Today, I’m here to share one of my top productivity tips.
It’s the one thing you can do that I guarantee will be a game-changer for you if you don’t already do it.
It’s the all mighty brain dump!
I’m a big fan of regular brain dumping. It’s an opportunity to write out a list of all the tasks and projects buzzing around in your mind so that you can make space for the new and productive version of you!
To do a brain dump all you need to do is get a piece of paper and then take yourself somewhere distraction free and write down everything that needs to get done, in fact write down everything that’s in your head – all the outstanding tasks, the reminders and even any thoughts that keep popping up.
For best results give yourself an hour of distraction-free time to complete this exercise, the more you can extract from your brain the more powerful you will feel afterwards.
You may end up with hundreds of things on your brain dump – and all that stuff was cluttering up your mind……No wonder you feel overwhelmed most of the time!
Here are my top tips for a successful brain dump:
Step 1 – Schedule an appropriate time (30-45 mins) in your diary when you know you won’t get interrupted
Step 2 – Grab your favourite drink, pen and paper at the designated time and turn off all notifications (FB / email / phone)
Step 3 – Start by going through different areas of your life, writing down everything that comes to mind. Write down every single task that comes to mind for that topic and once you have exhausted that area, move on to the next. Some of the areas you may work though include:
Some of the areas you may work though include:
- Business – What tasks are you putting off doing that keep re-appearing?
- Family – Do the kids have something they need help with?
- Personal – Are you desperate for a massage / long overdue a coffee with a friend?
- Hobbies – Do you need to book that yoga class…?
- House – Anything that needs fixing but you never get round to?
- Friends and Family – Any birthday’s you need to plan for?
- Books – Write a list of books you want to read
Don’t forget the purpose of this task is to get everything out of your head – your mind is powerful – but not so much when it is full.
It’s not easy to be productive when you have all this stuff going around in your mind.
Step 4 – Relax knowing that you have captured everything you need to do, you can now let go of the stress surrounding these tasks. It’s important to let go of these things now they are written down.
Now I love a challenge – here’s a simple one for you that will make big differences:
Within the next 7 days, I’d love for you to gift yourself some space for a structured braindump. Then look forward to starting every day being 100% focused and productive and watch how it impacts the rest of your day. Imagine what you would be capable of with a clear mind!
Let me know how you get on by coming over to the Productivity Boosters Facebook Group.
We can have a competition to see who has the most items on their brain dump!!
Love Jo xx
Don’t forget to schedule in exactly when this week you will complete your brain dump otherwise it won’t happen, don’t take a cluttered and unproductive mind into next week and beyond. It’s having a massive impact on your productivity – this month will end very differently if you give yourself some ‘mind space’ to clearly see what your top priorities are.
