A brain dump is nothing more than getting all your thoughts, feelings, worries, and fears onto paper. You typically write more than when you are working on a regular journal entry, as you are really trying to get absolutely everything in your conscious out in the open so you can work through all these thoughts more effectively.
But, if you have been trying brain dumps and they still aren’t serving you, you might be making some of these common mistakes.
1. You Are Not Giving Yourself Enough Time
The first thing you might be doing wrong when writing your brain dump is not giving yourself adequate time. This is not as short as a regular journal entry, and should not be treated as such. A brain dump is most likely going to be done less often than your other journaling, but it is still really important and needs your full focus and attention.
Try to time it for when you have at least 20-30 minutes of free, quiet time. This might be on a weekend, a morning before work if you wake up early, or in the door of the day with the door to your office closed.
You don’t want to feel too rushed to get this done, or you won’t fully benefit from it.
2. You Aren’t Categorizing Your Thoughts Into Actionable Steps
The initial issue lies in the act of jotting down everything. Subsequently neglecting it. It differs from journaling as the purpose of a brain dump is not to express all thoughts but to actively sort through them.
Once you’ve dedicated time to writing everything in your journal you should then examine, evaluate and develop solutions, for the matters you’ve recorded.
Begin by categorizing the contents of your brain dump into important and less important sections. This approach allows you to prioritize and determine what requires attention versus what can be addressed at a time.
Next assess whether any of the items you noted down pertain to an issue that can be resolved promptly. Consider devising steps, towards resolving matters as well.
3. You Are Not Doing it Often Enough
Finally ensure that you regularly engage in the practice of reflecting and jotting down your thoughts in your journal. The frequently you engage in this activity the the advantages you will reap from it. Perhaps consider setting aside a day each week to dedicate to your brain dump or less frequently, than that. Remember this is not a one time occurrence; it should be a practice, within your journal entries.
