I eschewed using a feed reader for the longest time (until a couple of months ago) because I enjoy experiencing content in the way its owner designed it. What I didn’t realize until recently was that I have been limiting my sources based solely on how the information looks and not what it contains. If a site looked unprofessionally designed, then that must mean (in my old way of thinking) that the content is equally unprofessional. I was too stubborn to accept the fact that everybody feels a different importance when creating a site - for some it’s a focus on the visual, others the content, and some the network. I always wanted the site to be as beautiful as possible for fear that others wouldn’t accept it the same way I wouldn’t.

Since deciding to adopt a feed reader (NetNewsWire) into my daily life (I’ve tried a few times before in the last couple of years, but just never enjoyed it) I’ve found that not only can I keep track of 10 times the sources (the inital reason for using one), I’m much more accepting of information because it’s without visual styling. This has helped me feel good about “spreading the love” in my own projects, working simultaneously on visual, content and networking and feeling positive and productive about my daily progress.