This week’s action is to get stuff out of your head. I want you to develop a system for freeing up your mind so you can spend more time dreaming and planning and less time remembering. Believe me, your brain works a lot better when you use it for creativity instead of storage.
When your brain is filled up with all of the things you have going on in your life, it starts to weigh you down. Not only that, but it’s not a very efficient way to operate in the first place. How many times have you forgotten something even though you repeatedly told yourself, “I need to remember to ____” or “Don’t forget to ___ .”
I used to do that more than I care to admit. So this week, you are going to find a way to get the important things you think about out of your head and store them somewhere else.
There are literally dozens, if not hundreds, of ways to do this, ranging from simply writing things down to digital to-do lists. I’m going to share with you the 4 products I use to help me free up space in my brain. Please note that I am not a paid endorser for these products, and I strongly encourage you to experiment to find what works for you.
The first product I use is the Task List in Microsoft Outlook. If you already use Outlook to manage your email, then you already have this. It’s basically a digital version of a written to-do list. It allows me to enter a task with a date and check it off when I’m done.
One big difference, however, is the recurring task feature, which I use to schedule things that happen more than once, such as weekly or monthly. If you repeat the same things every week, you need to make use of this feature. Once you complete a weekly task and check it off, it automatically creates a new one at the same time next week. I love it because I don’t have to remember what I need to do when I hit the office on Monday morning because all of my Monday tasks have already been generated. I can hit the ground running and start knocking things off the list.
The 2nd product I use is Google Calendar. This is where I put appointments, like meetings, doctor appointments or haircuts. These are time-sensitive items that I need to be reminded of. They are set in stone, so everything else I need to do that day has to fit around that appointment. Although there are many other calendar apps, Google Calendar syncs well across multiple devices and allows me to share calendars with family members and coworkers.
The 3rd product I use is Google Keep, a note-taking service that I have on my computer, my tablet, and my phone that automatically syncs up so that when I add or delete something on one device, it shows up on all of them.
I have several Keep Notes going at any given time. I have one called Books to Read, another for Things to Research, one for Business Ideas, a separate one for Content Ideas, even one for Gift Ideas. Whenever something pops into my head that I want to remember later, I jot it down immediately.
Now the cool thing about Keep is that you can share your lists with other people. In fact, my wife and I even use it for our grocery list. If either of us realizes we’re out of something and adds it to the list, whichever one of us goes to the store will be able to see what we need to buy.
The final product is a journal. I don’t have to go into detail about the benefits of journaling because it seems like there are plenty of folks banging that drum already. The number one thing I use a journal for is “brain dumping,” or the act of listing out everything that is weighing on me. Some people call this “freewriting.” Psychologists call it “cognitive offloading.” The idea is to write without judgement.
Once I clean out my brain, I like to go back through the list and scratch out the things I have no control over, such as the weather, the stock market or a foreign conflict. Sometimes just reminding myself that I can’t do anything about it is enough to help me let it go.
For the items that I can do something about, I write down the next step or action I can take and when I’m going to do it. Then I close my journal, knowing I have a plan. If you’ve never done this, please give it a try. You will immediately feel lighter and calmer. I suggest doing it right before bed to help you sleep better, especially if you are someone who lies in bed and struggles to fall asleep because your mind is racing with thoughts.
I don’t really care what products you use as long as you have a system. When something you need to remember pops into your head, get it out immediately and put it somewhere. On a piece of paper, on your phone, on the computer, it doesn’t matter. Just don’t rely on your brain, it’s got more important things to do.
So, do you have a system that works for you? If so, please share it in the comments section below. I’d love to know what others are doing that’s working. Also, if you’ve never had a system before and you put one in place, what kind of impact did it have on you? Let’s help each other free up some space so we can all use our brains to dream, create, make an impact and lead a Full Life!
Thanks for reading!