How the Brain Dump Method Can Help You Manage Stress and Overthinking
- Adilla
- May 9
- 4 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Are you a victim of your racing thoughts? Whether it is about tasks you left at work, what to plan out for dinner, or even random thoughts that keep bugging your mind. If so, consider doing a bit of brain dumping to get it out of your system. Taking a few minutes of your day to unload the growing thoughts that are overcrowding your mind is a good way to soothe down the stream of overthinking and anxiety.
Table of Contents
What is Brain Dump?
The brain dump is a method where you write down everything that is in your mind, whether on paper or digitally. This is supposed to help you get your thoughts down on paper and free up space in your mind.
There are different types of brain dumps, which are the beginning-of-the-day brain dump, post-learning brain dump and gratitude brain dump. They are self-explanatory and are easier than you think. Typically, this activity takes only 5 to 10 minutes out of the day, depending on how long you unload your thoughts.
Why Does It Help with Overthinking and Stress?
The Brain Dump method helps in different ways beyond just clearing your mind.
Reduce Stresses That Boost Productivity
As weird as the word “brain dump” is, it could help you list down the work that you are worried about. If you’re overwhelmed by a new project or the daunting number of tasks that you must do, this would trap you in a loop of stress as it lingers in your mind.
Take the time to write those tasks down on paper or type them down in your notes. This helps in identifying which intimidating task would take more time to do, giving you a realistic expectation for yourself when planning out your upcoming tasks. Hence, improving your work productivity in a day and reducing your stress.
Eases Overthinking Leading to Finding Solutions
When everything is written down, whether in a list or spread out in your notes, you can get an idea of what your thoughts are juggling. Since overthinking comes from your mind being clouded with multiple streams of ruminations, breaking down in written form could help ease the mental load of jumping from one thought to another.
Once you feel a sense of clarity after brain dumping, looking through what you wrote could help you gain insights and ideas that lead you to overthink. Thus, it encourages you to find the solutions to your issues.
How Do You Do the Brain Dump Method?
Choose Where You Want to Write
Pick your preferred writing tool. Either in pen and paper (or a dedicated brain dump journal) or a digital note. While writing traditionally is shown to be more therapeutic, a digital medium would be considered easier, as you can move and delete it as you see fit.
Write Freely (Pick What Type of Brain Dump)
Before you decide to write everything down, choose which brain dump type you feel works for you. Or try all of them and see which helps you best. Don’t worry about being grammatically correct! No one’s checking. It’s just you and your thoughts. It can be a list or word clouds scattered around your notes.
Review and Organise
When you’re done, look through what you wrote. Check which one is a doable work of a higher-priority task; categorise them if there are similar concerns. Making your brain dump into a useful tool in identifying your concerns and prepping before starting on them.
If your main concern is your daily work task and a written list of the task is not enough to ease your worries, our My Work feature in TESSR creative project management software could help you give a quick overview of your priorities!
This tool enables you to effectively manage your allocated duties and keep track of your projects, which helps you stay organised. Having a visual summary of your job helps you plan your day and keeps you from feeling overwhelmed by your workload.
Conclusion
Take the time to brain dump and let your mind be free of the shackles of your stresses and overthinking, especially when you are worried about something and it’s running on loops in your head. You’d be surprised at how helpful it is just to have it listed down.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is mind dump and brain dump the same?
Yes, these terms are used interchangeably. If you encounter help books that encourage mind dump exercises, it would be the same as the brain dump technique. If saying brain dumping is a bit much for you, mind dumping is another way to say it.
Will brain dumping help stop my anxiety?
While it may not stop your anxiety, it will help you manage it better. When you have your concerns written down, it can help identify which is making you more anxious or whether it is a collection of thoughts. This can help identify where you should put your priorities.
Are there other alternatives to brain dumping?
There are several other methods if writing is not something you are into. There are visual-based ‘brain dumping’ activities like vision board creation or doodling and sketching, and even collage making.
Author Bio
With a background in Arts English, Adilla has been a casual writer for various hobbies, including parodies of animated shows and plots for board games like Dungeons & Dragons. She loves to read anything and everything from fantasy stories to articles on tips and tricks. Currently, Adilla resides in Malaysia and is a creative writer at TESSR. One day, she is eager to publish her book. To know more about her, check out her LinkedIn.
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