Information Overload: The Wisdom to Ask Why We Consume

We are drowning in information. Every scroll, every notification, every breaking news alert tells us that if we pay attention to them, we’ll be ‘more informed’.

But somewhere within ‘being informed’ and our exhausted minds, we've forgotten to ask: Why am I consuming this information in the first place?

Systems theorist Russell Ackoff drew a distinction that relates to this data overwhelm: Intelligence, he argued, answers the "how" questions. It's about processing data, understanding mechanisms, and solving problems. 

Wisdom responds to "why".  Its asks us to think about the worthiness of our objectives themselves.  Are we even solving the ‘right problem’ or have we not even asked ourselves if all the work we’re doing is even towards something that we believe is truly worthy?

“Successful problem solving requires finding the right solution to the right problem. We fail more often because we solve the wrong problem than because we get the wrong solution to the right problem.”

 

Every piece of information we consume shapes our brain, but asking ourselves WHY we are consuming what we consume helps us connect ourselves to WISDOM.

 

Scrolling to Divide or Connect?

When we view ourselves as part of interconnected systems—from the neurons firing in our brain to the communities we live in—our brain activity opens up to new types of connectivity. We start to see patterns, connections, and roles that we can play. It’s not a philosophical musing; it's measurable brain science.

Research shows that people who engage in abstract, transcendent, and system-based thinking—going beyond the "here-and-now" to create narratives that reflect broader systems and contexts—show higher connectivity in brain networks that support self-directed behavior, emotion regulation, and reflective thinking. This coordination between our Executive Control Network and Default Mode Network predicts better personal and scholarly outcomes.   (see my podcast with one of the top researchers in this field, where we talk all about this interconnectivity)

When we connect what we're learning to the larger systems we're part of—our brains literally wire differently. We become more agile, more adaptive, more capable of seeing the patterns that matter.

 

The Two Paths of Information Consumption

Path One: Consumption as Overwhelm

The passive scroll, the reflexive click, the compulsive check. 

When we consume information this way, we're not expanding our perspective or building agency. We're feeding our nervous system's most primitive prediction loops. 

Without intentionality, information becomes just more data we can't process, leaving us feeling helpless, hopeless, and disconnected from what we can actually control.

 

Path Two: Consumption as Conscious Expansion

When we bring awareness to our consumption, when we ask ourselves (truly) WHY am I looking at this, reading this, sharing this?..  This leads us onto the path of information as a window to wisdom. 

It asks: Does this information help me see the larger systems I'm part of? Does it expand my perspective beyond my immediate circumstances? 

Does it reveal micro-actions I can take—real, tangible steps within my sphere of influence? Does it help me see my greatest sphere of influence is MYSELF first and the energy I bring into my immediate community?

The Wisdom Questions: A Framework for Conscious Consumption

Before you open that article, watch that video, or dive into that thread, pause. Ask yourself these wisdom questions:

1. Why am I consuming this?

• Am I seeking to understand a system I'm part of?
• Am I looking for patterns that connect seemingly different ideas?
• Am I trying to see what actions are within my control?

2. Does this expand or contract my agency?

• Will this information empower me to take meaningful action, even if small?
• Or will it leave me feeling paralyzed by problems too big to touch?

3. Am I connecting dots or collecting data? When you actively and intentionally seek out perspectives that contradict what you believe, you are widening your field of awareness and activating 'circuitry of flexibility.' You are working out the ability to see multiple perspectives at once and then see patterns that connect them. Seeing patterns that connect what 'seems' disjointed helps you understand a universal thread that ties them together.
4. What system am I serving with this attention?

• My immediate emotional needs (threat detection, comparison, validation)?
• My growth as someone who sees beyond the here-and-now?
• My capacity to contribute meaningfully to communities I care about (and ones outside my usual circles that I might not even be considering)?

5. What can I actually do with this information right now? What is in front of you now? What situation are you in right now and how can you be fully in it to discover what gifts it has for you? When you greet your loved ones, is part of you thinking about work? When you are working, is part of you feeling guilt for not doing something else? If this is happening, every single experience falls short of filling you up.

The wisdom isn't in having all the information. It's in knowing which information serves a sense of wellbeing, empowerment and your connection to our infinitely interconnected systems.

 

When you consume information while maintaining awareness of the larger systems at play—including the system of your own life, your family, your community, your work—you're not just collecting facts. You're building a narrative that connects your past with your present self and creates a brighter trajectory for your future.

You're identifying the micro-actions within your control:

• the conversation you can have today,
• the boundary you can set,
• the kindness you can extend,
• the skill you can practice,
• the connection you can strengthen.

 

Conscious Consumption for Wisdom

To become more conscious is to become more human. To become more conscious means we have a better chance of healing from our past and not repeating unwanted experiences. 

Here's how to practice conscious consumption for wisdom:

Before consuming, clarify your purpose. Are you seeking understanding, seeking connection, or seeking validation for an opinion you already have? Be honest.

During consumption, notice your body. Is your breath shallow? Are your shoulders tense? Are you feeling energized or depleted? Your nervous system is giving you information about whether this is serving you.

After consuming, connect to systems. Ask: How does this relate to the interconnected systems I'm part of? What larger patterns does this reveal? What small action could I take that aligns with this understanding?

Regularly audit your inputs. When you actively and intentionally seek out information that contradicts what you believe, you expand your view to see that paradigms exist in the first place. When you are lost in your own, you don't even realize that it is a paradigm. But also recognize when information isn't serving your growth—when it's just feeding the algorithm's understanding of your fears.

Create space for integration. Information without integration is just noise. Take time away from inputs to reflect, to connect, to notice what matters.

The Ultimate Question

The world is currently engineered to capture your attention and fragment your focus. A rebellious, empowering question you can ask is: Why?

Not "What happened?" Not "How does it work?" 

But "Why does this matter? Why am I here? Why am I choosing to let this into my conscious awareness?"

Are you acting purposefully, with intention and awareness? Do you see yourself as playing a role in multiple interconnected systems? Do you reflect on how interconnected systems play a role in others' behavior?

 

These questions lead us towards a path of wisdom. 

They influence:

whether information empowers or overwhelms you, 

whether it expands your agency or shrinks it, 

whether it connects you to purposeful action or drowns you in helplessness.

 

Intelligence shows us how. Wisdom asks why.

And in that question lies your power—the power to choose what shapes your brain, what influences your narrative, and what you do with this one precious day you've been given.

The information will keep coming. The question is: Will you meet it with wisdom?

What if the point of gathering information isn't to know everything, but to become the kind of person who can see the systems they're a part of and take meaningful action within them? 

What if wisdom isn't about having all the answers, but about asking better questions?

 

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