Brain Dump: What It Is & How to Practice It

From the moment we wake up to the time we hit the sack, our brain is confronted with a barrage of decisions.

What should I make for breakfast? Should I go on a walk after work? When was the last time I watered the plants? What’s the name of that actor in that series?

Our minds are often filled with a continuous stream of information and tasks.

And with so much new information constantly coming from different sources—from Twitter & Google to the mundane conversations around us—our brains can feel chaotic and overwhelmed. 

With those tangled thoughts in your head, it can be difficult to focus. As you sit in front of your laptop or get ready for a meeting, you may find yourself stuck & mentally paralyzed.

Instead of getting your creative juices flowing, you’re just there—staring in front of a screen.

This is where the brain dump method can help. It’s a great technique to declutter your mind. 

What Is Brain Dump?

A brain dump is an effective exercise to manage the clutter in your mind. It only requires a few minutes, and all you need is a pen & paper or a dedicated journal.

It works like this: Before starting any task for the day, take a few minutes to write down everything weighing you down. Spill it all out—don’t worry about being neat or organized.

You can scribble or use bullet points to jot down your thoughts as fast as you can. It’s like spilling the contents of a purse on a table when you can’t find your lipstick or earrings. Just dump it all! 

Some people think that keeping everything in their heads is a smart way to run their lives.

But those ongoing mental lists leave little room for new ideas to flourish, stifling their creativity and productivity.

They are constantly absorbed in thought—and that can be tiring. It’s hard to focus on self-care if your brain is often full of thoughts that don’t even matter. 

3 Different Ways to Practice the Brain Dump Method

Ready to explore the brain dump method? Here are different ways you can practice it:

The simplest form of brain dump goes like this: wake up in the morning, get your journal, and write anything that comes to your mind.

Just let your thoughts turn into words & phrases. The mere purpose is to remove the clutter from your mind and place it outside yourself.

You don’t have to do anything with what you’ve written.

When you turn those tangled thoughts into words on paper, you help your brain relax and focus on things that matter. 

If you’ve been doing the Basic Brain Dump for weeks or months, you can take it up by moving to a more complex technique called “The Four Square Brain Dump.”

Before you jot down anything, draw horizontal & vertical lines to create four sections on your paper.

Next, label each section with these titles: Thoughts, To-Do, Top 3 Priorities, and Gratitude.

In the Thoughts section, write whatever comes to mind. It can include random thoughts, so you don’t have to think about them too deeply.

Then, write all thoughts related to tasks you have to accomplish for the day in the To-Do section. Next, move on to the Top 3 Priorities.

Write the top three tasks from the To-Do section that are most important to you.

Lastly, don’t forget about the Gratitude portion, where you must write all the things you’re grateful for. 

With all those thoughts & tasks written down, you can face the day with less worry.

You will feel less anxious knowing you’ve already recognized what to do and what you’re thankful for. 

Do you still feel overwhelmed by the heaps of tasks at the end of the week? Do the End-of-Week Brain Dump to spill things out and try to organize them for the following week. 

Get a pen and paper, or use your “brain dump” journal. List everything that’s weighing you down.

Think of uncompleted tasks and other projects & issues that worry you. Leave the list for a while.

Go back to it whenever you remember a task that should’ve been done in the past week. If the list gets too long, it’s fine.

Keep on writing ideas & tasks you want to add.

Next, process your brain dump.

It’s best to do it before the day ends, so you can let go of the thoughts that don’t matter and have an organized To-Do list you can use the following week.

Rewrite your brain dump into a list of tasks & issues that need to be done or resolved next week. Then, pick a day/hour to accomplish each item to the best of your ability.

Try to do the easy tasks on the following day or the next two days to prevent yourself from procrastinating. 

What about those issues you can’t resolve the following week? Park them for now.

You can include them in your next month’s Google calendar, so you won’t eventually forget them.

The idea here is putting these not-so-urgent tasks & issues on paper can help you stop worrying about them for now and have more room on your mind for more important & urgent matters.

Master the Brain Dump Method with Us

If you need more guidance on practicing & mastering the brain dump method, we’re here to help.

At Self-Love Overflow, our goal is to provide you with materials & resources to help take better care of your mental health. Don’t hesitate to reach out to us today.