Applying The Power Of Intention Through Planning

Have you ever felt so overwhelmed by random incomplete tasks that you feel like you lose yourself in it?  Things just keep adding up to the point where you feel like you’re drowning in them, you lose clarity, and you have no idea where to even start.  Does this happen to you often?

I can definitely relate to this cycle as it’s a conundrum I use to find myself in on a weekly basis.  I’d feel so bad about how little I could accomplish because my mind would just spin and spin. I’d get very little done, yet I’d be mentally and psychologically exhausted.

Eventually, I figured out that my brain would function a lot better with some much needed structure.  I desperately needed to spend much less time chasing my tail and more time actually being productive.  I do this using the power of intention through planning. In this post, we will be covering how to tackle the sense of overwhelm by intentional planning in just two simple steps!

• The Brain Dump

• The Planning Method

If you are someone who deals with overwhelm whether it’s regularly or intermittently, grab yourself a cup of coffee and allow me to share with you some tips that have been working wonders for me!

The Brain Dump

“Winging it” seems like minimal effort, but it’s not something that works for everyone all the time.  I actually find that I spend more energy on trying to figure everything out as I go rathe than applying a little bit of forethought.  It’s kind of a nightmare for someone like me who is indecisive, extremely busy and a commuter.  Sure, there are times when we have no other choice, but I aim to live my life with as little anxiety as possible.  I just try not to invite it, ya know?  Whether I’ve been extremely busy season of life or have just simply gotten off track, the brain dump is the best first step I have found and it works like a charm every time!

If you haven’t heard of this already, the brain dump is nothing more than getting all of the noise out of your head and on to paper (or screen… whichever works best for you!).  There is no method to the madness here, either.  There is no order.  Just get it out of your brain and onto something you can see.  Do this as thoughts/tasks come to you in no specific order.

I do small versions of a brain dump at the start of each work day just so I can make sure I am prioritizing what absolutely has to get done.  My small version usually is a task list that I can fit on a sticky note (these are so helpful, especially the ones with lines!). Then, I do a larger version for my personal life once each week (or more as needed, though once is typically sufficient).

I even use this method to get myself organized enough to publish a blog post!  I pretty much start everything with a brain dump because it’s something simple that works so well.

I like to start my brain dump toward the end of the week but prior to the weekend, usually on a Thursday or Friday at the latest and I’m mindful of which day I’d like to shop for groceries.  When I first started this process, I would wait until Saturday which would delay grocery shopping until Sunday. I’d feel robbed of my weekend every time because I spent the entire time planning and preparing for the next week.  While I realize that sometimes that’s just the way it has to be, I have found that getting this started earlier usually leads to getting to enjoy my weekend more and actually relaxing.

The hubs and I can hang out, have a beer and watch some football or maybe the kitchen is calling me to step into my creative space.  That calling happens a lot more for me when my mind is free from clutter and I know you’re going to love getting to experience the same!

Once you have all of your To Do’s onto your brain dump list, you’re ready to move onto the next step!  I can not even begin to convey to you how satisfying this can be!

The Planning Method

After completing your brain dump, you can now begin categorizing your tasks.  Do this however works best for you!  For me, I like to categorize by the following:

• Self Care/Maintenance

• Homemaking (Meal Plan, Meal Prep Menu, Cleaning, Organizing)

• Shopping (Groceries, Orders)

• Projects

Self Care/Maintenance

It’s so easy to get caught up in the daily grind, or get caught by one of life’s unexpected challenges.  Unfortunately self care is the first thing that gets put off, and before I know it, I feel l like I’m in a slump, needing to nourish my spirit.   If I allow it to go unchecked, I can spiral into a depression rather than happy creativity.  I’ve been through the cycle of not taking care of myself enough times to know that I have to prioritize it.

I finally started adding self care and maintenance to my list because basically if a task didn’t make the list, it’s probably not going to get done.  Just recently, I realized that something as small as giving myself a quick pedicure and/or soaking in the tub for 20 minutes was never getting done even though I was making a point to put it on the list for several weeks in a row!  Each week, I’d look over the list and everything would be checked off except for my self care.  So, I finally made the executive decision to prioritize my little self care tasks early into my weekend and perhaps even making them the first tasks to complete.  You can’t pour from an empty cup, right?

Something else I recently got back into on the self care topic is adding inexpensive florals all over the house.  My goodness, it’s the gift that keeps on giving!  I buy the little 3 for $12 bundles at my local grocery store and mix them into several arrangements.  As long as they’re not super delicate (like roses), they can last for 2 weeks and look amazing!  I do recommend making sure you use the plant food that comes with them, changing out their water weekly and snipping the bottoms at an angle to keep them fresh.  It’s so rewarding to have a little pop of fresh color throughout the house and it’s totally affordable!

Homemaking

I don’t know about you, but usually the brunt of my to do list are homemaking tasks.  Everything is on a cycle and nothing stays clean, lol.  Always and forever.  I will always have dishes to wash and laundry to do.

Planning at least three meals for our week ahead of time and adding what we need for those meals to a grocery list has been one of the best transitions we have made for our home.  We always have a grocery list going that we keep in a place that’s easy for us to get to and jot things down as we think of them.  This has been so helpful for us because outside of that, all we really need to add to it each week are the groceries needed to fulfill our weekly meal plan menu and voila… the grocery list is complete!

My husband and I both are very comfortable cranking out really delicious meals, but sometimes we are uninspired and have a hard time thinking of what we want to eat.  When this happens, without a doubt, I ALWAYS turn to Pinterest!  It’s just so easy to search for whatever criteria I’m aiming to meet at the time, like high protein, low carb, or even just something out of the ordinary just to try something new.

I also really enjoy meal prepping whether it’s just ingredient prepping, full menu meal prepping or even just being intentional about making a large meal on Sunday so we can eat leftovers for a few days.  If you’re looking for menu ideas that are gluten free, paleo/keto friendly or just generally healthy and are not lacking in flavor, I absolutely recommend Feeling Fabulous with Kayla Chandler’s blog and YouTube channel.  She is a holistic nutritionist with a love for eating well. I have tested many of her recipes for my meal prep menus and she does not disappoint!  If meal prep menus are something that peek your interest, please stay tuned because I have a lot I plan to add to this blog!

Shopping

I use to look at this as one for my biggest feats for the weekend, but I really think that’s changed now that I’m prepared.   If you’re strapped for time or just want to avoid shopping with the rest of your entire town all at once lol, we recommend trying to find another day to shop.  Most people tend to shop on Sunday mornings where we live, but we have started Friday night or Saturday morning shopping and it is insane what a difference it makes!  Of course weeknights are fair game as well.

Projects

As I write this blog, it’s Sunday afternoon and I have two tasks I included in my brain dump that are still incomplete.  This is because I view them as projects and not impactful if I put them off until later.  Some projects I add are on a grander scale, however some are smaller, like these.  For example, my two projects are:

• Purge Closets & Donate

• Purge Cosmetics

Both of these are going to be time consuming and certainly rewarding, however not vital for this weekend.  The closets will take me at least one full day, plus a trip to Goodwill while the makeup is more of a phycological hurdle lol.  It’s so hard to purge when you spent good money, whether or not it’s old and no longer the same product you purchased.  It’s one that I know I need to be in a certain mental space for and I knew I didn’t have time for either of these tasks this weekend.  However, I do want to complete them eventually, so I went ahead and added them to the list where they will carry over until next week… maybe even the week after until I can finally schedule them when they can fit into my weekend.

Now that we have established this routine for our home, the monotonous weekly grind feels much lighter to both of us.  We are both aware of tasks that need to be completed and we both enjoy the satisfaction of marking things off the list!  I would like to close with one more piece of advice and that is to please be mindful of your spirit.  Give yourself grace when you make your list.  Be realistic about how long each task is going to take and what it’s priority is.  You can choose to allow this list to overwhelm you further or you can prioritize and get done with you can.  That’s usually the most beautiful part to me, actually… even if the entire list isn’t checked off, because I got it all written down, I was able to get much more done than I ever could have just “winging it”.

I hope you give this a try if you aren’t already and I would absolutely love to hear your feedback on how it’s working for you!  Send me an email at jayme@ladyunchained.com!

Happy Planning!