Get it on Google Play
Download on the App Store

Simplify the Internet

The Internet is overwhelming for many people — it never ends, and our connection to it is consuming more and more of our time.

When things get overwhelming, my advice is always the same: simplify.

But how do you simplify such a complicated beast as the Internet? It’s impossible! Actually, no, it’s doable, but it takes a willingness to let go.

Without letting go, there is no simplicity.

Let’s take a look at some ways to simplify the Internet.

The Complications

How you simplify depends a lot on what you do on a regular basis, and that’s different for everyone. Some common things that many people do regularly:

  • Social networks: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, Tumblr
  • Social news: Reddit, Digg, Hacker News
  • Blogs, cooking sites, long-form magazines and other fun/interesting things to read
  • News and sports sites
  • Email
  • Actual work tools like Google Docs, WordPress, Basecamp, etc.
  • Shopping sites like Amazon
  • Tools for learning like Code Academy, Khan Academy, Duolingo
  • Tools for productivity, goals and personal finances
  • Games
  • Videos
  • Music
  • Fitness sites

Whew! That’s just the tip of the iceberg too. I haven’t touched weird stuff, nerdy stuff, academic stuff, or porn.

Let’s see if we can simplify.

Simplify Social

Let’s start by saying that no, we don’t need to be connected on social networks as much as many people think they need to be. I have nothing against social networks, but I do think we let ourselves become addicted to them. And that’s not healthy.

So here are some ways to simplify (you don’t have to do all of them):

  1. Quit Facebook. I quit Facebook altogether about 15 months ago, and haven’t looked back. It was too time-consuming, even after I’d reduced it to just family (no friends or work colleagues). It was too many people oversharing, too many ads, too many people posting what they’d eaten or scored in a game or complaining about some part of their day. It was noise. So I quit, and my life got quieter. Sure, I miss out on some things my family is doing, but I usually hear about the important stuff, and being able to let go of what you might be missing out on is really key to simplifying. You’re always going to miss out on something.
  2. Choose 1 or 2 social networks. If you’re going to do Facebook, don’t do other ones too. You can quit Twitter and Instagram. Really you can! It’s not a necessity by a long shot. These days I use Twitter and Google+ (sparingly).
  3. Be sparing of your social use. You can be a part of a social network and not participate all day long. I only check Twitter once or twice a day usually, and spend only a minute or two looking at replies. That’s not to say I’m above everyone else, but that I’ve consciously decided that I’d prefer to be creating rather than always connected to the social stream. Yes, I miss out on stuff, and yes I’m OK with that.
  4. Follow few. You don’t need to follow as few people as I do, but you also don’t need to follow hundreds or thousands. How can you possibly keep up with that many people’s updates? You can’t, so cultivate your stream to just the essential.
  5. Post infrequently. Yes, I know that many people post several times an hour, but I believe that’s because they don’t choose. Simplifying is about making choices — just put out your best, and cut back on the noise. When I have something I might want to tweet, I say it to someone near me instead (usually).

Simplify Reading

There are a handful of sources of news and interesting reads that I open on a regular basis. Here’s how I’ve simplified reading:

  1. Pick a handful of sources. There’s an almost unlimited amount of reading out there, and you could do it all day and not make a dent in just what was created today. So let go. Pick just a few good sources (including news sites and blogs and social news and more), and check them once a day at most.
  2. Scan, and Instapaper. Scan through your sources, open a few that look interesting. Scan the article/post, and if it looks worthy of reading, save it to Instapaper (takes 1 second to save it if you use a bookmarklet). Instapaper becomes your bucket to collect interesting reading. Close the tabs, and get out. You don’t need to read all of it right now — do that later. If you read now, you’ll never finish or get anything else done.
  3. Save some time for undistracted reading. I like to read at certain times of the day. I open Instapaper and read an article or two, then archive them. There are no distractions in Instapaper — when you read, just read, don’t switch back and forth among different tabs.
  4. Clear your queue out weekly. Every Monday, archive or delete your entire Instapaper reading list. But … but … yes, let them go. If you didn’t read them this week, you’re not likely to read them later — your list will just keep growing and you’ll always feel pressure to read it. If you know that you’re going to clear out the list on Monday, you’re likely to spend a little time over the weekend reading the most essential reads. And trust me, it’s wonderful, wonderful to let go of your reading list and clear it out. It’s like a fresh start, every week. (This is called the Impending Doom Machine.)

Simplify Email

Email becomes a constant distraction for many, a neverending stream of things to do and reply to. Let’s simplify.

  1. Clear out your inbox. Seriously, clear it out today. Here’s what to do: scan your inbox and put a star or flag next to the important to-do items, and mark them on a to-do list (a simple text list will do if you don’t already have a list); quickly go through and delete/archive anything you know isn’t important; put all the rest in a folder/label called “to process”. You’ll get to them later, in chunks in the next few days. Done! Your inbox is clear!
  2. Let messages disappear into the ether. Use the Smart Unread Inbox (or my empty gmail version. This setup will take every message that you read and zap it from the inbox — knowing this forces you to act on the message immediately, or it’ll be lost in the ether. This is a brilliant method, trust me.
  3. Process immediately. Now, when an email comes in, do one of these things: Reply or act/reply immediately if it takes a minute or less; Put it on your todo list, and star it, if you need to act or write a longer reply later; Put it on your calendar immediately if it’s something you need to do on a certain date. Otherwise, just hit archive, and it’ll auto-advance to the next message. You can process a dozen messages like this in a minute or three, and then your inbox is empty again!
  4. Filter ruthlessly. Everytime you get an email in your inbox you don’t really need (notifications, newsletters, ads and brochures, etc.), take 20 seconds to create a filter so that it never hits your inbox. You’ll save tons of time with this small investment.

All the Rest

The above steps will simplify a lot of what most people do, but what about the rest? There are a few key principles to help simplify:

  1. Reduce buckets and sources. If you have a lot of inboxes (buckets) you have to check regularly, let some of them go. Merge some of them. Have as few as possible. Same for sources of information — if you’re checking a bunch of things regularly, ruthlessly cut back. If you have 150 blogs you’re following, cut it to 10. Seriously, it’s OK to let go.
  2. Zero notifications. Don’t be notified everytime people post things or reply to you or follow you or email you or comment on your blog. You don’t need to know right away. Check infrequently. Turn off all notifications, and filter them out of your inbox.
  3. Let go. You will probably have a difficult time letting go of certain networks, sources, tools, time-wasters. That’s because you’re afraid of missing out. Let me assure you, I’ve let go of many of these, and you aren’t missing anything. You’ll live. Breathe, and let go. Also let go of checking often — it’s not important.
  4. Pay yourself first. Before you get lost down the digital rabbit hole of distractions and socializing, do the work that matters most to you first. Before you check email and social networks and start online reading, do important work. Find distraction-free spaces, and let go of the need to check your online addictions. Read more.
  5. Save to Pinboard and forget. No, I didn’t say Pinterest — I think you can safely let go of Pinterest and other similar sites with a bunch of addictive things to look at. Instead, use Pinboard, and save the bookmarklet to your bookmarks bar (or be smart and use a keyword bookmark. Now, anytime you might need something later, just bookmark it in Pinboard with a tag or two, and forget it. You can safely offload almost everything from your mind but what you’re working on at this moment.

There are surely other parts of your Internet life that I haven’t simplified here, but I think the general principles can work for most people. Let go, reduce, focus and act.

Zen Habits

Leo Babuata
Chapters
Neither Averting Nor Craving in Each Moment How Taking Care of My Finances Changed My Life Tips for Traveling with Kids My Grand Travel Experiment The Parent I Aspire to Be The Best & Less-than-Best Motivations for Learning The Miracle of Suspending Mis-Belief 7 Strategies for Dealing with Toxic People Finding Motivation on Important But Non-Urgent Tasks Learning Tips for the Top 8 Learning Challenges The 30-Day Learning Challenge The Place Where You Are Feeling Determined to Change Practicing Non-Judgment Hold Your Own Feet to the Fire Don’t Waste Your Opportunity How to Beat Procrastination with Daily Training The Time When We’ll Be Present & Content A Simple, Powerful Self-Compassion Method When Others Frustrate You Your Internet Habits Create Your Reality The Case for Replacing Exercise with Play Leave Yourself Wanting More Fail Faster at Habits The Anti-Bucket List Getting Started with the Discipline Habit The Case for Caring About Your Work Questions of Priority The Futility of Always Pushing Myself to Be More Pare Down with the Declutter Habit You’re Not Doing Life Wrong Getting Lost in Just Doing An Addict’s Guide to Overcoming the Distraction Habit The Source of Contentment Savor Discipline: Merge the Interests of Your Future & Present Selves What You Can Say Instead of “I Don’t Feel Like It” The Things That Get in the Way of Doing The Girl Who Saw Through the Illusions A Gradual Approach to Healthy Eating Unconditional Acceptance of Yourself My Typical Day: How I Get People to Think I’m Productive The Contentment Habit The Delightfully Short Guide to Reading More Books In Praise of Limits The Art of Being My Dad 5 Ideas to Create an Amazing 2015 Essential Zen Habits of 2014 Karate Chop Practicing Slowness & Being Present Overwhelmed by All the Changes You Want to Make My 2014 Successes and Failures Finding the Motivation to Change Your Entire Life When You’re Lonely The Brain’s Fast Mode 5 Questions to Simplify Your Life During the Holidays The Zen Habits Holiday Gift Guide The Four Hidden Habit Skills The Power of Delay Overwhelmed & Rushed? Do a Stress Assess Writer as Coder: The Iterative Way to Write a Book Please Support the Zen Habits Book Are You a Lift or Drag Force? When Resistance Smacks You in the Face When Your Plate is Too Full The Quickstart Guide to Quitting a Bad Habit The Zen Habits Book is Almost Done A Quick Guide to Gaining Confidence When You Socialize The Empty Container The Realization A Guide to Changing Self-Destructive Behaviors Pushing Past the Terrifying Dip in Motivation It’s Not Too Late to Change Bad Habits The Smart Way to Stick to Habits My Most Effective Learning Tools What I Do When I Fail How to Put Your Writing in Public The Productive Sprint The Biggest Reasons You Haven’t Changed Your Habits Seized by the Thunderhold of Fear What to Eat for Fat Loss The Heartbreaking Cruelty of Comparing Yourself to Others A Brief Guide to Overcoming Instant Gratification How to Get Motivated After a Vacation 7 Strategies for Facing Your Internet/TV Addiction How to Breathe 7 Discipline-Mastering Practices 7 Rules That Keep My Life Simple An Education in the Majestic Sierra Nevada The Lies Your Mind Tells You to Prevent Life Changes How to Believe in Yourself Don’t Waste a Moment How to Find Your Life Purpose: An Unconventional Approach How to Be Great Making Yourself Work Inhabit the Moment How to Master the Art of Living The Delusional Fantasies We Live With Each Day Living the Simple Life How to Be Prepared for Anything Turn Toward the Problem The End of the Day Philosophy The Painful Beauty of Impermanence How to Change Other People Pursuing Happiness When It’s Already Within You The Quickstart Guide to a Decluttered Home Parental Zen: How to Keep Your Cool as a Parent Looking for Love How to Stop Your Habit Changes From Getting Derailed Why We Have Regret The Essence of Fatherhood: 6 Simple Lessons A Call for Revolt: Advertising is the Anti-Minimalism The Frustratingly Slow Pace of Making Changes My Struggles with Eating Boring Food The No Procrastination Challenge Creating a Lovely Morning A Father’s Manifesto: Raising Young Men Who Respect Women Turn Inspiration Into Action Coming Back From a Setback The Gift A Guide for Young People: What to Do With Your Life No Excuses: Minimalism with Kids How to Make a Marriage Work Love Notes Flavorless: My Month of Food Boringness The Letting Go Ebook, Free The Miracle of the Self-Compassion Habit How I Tackle a Big Writing Project The Habit Action List The Reality of This Moment Confidence in Your Business 10 Ways to Do What You Don’t Want to Do On Making It Through Tough Journeys The Hard Stuff Often Matters Most What to Think About During Exercise You’ll Be OK The Most Important Two Minutes of Your Life A Call for Compassion for the Defenseless The Cure for Your Distraction Syndrome You’re Not Worse Than Other People Being Mindful of Your Stress What if You Didn’t Have to Worry About Yourself? The Universe of a Single Task Simplifying Is Painful Becoming Emotionally Self-Reliant How I Cleaned House & Simplified My Work Life The Busy Person’s Guide to Reducing Stress My Month Without a Smartphone What I’ve Learned as a Writer What the Exercise Habit Did For Me Fear is the Root of Your Problems This Moment 36 Lessons I’ve Learned About Habits The 3 Do-What-You-Love Conundrums How I Conduct My Business Constant Task Switching The Habits of Five Amazing Founders The Incredible Importance of Sleep for Habits & Motivation What Really Motivates Us to Stick to a Project? I Tried to Quit & It’s Too Hard! Unwired: A Month With Limited Internet, & Now No Cell Phone Procrastination is a Mindfulness Problem Letting Go of Judging People Don’t Scratch the Itch Become Happy in the Face of Physical Misery How Repetition Can Kickstart a Habit Zen Productivity When You’re Feeling Self-Doubt & a Lack of Motivation The Child That Holds Us Back Stateless Mindset My Month of (Almost) No Internet 12 Changes for 2014 Essential Zen Habits of 2013 The Fear of Being Alone The Calm Approach Things Every Man Should Own Family Gatherings: The Ultimate Mindfulness Training Ground Letter to an 18-year-old on the Career Path Less Traveled A Method to Find Balance 16 Surprising Lessons from My First 50-Mile Ultramarathon The Simple Fitness Habit Holiday Challenge Struggles with My Morning Internet Fast Surrender, Mindfulness & Entrepreneurship How I Learned to Stop Procrastinating, & Love Letting Go Finding Focus When You Run Out of Ideas The Necessary Art of Subtraction Jealousy & Suffering How Creativity Works, & How to Do It Self-Discipline in 5 Sentences Make It Your Job Developing Selfless Compassion Lyrical Learning, & Why We Learn Habits Wrong A Month Without Sugar Why I Read (+ a Dozen Book Recommendations) 12 Indispensable Mindful Living Tools Burn Down the Farm My Most Minimal Travel Setup Yet The Exquisite Habits of the Founder of Blue Bottle Coffee 3 Little Tricks to Deal With People Who Offend You My Healthiest Travel Routine Yet Startup Founder Megan Casey’s Habits of Priorities My Pursuit of the Art of Living A Month Without TV or Video The Way of No Debt Letting Go: How to Live With the Loss of a Loved One The Way to Be Ramit Sethi’s Entrepreneurial Habits The Time to Shut Down The Pain & Beauty of Life Changes 8 Creativity Lessons from a Pixar Animator Zen Mountain: Leave It All Behind Overcoming the Social Costs of Being Different Finding Quiet and Mindfulness Through Food My Failed Month of ‘No Sitting’ The Thinking Habit That Changed My Life Liking Healthy Foods is a Choice Unschoolery: My New Blog on Unschooling My Advice for Starting a Business Creating Your Habit Environment Travel Lessons with My Family Easier Decision-Making: Conduct Experiments Simplify: Let Go of Your Crutches The Fear of Being Found a Fraud The Flexible Mind Declutter Your Life A Month Without Coffee The Healthful Vegan Diet Living the Quiet Life The Art of Tasting Chocolate Mindfully Why Fear of Discomfort Might Be Ruining Your Life The Habits of Happiness How to Keep Habits Going During Travel A Year of Living Without The Key Habits of Organization I Failed Vegan Guide to San Francisco The Futility of Comparing Yourself to Others A Secret to Dad Greatness Habits: A Simple Change in Mindset Changes Everything The Worry That You’re Doing the Wrong Thing Right Now 6 Steps To Being More Creative How I Finally Faced My Weight & Debt Problems Working with the Obstacles in Your Path 9 Rules for a Simpler Day The Little Book of Contentment The Obstacle is the Path 5 Lessons in Contentment from Billionaires Warren Buffett & Charlie Munger Smile in Each Moment A Guide to Practical Compassion 6 Steps To Healing Yourself The 7-Day Vegan Challenge Why You Should Write Daily Achieving Without Goals Flowing with the Stresses of Kids (or anyone else) Habit Mastery: Creating the New Normal Defeat Distraction: Refocusing with Purpose Expanding the Envelope: A Method for Beating Anger A Guide to Practical Contentment The Practice of Work Mind & Vacation Mind, Simultaneously How to Eat Real Food Without Spending Hours in the Kitchen Quitting Your Habits The 38 Best Methods of Successful Exercisers How To Make It Impossible To Fail The Not Knowing Path of Being an Entrepreneur How to Change Your Life: A User’s Guide Getting Your Family On Board with Life Changes How to Stick to a Habit When Life Falls Apart Zen Mind in the Middle of Chaos & Stress Create a Sacred Space in Your Heart Meditation: The Most Fundamental Habit Creating the Genuine Connections We Long For Tremors of Psychitude: One Little Trick to Find Purpose and Motivation Create the Habits of Being Lean, in 7 Years Walled-in: Life Without Facebook The 7 Habits of Calmness The Four Habits that Form Habits Advice to My Kids My 10 Essential Email Habits The Daily Checklist Sticking to a Habit: The Definitive Guide The Meditation Diet: How I Lost 60+ lbs. by Savoring The Power of Habit Investments Discomfort Zone: How to Master the Universe The Most Successful Techniques for Rising Early Do Less: A Short Guide How to Savor Life What We Lack in a Hyperconnected World Simplify the Internet 12 Rules to Live By The New Rules of Fitness for 2013 52 Changes for 2013 The Unprocrastination Month, and the Relaunch of the Sea Change Program Essential Zen Habits of 2012 The Other Person is Never the Problem The Do Plan, or Why We Know But Don’t Do 28 Brilliant Tips for Living Life The Clutter-free Holiday Guide The Little Trick to Make Any Moment Better Tim Ferriss vs. Leo Babauta Showdown: On Whether Goals Suck The Work You Love is Waiting For You The 7-Step Method to Find Focus for Writing The Buy-Nothing Holiday Survival Guide Challenge: Buy Nothing Until 2013 How to Learn Anything Shaken By Life’s Beauty, Shaken Untrack: Letting Go of the Stress of Measuring 15 Great Excuses Not to Form the Fitness Habit How to Make Health Insurance a Bad Bet Why the Fitness Habit is More Important Than the Plan The Willingness to Think Differently Create a Superhealth Community A Vegan Tour of NYC