too much information!!!

I love to learn and acquiring information and knowledge. I am senior at a good college and I am about to finish a major. Problem is I have no idea what to do! It seems that there are so many possibilities and so much information flying at me 24/7 that I can't sort through it and figure out what I want to spend my time looking at. Take news for example. Say I go to CNN.com. There are about 10 top news stories, but if I dig deeper I can spend a whole day just on CNN. I also enjoy socializing a great deal and I have a huge course load so I am busy constantly. I want to learn more but I have no idea where to start. Problem is I don't have a passion for anything in particular and I just feel stuck. Anyone else experience something similar?

BTW this is my first post and I hope this is appropriate discussion.

well friend, it all comes down to being able to discern the hay from the wheat.

If you believe everything they say on CNN well, good luck, I'd be confused as well.

don't take information for granted, I mean, yes there are many sources out there, but most of them have an agenda, some just want to sell stuff, making their messages as sensationalist as possible, some want you confused, so they don't filter the babble, some want you a slave of your possessions, so they ask you to just sit still and accept.

many young people nowadays don't have a clue about what they want to "be" when already they "are" something.
Dont let them brainwash you, the truth is, maybe in the future we wont even have jobs for educated people, as all of us will just be factory workers...

read a lot, talk to people, travel a lot, then you will clear your mind from the useless babble that is the information age, and then you will know what tpo do!

good luck!

Well, first thing, what is your major? And are you looking for advice on your career plans or just focusing in on things in general?

That was helpful, I think I will try to travel for a year or so after I graduate. Maybe try and get a job or internship in another country for a bit, because I don't know much beyond my current area, Los Angeles.

My major is neuroscience. I am not sure if I am really looking for career advice. I mean, I find neuroscience very interesting, but not much else. I don't want to be a doctor, I don't want to do research. I've thought about going to law school because it is an "elite", well-paying job, but I think those are the wrong reasons. I am sure there are options which I have not yet considered in terms of a career. Suggestions are more than welcome.

I do not really know what the point of this post is. I guess I am just overwhelmed with how much there is "out there". It's like when I'm in a plane looking down through the window and I marvel at how many different "things" there are within my view: people working, living, watching TV, what different thoughts are going through all of their heads, what their world consists of. I get a similar feeling when I am on top of a mountain or hill and I have such a view of the vastness of our world, it's awe inspiring and overwhelming at the same time.

I guess I kind of got off track, but I've thought about all of this for a long time. This sounds very cliche but I guess my ultimate issue is "where do I fit in"?

I made a reply anonymously by accident. I don't know if it will show up so here's what it said:

That was helpful, I think I will try to travel for a year or so after I graduate. Maybe try and get a job or internship in another country for a bit, because I don't know much beyond my current area, Los Angeles.

My major is neuroscience. I am not sure if I am really looking for career advice. I mean, I find neuroscience very interesting, but not much else. I don't want to be a doctor, I don't want to do research. I've thought about going to law school because it is an "elite", well-paying job, but I think those are the wrong reasons. I am sure there are options which I have not yet considered in terms of a career. Suggestions are more than welcome.

I do not really know what the point of this post is. I guess I am just overwhelmed with how much there is "out there". It's like when I'm in a plane looking down through the window and I marvel at how many different "things" there are within my view: people working, living, watching TV, what different thoughts are going through all of their heads, what their world consists of. I get a similar feeling when I am on top of a mountain or hill and I have such a view of the vastness of our world, it's awe inspiring and overwhelming at the same time.

I guess I kind of got off track, but I've thought about all of this for a long time. This sounds very cliche but I guess my ultimate issue is "where do I fit in"?

Go find yourself, as TheOneEyedProphet has mentioned... eat exotic food, listen to exotic music, do things you wouldn't usually do, talk to people on the street, etc...

I did things backwards. I found myself first and now I am going to go to college.

Where do I fit in?

The question of the ages.
Asking oneself that question means you are not completely satisfied with what lies ahead in your current timeline.

I used to feel like you, I couldn't find any interest in the mechanized social state of things, I didn't want to "dress up" like a businessman, i didn't want to be confined in an office space.
I felt ill amongst the crowds, and life made very little sense, I was told by my peers to lighten up, to stop asking so many questions that led me to nowhere.

But whenever I was hiking in the woods, or atop some mount I felt at peace, the wilderness made sense to me, and I felt the call of my own self trying to reach me, so I gave in.
I stayed some time in the wilderness and I found what I was looking for, or, it found me, its irrelevant now.

MAke a plan, finish your school or don't, but make sure to spend some time with yourself, out of your comfort zone, experiencing life in a completely different techno social environment, sometimes change comes from within, sometimes it comes from the outside.

As EyeOpenDoors wisely has pointed out, break your mold, and then with the pieces build a new you.

MAny people feel the call, but never do something about it, and that is the recipe for an unfulfilled life.
Take the time, maybe later you will be tied to relationships, jobs, or social pressures, and the longing will stay in your heart.
Its never late.


[edit on 24-9-2008 by TheOneEyedProphet]

Thanks for the replies. It makes total sense. I was just having this conversation with a friend about how uncomfortable I feel alone by myself. I think it would do me a world of good, but getting up the will to actually go out and do it is another thing. I want to spend some time outside of the country. I have some money, but not a whole lot. Anyone have any suggestions about how I could work or intern in another country for a little bit, preferably in an English speaking country. I know some spanish by am not quite fluent. I definitely need to get out of here for a while.

Also, part of this whole information overload problem is that I want to read books, but I can never figure out what is worth reading. I sometimes enjoy fiction. I haven't read much. The last book I read was Cat's Cradle by Vonnegut and I really enjoyed it. Does anyone have any suggestions? Fiction or non-fiction.

I have a few suggestions:

The Illuminatus Trilogy:The Eye in the Pyramid, The Golden Apple, Leviathan by Robert Shea, Robert Anton Wilson

Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson

Quantum Psychology: How Brain Software Programs You and Your World by Robert Anton Wilson

The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer by Neal Stephenson

All of these books blew my mind...

I'm The OneEyedProphet and i approve all of the above!



I'd specially recommend reading Prometheus Rising, it not also changed my life and the way I lived, but everything in between, if you seek answers, you will find some there, and it also has pretty drawings made by the Author Himself... the seer of our times, one of the greatest minds to ever exist Mr. Robert Anton Wilson


I'm sure you will not be disappointed!
listen to the EYE!

Thanks for the recommendations. I'm surprised I've never heard of Robert Anton Wilson. I just ordered Prometheus Rising so I should get a hold of it within a few days. I'll let you know what I think. I'm sure it will be more engaging than my neurobiology textbook :-)

Part of me just wished I could know EVERYTHING. But that would take some excitement out of life, wouldn't it?

I believe knowing everything would be more of a curse than a blessing. I believe you will get a lot out of Prometheus Rising, and am very happy that you chosen to purchase it.

Some have said that the trip from here to eternity begins with the first step!
I'm sure you will find out that its not only the knowing, but also the being and everything in between!

its great that you are getting PR, sadly not many know about Pope Bob, the world would be a vastly superior place to experience the human experience!

I can guarantee, that book is better than some that have been mind truckin´for some time






[edit on 24-9-2008 by TheOneEyedProphet]

I see it this way

There are 3 information types

1. Info (information/news to fill up)

Example

The man that was injured in a traffic accident survived.

2. Disinfo

Example

The US has documents that show Iraq has Weapons of Mass Destruction.

3. Truth

Example

The US was taken over by the international banking cartel in 1913 and they created the FED.


Ok so 1 is something I automatically filter unless it's just funny or interesting.

2 Is something that you have to learn to recognize, and can be interesting too because it gives you insight in the ways they want to spin stories around.

3 Is something that I search the most for, and by researching more you find more.


That's how I surf the net.


Grey Magic