How to Disconnect from Heavy News Cycles
A journalist posted the following request with the subject headline of “How to Disconnect from Heavy News Cycles”:
“advice on how to disconnect healthily when social media and the news becomes too
much”
This request occurred in December of 2023, long before new or increased turmoil in various areas of the world as well as the switcheroo in presidential candidates, so you know that this topic is now even more important.
I am a firm believer in staying informed about current events around the world. However, so much of the content on news programs is negative, and that has a negative effect on our emotions and cognitive functions. When I tried to find a statistic related to negativity in the news cycle, it ranged from 70 to 94%. I’m disappointed there’s not a more exact figure, but I think you can see the pattern: news shows are primarily negative.
I noticed a huge change in my own demeanor from listening to talk radio for a few weeks during my commutes. I listened to news shows and “variety” shows with a balance of “left” and “right” stations. I just felt heavier. I realized I wasn’t smiling as much. I also noticed that my creativity and problem-solving that usually occur while listening to music did not occur while listening to talk radio.
It’s not beneficial to bury your head in the sand, but it is important to disconnect from heavy news cycles. How is this possible?
*Decide how much is enough.
How much of your day would you like to spend bathing in unhappiness? One hour? Three? Decide what your capacity is and how you’d like to consume that. All at once? Spread out? This can help your brain stay in logical mode instead of emotionally getting sucked in to stories and losing a lot of time.
*Listen only at the top of the hour.
Many talk radio shows cut to news summaries at the top of every hour. You can get your auditory fill of the top news stories (from that station’s perspective), then switch back to “fun” listening.
*Turn the volume off on your “background noise” television.
I’ve worked with many clients and walked into plenty of offices where a television (flat screen, monitor, whatever you’d like to call it) was set to a particular station. Some had it on silent with captioning, while others had the sound on. Clients who left the volume off functioned much more productively because 1) they weren’t constantly distracted by what the talking head was saying and 2) they couldn’t hear the emotion of the speaker, so their emotions weren’t affected by somebody else. They would pause occasionally to watch the news at the top of the hour, then go back to mute.
*Choose a lighter “all day” television channel.
If you truly need to have television chatter on in the background, consider selecting lighter or mindless fare. There are plenty of design shows and Hallmark Channel movies that will fit the bill. When you’re ready, you can tune in to your favorite news show, then go back to the fun stuff.
*Search the top stores that interest you.
After receiving bits and pieces of news stories throughout the day, you can take a late afternoon break to search for the stories that interest you. Set a timer so you don’t lose track of time. I caution you not to do this in the morning because it might set a negative tone for the day. Same for the evening – you might develop sleep issues from not being able to get the negativity out of your brain. But in the late afternoon, you most likely still have some work items to knock out, so your brain might have an easier time releasing the negative emotions when it gets refocused on your to-do list so you won’t have to work in the evening.
Hopefully this gives you a few ideas. Try one for three days, then tweak it or try something completely different if that particular tactic didn’t work for you. Just be sure to disconnect from heavy news cycles so they don’t bring you down.
For tips on better focus so you can get more done in less time, check out The Inefficiency Assassin: Time Management Tactics for Working Smarter, Not Longer.
