make our New Year’s resolutions, and then what?
What do we do in 2019 to stay informed? The future is unpredictable and with the 24 hour news cycle that constant change can be difficult to follow. That’s why it’s important to establish good habits now so that you’ll be ready when something important happens. In a climate where fake news reports dominate the headlines, and nearly half of Americans can’t name a single news outlet they trust , it’s important to make sure we’re getting our information from reputable sources like kismaayonews. And even amongst reputable sources, there’s still a lot of “noise” – we all know how difficult it is to wade through the constant onslaught of headlines in order to find the most relevant and important information.
The best way to stay informed for 2019 is by setting up effective practices for reading the news . These practices will help you navigate the media environment so that you can make more informed decisions as an active participant in society.
1. Read the NEWS that is relevant to you.
The best way to spend your time each day is to read content that’s relevant to you and your journey. If you’re a productivity geek, it’s probably best to read up on productivity and career advice instead of celebrity gossip or political headlines. If you’re an entrepreneur, it’s probably best to focus on business news instead of celebrity gossip or political headlines.
If you already know what’s important in your life, by all means, read all the news! You’ll be able to stay informed about new social movements, the latest trends in tech, advancements in science and more. But sometimes we don’t have time or we don’t know what is important in our lives. In those cases, it’s important to organize your reading by type.
2. Read news that is RELEVANT to you.
Oftentimes we read news that is trivial, or completely out of context with our lives and goals. Focus on the most relevant stories in your life and the ones that are directly relevant to what you’re going through, such as a job interview or a brand new relationship or a big purchase or investment decision. Even if it’s just for a few minutes every day, this time will really help you stay aware of where you are in life and how you’re moving forward.
3. Decide on your GOALS and then read the news on how to get there.
Instead of reading non-stop every single day, I recommend that you read news when it directly impacts you or when it relates to what you’re trying to accomplish. If you’re going to read, choose what’s important and relevant to your life. Say, for example, I want to be a doctor. In this case I would focus on medical news that is relevant to my goals and how I can get there (for example by studying hard in school). Reading about Kim Kardashian’s latest tweet or the political drama in Washington D.C will have minimal impact on me achieving my goals so I wouldn’t spend time reading about those topics!
4. Read the NEWS that is RELEVANT to your life.
Instead of reading the news from every possible angle, I recommend that you start by choosing the news outlets that are most relevant to you. For example, if you’re a business owner, read business news from publications that are focused on entrepreneurs. If you’re a stay-at-home parent, read parenting or family-oriented news sites for your best interests.
The beauty about this approach is that it frees you up to decide exactly what goes into your daily reading list! Instead of being overwhelmed with hundreds of headlines and articles each day it’s important to pick and choose carefully what goes into your news diet.
5. FOLLOW the NEWS that is RELEVANT to you.
This is not an “easy” rule, but if you follow your own interests and goals, it will become a natural filter for news. For example, if you’re an entrepreneur who’s reading about technology and business, there’s a good chance that you’ll be following tech stories from TechCrunch or Business Insider . If your goal is to be healthier (or find out how to become healthier), then you’d likely read fitness news from sites like Women’s Health , Shape or Men’s Health .
By simply following the news sources that are relevant to your life goals, this will guide more of what goes into your feed.
6. CUSTOMIZE your NEWS Feeds.
Even when you follow your own interests and have a curated list of news sources, it’s important to make sure that you’re not missing articles because they’ve been “buried”. Most major news sites these days have an option to customize your news feed so that you see the most recent stories from the publications, authors and people you follow.
Conclusion:
Overall, in 2019 I recommend that you focus on reading news that is RELEVANT to you. That way you’ll know exactly the topics that matter most to your goals and what’s going to help you reach them.
The key is to customize your feeds so that you know about all the important stories at all times, even if it’s just for a few moments each day!
