School and work analogies for support systems

Ozempic is to food chatter as Index cards are to the invisible work of being a household manager. We write any thought down, cognitive offloading, and free up capacity to THINK. As household managers we aren't struggling so much with the housework, it's all of the invisible thoughts that interrupt what we were doing and now can't remember what we need to do. We are constantly volleying between working memory and prospective memory! Your working memory is your primary executive function. I want your working memory to serve its actual purpose, not just remembering to put the clothes in the dryer. What does that mean? Catch the full episode!!

New Rules

Imagine you head back to school after break and the school says that's it, no more backpacks, lockers, or computers. You must carry everything with you throughout the day. That's a lot to carry right? But we practice this everyday when we try to remember everything with no support staff, no help. And as soon as we think of something we need to do there's a "ding", a notification, a text, an interruption. So just like they gave new rules, I have a new rule for you…write everything down. It's hard to keep trying to remember everything -that's what working memory is - your brain constantly reminding you of what needs to get done.

There is science backing the idea that writing things down helps with recall. One study I shared confirmed yes it's better for recall and another study backed that hypothesis up with an MRI showing different blood flow when we hold a pen and write on paper than even a stylist to a screen. May I point out that when you are pen to paper there is no notification or anything else interrupting your thought process other than other thoughts. Which if you write each one down they won't interrupt your mindfulness. You can stay focused on your current task. I explained all of this when I gave the example of something as simple as trying to input a passcode. The amount of things that can interrupt you when you are simply "sending yourself a passcode" to then enter on an app, site, or browser that you need, is comical.

I accidentally started using this system, which has proven effective, a long time ago of just writing everything down. And in this fast paced world with notifications distracting you continuously, it's a system to record what you want to remember (Prospective Memory)…what have you got to lose? Go grab a 5 pack of index cards and let your brain's flood gates open, then start writing them down.

Got a Full Classroom?

Now imagine that you are the professor. Your working memory (the ability to hold information in your mind and manipulate it to complete work) is the classroom. It's orientation day for over 100 freshman college students. Can you hear all that chatter of the students? Can you even think? All those students are your thoughts. Now, you can clear out that classroom by writing down each thought. You write down the thought, the student leaves the classroom, and you gain back some of your working memory. That's why we write every thought down. You need to quiet your brain so you can think, not remember simple tasks like housework. Just because you are born a girl does not mean you innate know this skill.

Do the System

A system works best when you do the system. If you've heard me say it once, then you've heard me say it a thousand times, write down every thought! Pen to index card. Once you start to cognitively offload your thoughts (to move from your brain to your environment) you free up capacity allowing you to tackle much bigger tasks. Now that you have everything written down, there is no magic that all the sudden everything gets completed. Tune in next week because I am going to tell you the next step and explain why it works.

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