Brain Dump - Tackling the To Do Overwhelm
The Well Canto Newsletter Volume 30
Ho! Ho! Ho! It’s that time of year where we add a whole bunch of activities, tasks, errands, visits, and entertaining food and drink to our already full lives.
It’s joyous! It’s fun! It’s meaningful! It’s required! It’s overwhelming!
A Stuck n’ Numb™ feeling hovers relentlessly as thoughts morph into a tangled black scribble - it starts in the mind and creeps southward into jaw, neck, and back muscles before resting in the digestive system in an alarming variety of ways.
But we have tools, my friends! What we need is a Brain Dump, or, if you prefer dramatic images, Mental Vomit.
You see, our beautiful, creative minds are not meant to be storage lockers!
We need a clear mind to find calm, and to function at our best. We want to enjoy all the extra at holidays. We don’t really want to melt down, lose it, get sick, or lash out.
Some Brain Dump benefits:
Restores mental clarity and focus
Reduces stress and anxiety
Enhances productivity
Boosts creativity
Improves memory
While experiencing all those benefits, you may even sleep better and make more healthy choices throughout your day.
But how, though?
Start with a blank sheet of paper, or open a doc. Then write down all you have to do. Write anything and everything that comes to mind; don’t edit, write quickly. Include persistent thoughts, emotions, ideas. Let it all flow out of your mind and onto the paper. Here’s a sample list:
Return emails: Jane, Elaine, Hugh
Pay cc bills
Ugh I have too much to do
Make grocery list
Memorize Act III duet
Blog Ideas
Are the Smothers Brothers still around
File papers
Meditate
What’s for lunch
Schedule Drs appointment
Update policies
Copy music for Sam
I didn’t sleep so well last night
Get oil change
Write reference letter for Eva
Did I call Anna back
Set up call with 2 new inquiries
Buy housewarming gift for neighbor
Clear 5 items from closet
Mail package before 2:00 pm
That tenor’s FB post was so cringey
I should delete all socials
Make new playlist for holidays
Clean out fridge
Re-pot jade plant
Stop holding breath
Update email list
Contact HS Chorus teachers
From this diverse list I can then open a table (which I can’t figure out on Substack) and start to make categories. I just go down my list and sort in a way that makes sense to me:
Communicate
Return emails: Jane, Elaine, Hugh
Studio
Update policies
Set up call with 2 new inquiries
Students
Write reference letter for Eva
Copy music for Sam
Blog Ideas
“Love the work more than your image”
“Reasons or Excuses?”
“Lifelong Learner”
“SMART Goals”
Self-Care
Meditate
Stop holding breath
Chores
Make grocery list
Clear 5 items from closet
Clean out fridge
Re-pot jade plant
Tasks
Pay cc bill
File papers
Schedule Drs appointment
Get oil change
Buy neighbor gift
Mail package before 2:00 pm
Marketing
Update email list
Contact HS Chorus teachers
Ruminations
Ugh I have too much to do
Are the Smothers Brothers still around
What’s for lunch
I didn’t sleep so well last night
Did I call Anna back
That tenor’s FB post was so cringey
I should delete all socials
My Music
Memorize Act III duet
Practice guitar
Random
Make new playlist for holidays
Now I can see a few important things. First, most categories only have just a few items, which already feels less overwhelming. Second, I can easily see how to prioritize. The Rumination category isn’t pressing, but those things are now out of my head. I also see that the Self-Care category is pretty light, which urges me to pay attention and perhaps add some things there.
The next step is to use some judicious highlighting to show where to start. I’ll use ALL CAPS for urgent items, and bold for items I’m dreading the most (Hashtag eatthefrogfirst). Also, I’ll strike through anything requiring no action or already done, giving me a sense of progress:
Communicate
Return emails: Jane, Elaine,
Hugh
Studio
Update policies
SET UP CALLS FOR 2 NEW INQUIRIES
Text students studio class reminder
Students
WRITE RECOMMENDATION LETTER FOR EVA
Copy music for Sam
Blog Ideas
“Love the work more than your image”
“Reasons or Excuses?”
“Lifelong Learner”
“SMART Goals”
Self-Care
Meditate
Stop holding breath
Go for a walk
Read my book
Chores
Make grocery list
Clear 5 items from closet
Clean out fridge
Re-pot jade plant
Tasks
Pay cc billFile papers
SCHEDULE DRS APPT
Get oil change
Buy neighbor gift
MAIL PACKAGE BEFORE 2:00 PM
Marketing
Update email list
Contact HS Chorus teachers
Ruminations
Ugh I have too much to doAre the Smothers Brothers still aroundWhat’s for lunchI didn’t sleep so well last nightDid I call Anna backThat tenor’s FB post was so cringeyI should delete all socials
My Music
Memorize Act III duet
Practice guitar
Random
Make new playlist for holidays
Great! Now I can take action knowing my efforts will move me forward. I usually first scan for quick and easy things to cross off, and then make a game of eliminating whole categories. I can also tackle the ‘dreaded’ items since there are only 3, and the ‘urgent’ items since there are only 4 of those. The Blog Ideas will become its own doc - a running idea bank.
This entire process took about 35 minutes. I feel energized to tackle my list because I have a clear plan, and the ruminations dissipate after being exposed for what they are.
Does this seem like a technique that will work for you? I tend to do one of these each month, carrying over unresolved items. These days I use a google doc for cut and paste ease, and to keep my Brain Dumps together in a folder. Sometimes I look at old Dumps to find that some items that took up brain space resolved on their own.
I’d love to hear your variations on this theme. What tips do you have for others?
May you live in ease and kindness, with a free heart.
Singing Lessons: www.WAVS.info
Well Coaching: BarbaraShirvisWellness.com
Thank you! This is super helpful to think of managing busy December this way. Overwhelmed has been my theme this month!
Thanks, Barbara. I hope you are well vit was a privilege to Zoom with you this summer. I also appreciate your writing.