Don’t Burden Your Second Brain, Too

One of the first principles I got from David Allen’s GTD was the idea that the brain is better suited at processing information than it is at storing and retrieving it. The example I usually give is to consider how long you can plan a trip (usually for a couple hours at clip) vs how long you can retain the brilliant idea you had in the shower (often only seconds). This idea was a game changer for me, and I keep it with me daily.

When I encountered the concept of the Second Brain, it fit seamlessly into this premise. In order to reduce cognitive burden and the inevitable stress that comes with it (often a constant simmer in the background, if not going at full tilt), we create and leverage a network of interworking apps, databases, and filing systems to “offload” the many bits of information we take in throughout the day. Doing so allows us to free up our mind to process what’s coming in, make connections, open ourselves up to inspiration, make space for curiosity, and just, well, feel a spectrum of emotions rather than just the one so many of us are most familiar with: anxiety.

But, something I have noticed over time is that a person’s second brain can easily turn into a mirror of the burdened primary brain we’re so determined to free up. In other words, my second brain, like my primary brain, has the potential to become bogged down with information, missing files, hard-to-locate pdfs, unread articles, unprocessed podcasts, and due dates that never seem to show up at the right time.

This is where I think the Express aspect of the CODE methodology becomes radically important.

In the first live session I had with, Tiago Forte, he talked about the need to Express, the need to create, as a means of relieving the pressure that’s built up in a Second Brain spilling over with information. To me, Express is KEY!

If we think of CODE and our SB as directional, then the things that come in should, eventually, go out. Without a means of expression, the information that comes into our SB either stagnates (we don’t do anything with it, and thus bits of information stack on top of one another, causing stress), or they get lost (which also causes stress). It’s in the Express stage where this stress can be relieved.

I often think of it in terms of on / off ramps.

Our “on ramp” is made up of the tools we use to capture (apps, moelskine, etc). The “off ramp” is the practices we employ that get the information out. These might be blog posts, videos, articles, a rock opera, whatever. Inviting your friends over for an impromptu slide show about dog breeds could be an off ramp. Painting a picture can be an off ramp. Even simply writing down the connections you’ve made between two bits of information can be an off ramp. Whatever it is, it’s got move! 💃🏻 Anything you do to get your insights about what came in via the on ramp out via the off ramp will help to reduce cognitive burden, not only in your primary brain, but in your second brain, as well. 🌴