How to stay productive as the world burns

"Barely 10 days into the new year, it already feels like you can't look away from the news. In the last week alone, the U.S. military captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and took over operations of the country; President Trump withdrew the U.S. from dozens of international organizations, including a major climate treaty; and an ICE agent fatally shot a Minneapolis resident, sparking outrage and widespread protests."

""When we see something in the news that triggers our perception of danger, we have a physiological response in our bodies," says Emma McAdam, a marriage and family therapist who also shares mental health resources on YouTube. "So in order to not be reactive, we have to be really intentional consumers of the news. And we have to ask ourselves: 'Am I consuming news for entertainment, or am I consuming news to inform action?'""

"It might feel like there's no reprieve from the endless onslaught of news, and the idea of staying productive seems almost quaint when each day has something new in store. But there are, in fact, some things you can do to help ground yourself-and get through the workday without being consumed by the news cycle."

Rapid successive global and domestic events have intensified news saturation, making sustained focus difficult. Research shows many Americans feel overwhelmed by political developments and experience heightened anxiety from the news cycle. Doomscrolling and continuous exposure to negative media can impair physical and mental health. Evolutionary wiring biases attention toward negative information, producing physiological danger responses when encountering alarming news. Intentional consumption and establishing guardrails around media use can reduce reactivity and preserve productivity. Asking whether news consumption serves entertainment or informs action helps determine value. Practical strategies can help ground people and enable getting through the workday without being consumed by headlines.

Read at Fast Company