If you are like most people I know:
1) you have begun reading multiple books and they are all in different stages of completion (or abandonment).
2) you make the gist of an e-mail from the initial 2-3 lines..scroll down to the last few lines and see if there is any "Call to Action" OR "cost" .. that's the case with most long e-mails
3) during a conversation with someone explaining a product/service, you are dying to tell him to state the deliverable in a few words and proceed only if you show extreme interest
4) the thought of sitting through all the Seminars/Workshops during an event makes you sweat..
There are many more I can cite..but I guess the point is made.
There is an interesting note on The Attention Crash by Steve Rubel in Ad Age.
" ... In-boxes, smart phones and IM windows are overflowing. Always-on connections, mobile devices and new publishing tools have expanded the media we consume to include content from peers. Further, new networks and platforms for participation are sprouting up and going supernova overnight, with no end in sight.
The problem is that human attention, unlike technology, has limits. There are only so many digital inputs we can realistically pay quality attention to in our busy, multitasked lives. Demands for our attention have outstripped our finite supply of time. A crash is coming, folks. But this time it's not financial -- it's personal. ...."