Finding the signal through the noise.
There is noise all around us. Yes, there is aural noise, but much of the noise we encounter is information. This noise is delivered to our minds via a myriad of channels: apps, billboards, TVs, social media, notification bars, endless email, etc. In the Attention Age, human attention is the most valuable resource. Therefore companies spend millions of dollars finding ways to capture your precious attention.
What is noise?
First, a short academic session to provide some context. Consider radio technology. A radio station plays a song, and wants anyone who tunes into a specific frequency to hear it. So, they amplify the signal of the song using a radio antenna, broadcasting it on a radio frequency. I’m in my car and I want to hear that particular song. I tune the radio and it ‘listens’ to that frequency. As it receives the signal, it transforms it into music using the speakers in the car.
But there is a bit more to the story. The song is broadcast on the specific radio frequency, but there is something called noise that the receiving radio has to deal with. Across the AM or FM radio frequency band, all sorts of random noise exists. Every electronic device lets off some amount of electromagnetic noise. Light bulbs, microwaves, satellite boxes, home appliances, computers, cell phone chargers, even mechanical motors generate frequency noise.
When the car radio tunes to a specific frequency, it senses everything that emits a signal on that frequency. If the radio is tuned to an open frequency, one where there is no broadcast signal, all you hear is static. That static is the electronic frequency noise.
The radio will determine where the noise threshold is, and filter out any signal below that threshold. The only thing above the noise threshold is the broadcast signal of the radio station, and that is why you hear a crisp song playing through your speaker when you listen to the radio.
Finally, the academics are over! Now for the good stuff!
Humans are receivers
Humans are receivers. Every moment of the day we are taking in signals. Whether it is a conversation with a friend, the traffic light at the intersection, the podcast in your earbuds, or the scenery on a hike—humans are constantly taking in stimuli.
The more digitally connected we are, the more synthetic signalling we are exposed to. The phones in our pockets are little black noise generators. They are powerful tools, but that power comes with baggage. Constant buzzing and dinging is a signal that a signal has arrived and is waiting. We’ve trained ourselves to compulsively reach for the phone the second it buzzes to check the new message.
A stark example of the magnitude of the noise we are exposed to on a daily basis is advertising. It is clear that humans today are surrounded by ads. No matter where you look, there is always an ad vying for your precious attention. How many ads do we see on a given day?
The average internet-connected person living in a city is estimated to see 5,000 advertisements every day.
We are exposed to 5,000 advertisements every day!
That is a colossal number!
But when you think about it, ads are everywhere. We live in a society that is saturated with bright, flashy graphics intent on stealing a piece of your consciousness in order to extract value out of you.
I define an advertisement as an attempt to expose someone to a product coupled with a call to action. The point of an ad is to get you to assume a specific behavior that will bring you some form of value in return for another form of value—usually your hard earned cash.
On your Facebook feed, ads are generally selling merchandise or services. Billboards along the highway are selling places to eat or entertainment to be had. Your Google searches are laced with ads that are close to what you want but not exactly. In the evening the ads that play during your TV show are telling you what kind of toilet paper you need or some sort of lifestyle you’ll achieve by buying this one thing.
It is all noise!
All of those ads are simply noise.
When the radio is tuned to a frequency, it is looking for the valuable signal in a sea of noise. It effectively eliminates the noise and plays only the clear signal through the speakers.
How can we reduce our exposure to noise and amplify the valuable signals?
Lower the noise threshold
Step one: lower the noise threshold by eliminating sources of noise. As humans, we naturally want to continue adding things. We never say ‘no’. We want to apply every piece of advice we hear, read every book that is recommended, and watch every TV show. If a radio station were to play each of the top 40 songs at the same time, it would be a bunch of incomprehensible noise! A firehose amount of a good thing is no longer helpful.
Here is a list of small adjustments I use to significantly lower the noise threshold.
- Cell phone notifications. It is in the best interest of app-makers to present push-notifications throughout the day, each time attempting to divert your precious attention to their app. Below are some options to consider:
- Remove any social media apps from your phone. Those apps are the most notorious for pushing nuisance notifications, sabotaging your ability to maintain a train of thought.
- Anytime you get a push notification, consider if you really want to keep seeing notifications from that app. If not, turn off those notifications.
- Never allow email to push a notification.
- Set a specific time in the day to begin checking email. On a typical workday, I don’t open Outlook until 11am. Email is the work version of social media. It is an endless time-suck. Pro-tip: turn off computer push notifications of an incoming email as well.
- Keep your workspace clean. A desk with minimal items and papers means less opportunity for distraction.
- When playing music while working, ensure it is instrumental and at a low volume. Reducing aural noise is just as important as reducing information noise.
- Reduce your podcast/audiobook intake to less than 50% of commute time / exercise time. I enjoy listening to books or podcasts on my drive to and from work and on my runs. But, in an effort to create space and reduce information oversaturation, I only have earbuds in on half of my runs. I only listen to podcasts or audiobooks on half of my commute time in a given week. Try it.
- Finally, leave your phone away from your workspace. The cell phone is by far the largest source of noise. The greater the physical distance between you and your phone, the less power it has to clutter your mind with noise. When the goal is to lower the noise threshold and optimize your ability to see the important signals, leave the phone at the door. I cannot emphasize enough how effective this is.
Get after it. Live on purpose.
If this interests you, I’d love to hear from you! Schedule a phone call or send me an email.
