Information doesn’t equal transformation.

Here’s the reality: We’ve become fat on information. Intellectually obese. We know more about the world and business practices and education techniques and parenting and health care and politics than any previous generation. If we genuinely have a intriguing question that we don’t know, we Google it. And when was the last time you Googled something and DIDN’T find what you were looking for? It’s rare. I very rarely stump Google. And if I do, it’s typically because I don’t know how to ask the right question.

It’s all there. At our fingertips. Training, education, information, tips and techniques from the best of the best. In our lifetimes, we’ll probably see colleges and universities dissolve how we currently understand them. Young people will still need these vision-quest type of experiences where they leave their parent’s nest to discover themselves… That formative time will still be needed, but the Gen. Ed. classes and liberal arts majors, and even the niches and specialties will take new shape. More hands-on training from a young age, lines will be blurred between high school and college.

If anything has become clear to our generation, those that have navigated the advent of this Information Age, it’s that knowing MORE doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll unlock what we’re wanting to unlock… If that were going to work for us, it would’ve worked already.

Maybe we know enough already, and it’s time to start practicing.

Just like a body builder just eating clean and lots of protein doesn’t do anything, unless they’re actually exercising… Practicing… Tearing their muscles and letting them heal to be larger, stronger, more defined… The consumption is important, but it’s just one part of the equation. In the same way, consuming new information is helpful to inspire and educate and inform… But we need to implement. We need to exercise. We need to bring it into the real world and see how it functions, off the page and in reality.

We know clinically, in America, that anxiety and depression are on the rise. And we can attribute that to a lot of the things in our culture like immediacy (needing things to download, stream, ship immediately), comparison (seeing everyone else’s highlight reels while we’re living our “behind the scenes), exposure (seeing all the beauty in the world, and also all of the horror in the world, at all times, 24 hour news cycles…)

Previous generations got the news at one point in the day, and then they’d have 23 hours to process, internalize, digest, and cope. Now, if we have our phones near us, we’re inundated with terrible news all day, every day. Is it any wonder our teenagers are crippled with anxiety and depression.

This is the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This is us not being hardwired to handle ALL the good and ALL the evil at once. Too overwhelmed, too exposed, too brittle and handle it all.

So, back to our information and transformation.

If you’re anything like me, you’re constantly consuming new ideas. I can’t get enough of them. Somedays, when I’m properly caffeinated, I’ll be reading a book, then search the author on YouTube, then watch their TED talk on a different topic from the original book, then be down a new rabbit trail… It’s the blessing and the curse of having all this information at my fingertips.

If you’re recognizing that you DO have dreams to start something new, or different, or change trajectory, but can’t seem to crack it, I’m going to suggest something I’ll call an "Information fast.”

You already know enough to start. You know your first 3 steps. Reading ahead to chapter 10, 11, 12 isn’t helpful right now. We need to focus our energy and attention to what’s right in front of us. And practice walking these first 3 steps.

I remember teaching friends to skateboard and everyone wants to learn to kick flip before they can properly ride down the street. They were drawn to skateboarding for the kick flips, but hadn’t yet fallen in love with riding itself. Here’s a question: Would be begin skateboarding if you knew you’d never kick flip? Maybe kick flips aren’t in your future, and that’s OK, but will you let that ruin the fun of actually riding your skateboard around a nice concrete skatepark?

Chances are, yes. If you’re anything like me, we lust over the later chapters and try to skim read the introduction… We want the arrival, the destination, the success, without the development of foundational skills.

So what does an Information Fast look like? I have no idea. But it might look like committing to ONE book, and actually implementing some of its advice along the way. Focus your energy towards ONE resource, and don’t just consume the information, implement it. Practice. Stretch yourself. Give yourself a month to learn to ride the bike. Fall, scrape your knees, bruise your shins, and then (and only then)… Turn the page to what’s next.

Maybe I’m the only one, but I doubt it. I bet there’s something you’ve wanted to do for a long time… Starting that side hustle, pursuing that dream of woodworking, being a better friend, getting in better shape… There’s a point in which the mountain of information actually becomes intimidating, and the more we try to consume, the less likely we are to actually try.

Like kids learning a second language at a young age. Yes, their brains are more open to learning language at that point, but there’s something to be said for the fact that they don’t know how MASSIVE an undertaking it is to learn a second language. They don’t know what they don’t know… So they just start. And learn a few words. And they allow themselves to internalize them, because they’re not daunted by the entire Dictionary of Mandarin that I’d be consumed by.

Again, more information doesn’t promise more transformation.

Just like more work doesn’t always mean more money, and more money doesn’t always mean more happiness and satisfaction… There’s a point of diminishing return. With everything.

And I’m interested in finding the middle paths… Maximizing the joy quotient, and satisfaction, and PROFIT (don’t get me wrong, I still run a business)… But not at the expense of being run ragged. Or confused.

We need to put our own governors on what we consume, because no one else is going to do it for us. Media companies want nothing more than to suck you into Netflix series and buying single-use products and subscribing to monthly deliveries, and keeping you exactly where you are, on the couch.

If no one’s going to put the brakes on for us, we need to develop discipline to guard our hearts and minds, and ears and eyes. There have been times when I’ve woken up and looked at Facebook and the first thing I see, 5 minutes after waking up, is a video of a someone being shot… A police shooting or news from overseas or a school shooting… We’re not designed to be able to handle that stuff, hardly ever, let alone when we’re vulnerable and unguarded.

We already know Facebook isn’t looking out for us like we wish it would, so we can’t rely on it. We need discipline to step away from it. To put the books down. To pause the TED talks. To turn off the talk radio or podcast we’re listening to, and actually begin implementing some of it.

Because if don’t, we’ll find ourselves at the end of our lives with a hell of a lot of knowledge and little to no wisdom. With all the information in the world, but no experiences to look back on and reminisce.

What is it that you’ve always wanted to do? What dream of yours has the pace of life has been putting on the back burner for the last few months, years, decades? What hobby have you been researching for years but haven’t taken the plunge?

Maybe there’s an intro class you can sign up for. Maybe there’s an entry-level product you can buy and start playing around with. Maybe there’s a group in town that gets together once a week to practice this exact thing.

You already know enough to get started… So get started.

And make it a good day.