I filter out 95% of the news in the world. I have not read a newspaper in 15 years

Seriously... I have not bought or sat down to read a newspaper in 15 years. I rarely watch the news on TV and I filter out most daily news sources. However, I do listen to certain economics news broadcasts most days, and a little of the sports news, but that's it !

In a previous lesson, I discussed how our mind is influenced by external factors and whatever you feed your mind (positive or negative), your mind will work to make it reality. As such, do I really want to cluter my mind with bad information and influences? Do I really need to spend my time reading the opinion columns, fashion pages, headlines about shootings, car accidents etc? Will any of that make a difference to my day, other than waste my time and depress my thoughts?

Such information will not positively influence my mind. It does not help generate positivity and creative thinking. It does not help me harness any kind of belief in success and goodness found in this world, so why would I bother with it?

"But how can you call yourself successful if you are not informed with the latest happenings?" I hear you ask...... Well, I can argue that there are a lot of "informed" people out there that know all the news, fashoin, sports info, etc and still live week to week on their wage with no real assets to their name, no wealth and no thoughts of success. but they are however, filled to the brim with useless information and facts!

Time is our most limited resource. You can choose to waste it on trivial matters and useless information, or you can use it for the important stuff in your life - the stuff that matters, such as your family, friends, creating wealth, charity, etc.

Social media is another BIG time waster and distracting influence in our lives.

We all know that there would be, maybe, only about 5-6 family and friends you can really count on in life. Yet people have hundreds of "friends" on platforms like Facebook. These are not friends, nor would one actually personally know most of these "friends".

I don't have a Snapchat, Instagram or Twitter account. I don't care if I have "followers" and I do not "follow" anyone. As far as I'm concerned, people that seek "followers" are seeking attention to fill a void in their life.

Those that are "following" others, need to create a life for themselves and experience what life has to offer rather than experience it through someone else's perspetive.

I know many sad people whose world experience is what they have seen on Youtube - these people have never left their own country or even their own state! How sad for them.

Now, there are those that follow "influencers". These are people sponsored by companies to "influence" others to buy the company's product(s).

For me, just the term "influencer" conjures up images of stupid blind people following, and allowing themselves to be "influenced" by some annonymous person on the internet.

Again if 95% of the population (the general masses), will ever achieve mediocrity at best, then why would you follow what the general masses do? Yet, that is what people do with regard influencers! Since there are thousands of mindless people following a particular "influencer", then others decide to join those masses because "they must be good"!

Those that follow influencers are destined for a life of failure or, at best, mediocrity.

Those that walk alone, that 5% of the population, the ones that "think outside the box", those that have something to teach, are the ones that should be followed!

Spending countless hours on social media, reading magazine articles, newspaper articles, etc that do not add to you betterment, and your loved one's benefit, just doesn't make sense to me. Filling your mind with useles information also makes little sense to me.

Sure, I understand doing something as a hobby, but as a hobby and NOT an obsession, which is what the above time wasters can become.

If you want to get obsessed, get obsessed about things that will make a POSITIVE impact on your life.

If you spent, say, 30 mins per day reading or listening to something that will help make you a better business person, better investor, better parent or spouse, surely that would make a bigger impact in your life than following the daily antics of Cuddles the Cat on Instagram?!

30 mins a day adds up to 180 hours per year. That's a lot of learning, and if you consider that you would spend at least this amount of time commuting to and from work, you could actually choose to listen to audiobooks, podcasts etc while commuting and still not chew up any extra time in your day.

If you really sit and take notice, the vast majority of all news is bad. It's what gets peoples attention. There are few news stories that offer inspiration, hope, good news or a positive outlook. So, why clutter your mind with negative news, and depressing ideas and outlooks?