The trick isn’t to try to “drink from the fire hose.” That can only lead to pain and frustration. In fact, don’t even think of it as a fire hose. It’s much bigger and deeper than that. Think of it as a raging river.
Instead of trying to drink the whole river, just bring a cup or a jug (depending on your thirst for media) and dip it into the river of media whenever you want a drink.
My strategy is to set up my workspace alongside the river. In fact, I spend most of my day at a Niagara Falls-sized confluence of information. Here’s what it looks like (click on image for large version):
- A) Gmail: This is my personal e-mail inbox where I receive all my personal correspondence, subscription newsletters, marketing e-mail that I signed up for, etc. Google Chat and Google Buzz are also part of this tab. I use Google Chat to chat with a few close friends. I don’t use Google Buzz much at all.
- B) Google Reader: This is my RSS reader. I use it to subscribe to and stay updated on more than 250 blogs. I also use it to share great stuff I read with my friends and followers on Facebook and Twitter.
- C) Facebook: There’s a lot happening on Facebook. It’s important to have good filters set up to remove the crap (third-party apps, quizzes, Farmville, etc.) from your news feed here. Once set up properly, you’ll get a good sense of what everybody is talking about and be able to easily jump in and interact in those conversations.
- D) Slacker Radio: This is a personalized radio station a lot like Pandora, but without the annoying monthly limits. I set it to music I can easily ignore in order to drown out office distractions and focus on work and media reading.
- E) Google Search: I always have a browser tab open for random Google searches I have to do throughout the course of the day. As a copy editor, I spend a lot of time fact checking. I use Google a lot.
- F) TweetDeck: This is my master control center for Twitter. I have multiple columns set up in TweetDeck to help keep an eye on my tweet stream (I follow more than 1,000 people), my mentions, direct messages, lists, search terms, etc.). Some people also use TweetDeck to monitor Facebook, LinkedIn and Google Buzz, but I don’t.
- G) Microsoft Office Communicator: Are you a coworker and need to get a hold of me? Use this unified communications tool to IM me. You’ll get a response quicker than if you try to phone me. Communicator also supports voice chats and video calls (like Skype) and desktop sharing (like GoToMeeting). It integrates nicely with Outlook and LiveMeeting.
- H) Microsoft Office Outlook: I use this for work e-mail. I set up a whole bunch of elaborate filters so that my inbox is usually empty. Whenever I get new mail, I treat it like a hot potato. If it doesn’t have an action item in it or it doesn’t fit into a category of information I need, I delete it immediately. Action items get taken care of immediately. Items that require responses are responded to immediately. Inbox stays empty. When I have an empty inbox, I am free to explore my other stuff.
- I) Windows Internet Explorer: I use this only for work-related tasks that require the company intranet. I usually have three browser tabs open — my team’s Microsoft Office SharePoint team site, my team wiki and my team’s wiki site of client style guides. It makes for very efficient workflow.
- J) Microsoft Office Word: Almost all my editing work is done in Word. If I have a Word document open, I’m focused on editing it.
If I get bored, sometimes I check on my LinkedIn account or the various blogs I maintain myself (see sidebar). When I’m not at work, I have a similar set up at home, but I incorporate Netflix, podcasts, audiobooks and ebooks into the mix. When I’m on the go, I carry my Gmail, Google Reader, TweetDeck, Facebook, music, audiobooks and ebooks with me on my iPhone or iPad.
If I had a TV, I think I’d be wasting most of my time on useless crap instead of news, education and useful information.
How do you keep up with stuff? Do you think I’m nuts? Let me know in the comments.
My name is Micheal Foley. I'm an ex-journalist, content editor at Waggener Edstrom, hyperlocal news fan, content strategy n00b, geek wannabe, libertarian and provocateur. I'm trying to get journalists to look past "how to save journalism institutions" and instead think about "how to save society after journalism institutions are gone." 
Extremely useful, thanks Mike. I think you’ve got an awesome setup here!
This is a great system. Thanks for sharing. I’m still working on having this kind of organization. I tend to try to drink from the fire hose too often. Time for the 5 gallon bucket I think. #babysteps
Good luck with your five-gallon bucket! But, remember, you have to go to the river only when you need a drink. If you spend the whole day at the river, it means you’re ignoring your work. This approach only works if you’re able to resist the urge to fill your cup when you have work to do. Many people can’t resist the urge, so they have to set up their workspace far from the river (work applications only open; or set times during day to visit the river). Find what works best for you.
I love the analogy of the big river and just taking a gulp! I’m impressed with how many things you have going on and still stay on top of it. But it’s clear that you have everything organized and functioning in a way that works for you.
Maybe someday when I really need some advice on all this because one day I wake up and realize it might be something I should pay more attention to, I’ll give you a jingle
That’s a fairly busy river you’ve got there. I think the distinction you draw between getting hit with a constant stream of information coming at you vs. connecting on your own timeline and terms is a valid one. Once you crave the firehose, and miss it when it’s not there…that’s when you have a problem.