Central Perk: Seth's Blog : The filter hierarchy

duminică, 14 august 2011

Seth's Blog : The filter hierarchy

The filter hierarchy

There's more information, provocations, riffs, causes, meetings, opportunities, viral videos, technologies and policies coming at you than ever.

So, how do you rank the incoming? How do you decide what to expose yourself to next?

Email from your boss
Personal note from a good friend
Three or four recommendations from trusted colleagues, each with the same link
A trending topic on Twitter
The latest on Reddit
Phone call from your mom
File on the intranet you're supposed to read before the end of the week
Spam email from a stranger
Tenth note from Eddie Bauer, this one to an email address you haven't used in a year
Post on Google + from a friend of a friend
Facebook update from someone you haven't seen in ten years
Angry tweet from someone you've never met
Commercial on the radio that's playing softly in the background
Email from someone who had your back one day when it really and truly mattered
!!!urgent marked email from the HR department about the TPS reports
Text message on your phone from your husband
Phone message from the kid's principal
Tweet from the handler of a celebrity who is pretending to be the celebrity
Story that's repeated endlessly on cable news because a producer thought it would get good ratings
Handwritten love note from a current crush
New review in the Times of a restaurant you happen to be going to tonight
Obviously bulk snail mail from a charity you donated to three years ago
Latest volley in a flame war
Blank sheet of paper quietly waiting for your next big innovation
Comment on a blog post you wrote three days ago
New post by your favorite blogger, delivered via RSS
Book in the bookstore, next to the cash register
Newest negative review of your business on Yelp
Movie playing across town
TV commercial on a show you've got on your DVR
Book on the back shelf of a bookstore, newly put there yesterday by the manager, who doesn't know what you like
Tweet from someone who really, really wants you (and everyone else) to follow her
Rebecca Black's new video
Sales pitch on your voicemail

Which of these are required reading for a productive member of society or a good employee or an informed citizen? Which do you do out of habit? Are you assuming that your habits are the norm, and that others have an obligation to pay attention to what you pay attention to? Should there be symmetry--is it logical to only engage with people who prioritize their filters the same way you do?