The BEST way to brain dump (and beat that overwhelm!)

I am hearing from MANY of you that already the holiday season has you a bit overwhelmed. (Maybe “a bit” is an understatement!!) And so, especially if you’re new around here, I wanted to share with you my VERY FAVORITE method for beating that overwhelm back where it belongs!

I’ve got a process for this – Prioritized Braindumping. And it seriously makes your life look a lot more doable. Let’s get into it!

Braindumping to relieve stress

Often, our overwhelm comes from the feeling of having too many things to do, and not knowing where to start. So we start by writing down everything we can remember – call it your master list of THINGS TO DO.

There needs to be no order to the list – the point is just to get everything out of your head and onto paper.

This is the clearing of mental clutter.

As women, there’s SO MUCH that we’re managing in our heads on a daily basis. When we give ourselves a physical place to write things down, instead of giving up our mental space trying to remember them, our stress level plummets, and our productivity actually increases.

Organizing the brain dump

Here’s the thing – it’s not enough to just get everything out of our heads. We must then manage it. After everything has been dumped onto THE LIST, you need to prioritize in a specific way.

1. Pray over the list and ask the Lord if there is anything you truly can let go of. Almost always, there are a few things you can cross out that don’t really need to get done.
2. Go through the remaining list with three colored highlighters. Each color stands for a level of urgency. I always choose blue, pink, and yellow. If something needs to be done immediately, it will be yellow. If it needs to be done soon, I’ll make it pink. If it’s not urgent, I’ll make it blue.
3. Once everything is highlighted, go through each color and NUMBER those tasks in order of importance.Everything in yellow gets a number, starting with 1. Then, everything in pink gets a number, starting with 1. Same for blue.
4. Lastly, re-write your list IN ORDER. All the yellows go first, in number order. Then the pinks, then the blues.
5. Finally, you’ll have an actual, doable to-do list in your hands! Already organized in order of importance! And a much more clear mind and heart.

Listen, stopping after you’ve just braindumped your whole list might help you get everything out of your head, but it WON’T help you make progress on those things – so your stress is bound to come right back. And that’s not what we want.

THAT is why I prioritize with colors and numbers. Organizing that list into three ordered sections is SO HELPFUL! It gives me a straightforward plan of attack, and I find myself a whole lot more clear on what I’m supposed to be doing, and when it needs to get done.

I’ll be honest – I do this EVERY TIME I feel overwhelmed. Braindumping, and then creating a prioritized list, is so beneficial for my mental well-being. Without it, I’m scrambling around to find something, anything to do, just so I can say I’m being productive.

Instead of that fruitless process, clearing the clutter in my head gives me space to relax, take a deep breath, and then confidently move forward on something that actually matters to me (and my family).

I hope this helps you as you enter the holiday season!! It’s an easy and seriously effective way to clear your mind and take action on what’s truly important.

In this together, Kayse

P.S. If you want my worksheet to move from braindump to prioritized list, you can fill out the form below and I’ll send it right to your inbox!

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If you need a little more help tackling the holiday season, I’ve got you covered! You can download our FREE Holiday Planner right here, and get all your holiday craziness organized into a calm, joyful plan!