194: How to Organize Your To-Do List When You Feel Overwhelmed (Brain Dump Method)

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How to Organize Your To-Do List When You Feel Overwhelmed (Brain Dump Method)

Drowning in an overwhelming to-do list that never seems to get shorter? In this episode of Thrive in Five, business coach Cindy Gordon reveals her game-changing Brain Dump Method that transforms chaotic task lists into organized, actionable calendar systems.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why your brain can only handle 7 pieces of information at once (and what this means for your productivity)
• The Brain Dump to Calendar Method: Complete Brain Dump → Three-Category Sort → Calendar Integration
• How to distinguish between "urgent" and "important" when everything feels pressing
• Why scheduling tasks in your calendar (not just listing them) changes everything
• Real client example: from 73-item overwhelm to organized action in 2 weeks
• The psychology behind why traditional to-do lists create more stress, not less

Perfect for: Overwhelmed female entrepreneurs and busy business moms who feel like they're always behind despite working constantly.

Episode Highlights: "When your to-do list lives in your head, your brain treats every item as equally urgent. That's why buying dog food feels just as pressing as launching your new program."

"This isn't a failure - it was clarity. She could finally see why she always felt behind and make realistic plans instead of impossible ones."

Stop trying to organize chaos in your head. Start turning brain dumps into structured action plans that actually work.

👉 Tag @ExclusivelyCindy on Instagram/Facebook and share how you're using this tip as an overwhelmed entrepreneur - I'd love to connect and hear your story!

💡 Don't forget to subscribe for more quick productivity tips for overwhelmed business owners and female entrepreneurs!

💌 Get exclusive overwhelm solutions and productivity strategies for entrepreneurs straight to your inbox - sign up now! https://cindygordon.myflodesk.com/countmein

The OVERWHELM CURE - Beat entrepreneur overwhelm in one hour! Perfect for overwhelmed business owners who need fast results - https://exclusivelycindy.thrivecart.com/the-overwhelm-cure/

Daily Success Framework - Productivity system for overwhelmed entrepreneurs: https://stan.store/cindygordon/p/get-my-daily-success-framework-now

Get your Printable Success Affirmation Cards for Business Owners here: https://stan.store/cindygordon/p/success-affirmation-cards-digital-download

Connect with Cindy Gordon - Reality Check Method Coach for Overwhelmed Entrepreneurs:

• Website: ExclusivelyCindy.com
• Instagram: ...

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
What if I told you that yourchaotic never ending to-do list
actually isn't the problem, butthe problem is that you're
trying to organize it while it'sswirling around in your head.
It's like trying to fold laundryin a tornado.
You get the picture today we arediving into the brain dump
method.
My foolproof system for takingthat overwhelming mental mess
and transforming it into astructured, accountable calendar

(00:23):
that gives you back control ofyour time and sanity.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
Welcome back to Thrive in Five, where I give you
a quick burst of motivation andproductivity in five minutes or
less.
I'm Cindy, your host, aself-made entrepreneur, busy
mom, and a business coach.
I've built and sold severaldigital businesses ranging from
five to six figure successes.
So when it comes to managingtime and priorities in both life

(00:49):
and work, I get it.
I've been there and I am here tohelp you thrive.
Here's what's happening whenyour to-do list feels
overwhelming.
You're trying to organize allthe tasks that are still
bouncing around in your head,like little ping pong balls.
Take a moment and grasp thatvisual.
Your brain is working over time,trying to remember everything,

(01:10):
prioritize everything, andmanage everything all at once.
I see this constantly with thewomen that I work with.
Brilliant entrepreneurs who aredrowning in their own success
because they're carrying theirentire business in their mental
memory bank.
You've got client deliverablesmixing with grocery lists,
mixing with business ideas,mixing with the thing you

(01:31):
promised that you would do threeweeks ago.
Oh yeah.
And carpool.
The result, decision fatigue,analysis, paralysis, and that
awful feeling that you arebehind no matter how hard you
work.
Here's the science behind whythis happens.
Your brain can only hold aboutseven pieces of information in
working memory at any giventime.

(01:52):
But as entrepreneurs, we'retrying to juggle dozens of
tasks, deadlines, andresponsibilities simultaneously.
When your to-do list lives inyour head, your brain treats
every item as equally urgent.
That's why buying dog food feelsjust as pressing as launching
your new program.
Your nervous system can'tdistinguish between what's
actually important and what'sjust noisy.

(02:15):
This is exactly why traditionalto-do lists fail.
They're just brain dumps withoutstructure, which means your
overwhelm transfers directlyfrom your head to the paper.
So here's my method that I useto transform chaos into clarity.
I call it the brain dump tocalendar method.
It's one of the things that Iteach in my coaching.

(02:36):
Step one, complete the braindump.
Set a timer for 10 minutes andwrite down everything.
And I mean everything that'staking up mental real estate
business tasks.
Personal errands.
That conversation that you needto have, that random idea you
had in the shower.
No editing, no organizing, justdump it all out of your head and

(02:58):
onto paper.
Step two, the three categoriessort now sort everything into
three buckets.
We have a do today, do thisweek.
And do eventually.
Don't overthink this.
Trust your gut instincts.
If it doesn't fit into today orthis week, it goes into the
eventually pile where itbelongs.
Step three, calendarintegration.
Here's where the magic happens.

(03:19):
Take your do today items andactually schedule them into your
calendar with specific timeblocks, not just on a list in
your calendar as if they areappointments with yourself,
because they are.
Let me give you some practicalsteps to make this work.
First, choose a consistent placefor all of your brain dumps.
I use a simple notebook, but youcould use your phone or your

(03:41):
computer.
Just pick one and stick with it.
Next, do your brain dump at thesame time every day.
I recommend either first thingin the morning or last thing
before bed.
This creates a mental boundarybetween thinking time and doing
time.
Third, treat your calendarblocks like sacred appointments.
If you've scheduled writenewsletter from 10 to 11:00 AM

(04:01):
that time is booked.
You wouldn't cancel a clientmeeting for something random, so
don't cancel on yourself either.
Let me share a real example.
I recently worked with anentrepreneur named Lisa, and she
came to me with a 72 item to-dolist that was making her feel
like a failure every single day.
We did the brain dump methodtogether and discovered that 45

(04:24):
of those items actually belongedin the eventually category.
15 in the this week category,and only 13 that needed to
happen that day.
But here's the breakthroughmoment.
When she put those 13 items intoher calendar, she realized that
she only had four hours ofactual work time available.

(04:45):
This wasn't a failure, this wasclarity.
She could finally see why shealways felt behind and make
realistic plans instead ofimpossible ones.
Within two weeks, she went fromoverwhelm to control simply by
getting everything out of herhead and into the right time
slots.
Listen, your to-do list isn'tsupposed to be a weapon you use

(05:05):
against yourself.
It's supposed to be a tool thatcreates freedom and clarity in
your business and life.
The brain dump method worksbecause it honors how your brain
actually functions while givingyou a clear roadmap for action.
You are not just making lists.
You are creating a system thatturns chaos into a calendar and
overwhelm into organization.

(05:26):
Remember, you already haveeverything you need to succeed.
You just need to get it out ofyour head and into a structure
that supports you instead ofstressing you out.
And remember, you've got thisnow go grab that pen and start
dumping.

Speaker (05:43):
Thanks for tuning into the Thrive in Five podcast.
If you found value in today'sepisode, I'd love for you to
leave a review.
It helps more listeners discoverthe show and don't forget to
subscribe so you never miss adose of productivity,
motivation, and success tips.
And hey, share this episode witha friend that could use a little
extra inspiration.
Until next time, keep thriving.

(06:04):
And remember, you've got this.