Yesterday, I was talking with someone about a work project only to end up on a tangent about a fascinating story I read about whether or not to refrigerate peanut butter.
Clearly, my thoughts were not organized and my mind was doing its usual “follow the shiny object” trick.
You and I struggle to organize thoughts simply because it’s not a habit. Our brains actually like to be in a state of chaos.
Learning to organize thoughts can:
- Help manage cognitive load (communication or information overload)
- Provide clarity for decision-making
- Encourage creativity
- Create an environment for innovative ideas
- Better mental health
- Improve communication
Disorganized Thoughts Usually Lead to Negative Outcomes
A disorganized mind wreaks havoc on productivity because giving power over to the flurry of thoughts running through your head allows intrusive thoughts to appear, rather than focusing on useful, helpful facts.
Therapist Edward Hallowell said that when people allow their thoughts to run amuck, they make impulsive decisions, are robbed of their flexibility, and their ability to deal with the unknown. They also forget the big picture and values they stand for.
Geez. When you put it that way…
A study by the National Institute on Aging found that a messy mind leads to high stress, chronic negativity, and impulsivity. These things stifle productivity and contribute to several secondary stress responses like headaches or sleep problems.
Some people just know how to take the fun out of everything, huh?
How Does Our Brain Organize Information?
Before you (or I) declare our brains hopeless dumpster fires, let’s find out how our brains actually organize and store the information it takes in.
In order for our brains to make sense of the world, it re-organizes individual and distinct experiences into to clusters. Basically, as an idea enters your brain, your brain is already looking for a way to connect it with something else you already know or remember.
Memory is an automatic process, which is why you don’t really pay much attention to it.
Each event or piece of information – whether big or small – passes through our brain’s memory centers. Most of the information passing through is not stored permanently.
Most experts agree that information is processed in the brain in three important stages:
- Stage 1: Input – The mind is triggered by a stimulus, then responds by evaluating and analyzing this captured information. In this stage, the brain decides whether the information is worth remembering our not. It can be assigned to your short-term memory, rather than your long-term memory.
Information in your short-term memory – also known as your working memory – can only retain about seven items at a time with a time limit of 10-60 seconds.
If that information from your short-term memory advances to your long-term memory, it’s meant for long-term storage. However, over time, if important details aren’t recalled this information can be lost.
- Stage 2: Storage – In the storage stage, the brain organizes, encodes, and stores information for future use. However, the brain may forget the information stored over time if it’s not reinforced.
- Stage 3: Output – In this last stage, the brain determines the best way to use this information and how it should respond to the stimulus. For example, after reading a set of instructions, your brain allows you to use the newly gained information to complete a task.
Why Do You and I Feel So Unorganized?
Clearly, our brains have a process, so it’s out of the woods because it’s doing it’s job.
I think the problem for most of us is that we aren’t controlling our input. We overwhelm our brains with new information and then expect it to retain all of it in a sensible order.
The average person consumes about 10,000 words and 225 messages daily. On any given day, we are reading articles, researching information, and checking messages. This doesn’t even count what you are hearing or watching.
We have reached the era of Information Overload – which means our brains are trying to consume too much data. This causes low mental energy and stress. The effects of information overload can range from mood swings to indecisiveness. For many of us, it shows up as confusion and/or frustration because our brains seem to be running sprint after sprint, unable to slow down.
Then we end up getting distracted, making mistakes, and are less creative and productive.
Life and Learning Are Not Going to Get Any Less Interesting
If you are having trouble organizing thoughts and ideas, it might be time to be more strategic about what information you are consuming each day so that you can effectively manage your attention and time. Here are five strategies to consider using to streamline your attention and navigate information overload:
Strategy #1: Be choosy about choosing – People who manage their time well regularly ask themselves, “Is this worth my time, or is this something to delegate or ignore?”
You are inundated each day with emails, texts, Slack messages, news alerts, and meetings – which makes it more difficult to organize thoughts. You have to become the gatekeeper of your own time and attention. If you aren’t choosy, you are less likely to be proactive where your attention is needed most.
When you’re selective, you can get rid of or ignore what is less important and delegate things that aren’t a priority.
Strategy #2: Pick three to five priorities – As mentioned earlier, your brain can remember about seven things at any one time. If you have to keep looking back at a list or your calendar, that’s a sign you have overloaded your brain.
Narrow your focus to three to five priorities and hone in on exactly what you need to do to accomplish each one. This adds another filter to your brain that can help you maintain your focus and keep out distracting thoughts.
Strategy #3: Understand importance – Not all information, tasks, or decisions are equal. Figuring out what to have for a snack doesn’t deserve as much time and research as deciding whether to accept a new job offer.
Knowing where a decision ranks or the importance of gathering certain information can help you assess how much research needs to be done or how much information you need to make a good, thoughtful decision.
Strategy #4: Put a time limit on information gathering – For those of you with curious minds, this one will be particularly tough.
To avoid unproductive rabbit holes, set a time limit. The information and choices you expose yourself to, the more likely you are to hit information overload and send your brain into a tailspin.
How you use this time to explore and research needs to be strategic. Decide ahead of time what your focus needs to be, the outcome you expect, and how you intend to use the information you discover. Having a plan will keep you from getting distracted and going off-course.
Strategy #5: Turn it off – You can easily cut the amount of information you are exposed to each day by turning off message and news alerts on your phone, tablet, or computer.
Constant notifications will only tempt you to take on more information than necessary or distract you from your priorities. Without constant distractions, you will be able to focus and be in more control of your thought process.
Besides, when you are distracted by notifications, you tend to look at more than just the notification. Before you know it, you are scrolling through 20 minutes of hilarious dog videos. (Or is that just me?)
