Are you overloaded by email and other digital debris? To find out, take the following challenge. Open up your inbox and scroll down. How many emails did you receive that you won't even read? How many will you read later, if time permits, and how many will you simply delete?

If you're like most people, you've given your email address not only to friends and family, but to online retailers, restaurant chains, and other businesses before realizing that it would result in a direct onslaught of incoming mail. Perhaps you've signed up to be notified every time someone comments on your Facebook status or comments on a particular blog post. You may receive notifications via email from LinkedIn®, Facebook, Twitter, and a host of other social networking sites and online service providers.

Media overload is not only common; it's the norm. You've tapped into the online information stream (or should I say river?), and you need a lifeboat to find your way to shore.

The challenge is learning to manage all of this information.

Learning to filter these messages-keeping that which is relevant, and discarding that which is not-is one of the most important aspects of media literacy. How do you become a human filter, managing media to your advantage? The following are a few tips that may help:

1. Learn to love delete. While this key causes fear in the hearts of the meek, the delete key is your friend when it comes to uncluttering your digital life. Saving all the emails you receive is like saving every letter delivered by the U.S. Postal Service since you moved in the house. Trying to find that important piece of mail becomes impossible.

Delete anything that you don't have a good reason for keeping and that you cannot find somewhere else if you need it.

2. Redefine important. There are some things you need to keep, but important is one of those words that can be a catch-all when it comes to digital files. As you work toward less clutter, redefine important. Create folders that have specific names to reflect the contents. For instance, when you need files temporarily to complete a specific project, name the folder accordingly and delete the entire folder at the end of the project.

3. Handle every email as you read it. Either put it in an appropriate folder or delete it (yes, even the funny jokes). This simple tip can keep you sane and keep your inbox much cleaner. This is easier when you think back to the last time you went back to re-read an old email.

4. Store music, photos, documents, and video clips in the cloud. With so many options available, there's no reason you can't find a storage site to suit your needs. Sites like iTunes®, Google Docs, Flickr®, and Snapfish cost nothing and help you manage these files in a hassle-free way. Using the cloud frees up space on your computer and is accessible by clicking one link on your computer. Your students are doing this already. Why aren't you?

5. Save links on a social bookmarking site. Save articles you want to read or research you need to access later on one of the many social bookmarking sites on the web. Most are free, and each has specific benefits such as easy sharing or topic-based searching. Through the use of relevant tags and accurate file naming, you can quickly get your hands on the information you need. Don't forget to delete older bookmarks when they are no longer important.

6. Make time to unsubscribe. When you receive email from a particular source that is no longer on your important list (see number two), take the time to unsubscribe from that list. Do it now; don't put it off. It will save you the frustration of receiving yet another piece of mail that is no longer relevant. Subscribing to lists via RSS feed is a much easier way to manage this incoming information that and messages don't clutter up your inbox.

To manage your preferences for email that comes from Alpha Omega Publications, you can go to our website, and click on My Account. On this page, you can change your email address, physical address, and manage your communications preferences. You may also be interested in getting information from us via RSS feed. This can be done on the School Blog web page. These options are also available on our AOP Homeschooling website.

Now, take the risk and begin uncluttering your digital life. Then teach your students how to do the same. What tips do you have for uncluttering your digital life? Please share them here so we can all become more organized and media literate. When you're done, feel free to delete.