Needless to say, I might not need this information in my life, EVER! For example, I have no idea why I know what different beers taste like. I have never tasted them. Nor am I going to. I just watched a YouTube video about it once and now I know.

The self-loathing that comes from not knowing enough is unbearable. To ease the pain, I am always in rush to find new information. Information of any kind. If I don’t know something and I know I don’t know this, I want to know now. Gave you a headache, right? I know!

The question still remains, do I actually need this information? Or do I just ‘think’ I need it?

The truth is, learning so many things hardly solves anything for you. Remember, I am not against knowing important things. I am just talking about useless information that is taking useful space in my brain.

Think of a small tribe living in the dense forest on the outskirts of a city. I am guessing they are happier than the majority of people living in that city. Why? Because they know exactly how much they need to know and they do the needful. We, the city dwellers, on the other hand, feel smart for knowing too much about this world. We do only a little about it.

However, the tribe knows that they have the information they need. It is passed down from generation to generation. They have an open mind to new information and they are kind. Hence, they are happy.

How do you know you have too much useless information in your brain? It’s simple. Ask yourself, are you utilizing it in your daily life? Is it going to be useful for your learning? If the answer is no. Then, welcome to the club.

There might be some information that you might not need right away but it will be useful at some point in your life. For example, first aid or sex education. This is the essential information and it is worth knowing. I am talking about knowing too much about the private lives of celebrities.

Let’s get back to our tribe of happy people. They are utilizing the information they have to the maximum extent. Information put to use is knowledge. And a knowledge repeated often becomes wisdom. It is the healthy balance of consumption and creation that makes you happy. Create maximum out of the information you have. Turn your information into action and you will be contented. And contentment is true happiness.

Now take a moment and think of how many things you know just because you wanted to feed your ego. But one might argue, What if we need it someday?

Wait! Who talks like that?

Our parents!

We, the so-called new generation, think that we are smarter than our predecessors. Because apparently, we are not doing all the stupid stuff they used to do. Like hoarding unnecessary stuff in our house hoping they might need it someday.

It is true, though. We are not doing stupid things they used to do. Because we do them differently. Only our domain of stupidity has changed, not stupidity. They used to clutter their house, but now we clutter our brains.

Therefore, ignorance is bliss.

Don’t take this advice in a literal sense. Learn everything you need and forget the rest.

A great way to start doing it is not clicking on the clickbait-y titles of Buzzfeed articles and YouTube videos. Know that you know enough. Practice mindfulness and be in the present. You will know what you need to learn to make your life easier. And learn that only. This way it will be convenient for you to put your information to use.

Diwali is coming, this time de-clutter your brain as well. The more you refine your brain the finer ideas it will produce.

Adios!