Top 10 Ways to Actually Use Top 10 Lists (& other ways to deal with information overload)
By Lindsey Hamilton ‘22
You’ve seen them all. There are so many “top ten” lists and similar compilations of bite-sized information you could practically make an encyclopedia. Yet because lists are meant to be skimmed, depth is usually sacrificed. We have so much information easily available that we don’t know what to do with it — so oftentimes we don’t do anything. But that’s not good!
We have the potential to do so much good in the world, and I believe that in approaching information from the right angle we can do just this. So in the spirit of our favorite easy-to-read format, here is a list of ways to hack the famous Top Ten List and deal with information overload (including some other fun Top Ten finds)!
1. Be curious, but selective.
What you put into your brain is your choice (most of the time) and will affect your thoughts later on. Look at things from multiple perspectives, but be selective enough with what you click on that you won’t end up confused and holding 52 contradicting beliefs at once.
Click here to view the Top Ten Most Powerful animal bites. Helpful when deciding on a new pet.
2. Do something with the information.
Once you’ve figured out some restaurants you’re interested in or learned some cool new fact, you don’t want to forget it. So make your own list! Curating your own lists is the best way to make sure the information doesn’t just disappear. Even just telling a friend about your discovery will help you remember it and will perhaps even spark an insightful discussion.
Hats off to this list, the Top Ten Most Famous Hats in Music History.
3. Acknowledge bias and use your own brain.
Think about who’s making the list. Are they advertising a product or a company, or pushing an agenda? Advertisements aren’t always bad as they can expose you to new things, but be mindful that the information they provide is one-sided. For non-consumer based articles, check your source. For example, if you’re looking at “Top 10 Presidential Candidates,” a list by Fox News will likely be much different than a list by CNN.
Always a common factors cutting through political boundaries: dogs! Here are the Top Ten Most Famous Internet Dogs.
4. Make plans.
See something that you’d like to try? Tell a friend about it and put plans into motion! Planning something with a friend is a great way to be held accountable to actually follow through with something…whether it’s a new recipe you’d like to try or the leg blaster workout to end all workouts.
Speaking of fun plans, check out the Top Ten Craziest Waterslides!
5. Save and print things you want to reference.
In the age where everything is electronic, the value of physical objects as tools of information is often forgotten. Having a physical reminder in the form of an inspiration board or journal is a great way to keep your ideas fresh in your mind and inspire you to make new connections. Mad bonus points if the paper is from old assignment and is recycled after you’re done with it! :) #savethetrees
Recycling helps save the Earth, unlike these Top Ten Scientific Blunders.
6. Be creative in your searches.
You can google nearly anything. Really, it’s harder to have a search not yield results than the opposite. Not only do you have the chance to find some funny results that may surprise and inspire you, but you also have the chance to use some creative thinking (which, yes, can exist post-elementary school).
The opposite of creativity: fruitcake for Christmas. Here’s a list of the Top Ten Least Wanted Christmas Gifts to make sure all of your holidays gifts steer clear.
7. Find a balance between inspiration and practicality.
Dreaming of traveling to Fiji on a student’s budget? While it may be fun to comb through all of the luxury resorts the island has to offer, at the end of the day this will just leave you discouraged and with 15 minutes less of your day. While I hope someday you all have the chance to travel to your heart’s content, focusing on the now is a great way to get inspired. Instead, try looking at Best Budget Road trips or scour cheap flight trackers.
This includes when looking at the news as well. Although reading about the deepest darkest secrets of the royal family may be fun, you are far more likely to remember what you read if it is relevant to your life.
Speaking of practicality… the Top Ten Weirdest Beds.
8. Read actively, not passively.
In my opinion, passive reading does about as much good as staring at a blank screen for 15 minutes. No matter what the article is about, reading with the intention of learning information and satisfying some form or curiosity provides both fulfillment and makes you a more educated, thoughtful person (no matter what the article is — curiosity is curiosity, and curiosity is a powerful force even when it’s about the latest Kardashian drama…and I’m not just saying that to make myself feel less guilty).
A few tips for reading actively:
-Don’t be afraid to read slowly to make sure you get the full tone and complete information in an article.
-Think about what you’re reading while reading it.
-Have a motive for what and why you’re reading something! Like I said above, curiosity is always a great reason to read — staring at a screen “reading” in order to avoid eye contact in the elevator is not (learning new things shouldn’t be a way to hide from the world, but a way to interact with it)!
Something I’m sure you’ve always been curious about: the Top Ten Tarantulas For Beginners! (I’m very sorry to report that there is not a top ten list for intermediate or advanced tarantula handlers yet.)
9. Be aware of your non-digital surroundings.
The digital world is an extension of the real world, and not the other way around. This seemingly-obvious statement loses its truth more and more frequently, however, as we find our lives more deeply intertwined with technology. By viewing information as a consequence of real world things and events, we are able to become more firmly grounded in the non-digital world around us and use this information practically.
I’d be pretty difficult for these people to be aware of their non-digital surroundings, considering their placement… check out the Top Ten Weirdest X-Rays.
10. Commit to in-depth sources.
The pace of life these days promotes moving quickly from one thing to the next. This is true in many areas of life, but especially true when looking for information. People want the main points quickly and don’t want to extend their reading much further than that. However, by committing to a few quality sources and reading them in depth versus skimming over three times as many, the quality and amount of information you will retain drastically increases.
A helpful reference when deciding what to commit to selling on the black market: The Top Ten Most Important Body Organs!
The internet is amazing, and I cannot stress this enough. But we need to be careful with it. A quick example before I wrap this up: take for instance the quote “With great power comes great responsibility.” Most people will recognize this phrase, but few know who said it first — myself included. With this quote in mind during the writing of this article, I figured it was high time I follow my own advice and google it, only to find out that the person who coined this famous warning was… Uncle Ben from Spiderman?
Had I not followed my own advice further, I would have just stopped there and attributed the quote to him. After all, he got his own big fancy automatic answer box when I googled it, so it must be correct. A minute of extra research, however, showed results ranging from Voltaire to Churchill, with the most conclusive result crediting the phrase’s origins to the French Revolution era.
It’s a wild world out there on the internet. And there’s a TON of info to get lost in. The French (NOT UNCLE BEN) said it best: with great power really does come great responsibility. Use it wisely!
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