Your Brain is Hoarding Trash : Time to Take It Out!
Your mind can get like a messy room – cluttered with random junk, half thoughts, and emotional dust bunnies. If you let it linger, just like environmental clutter, it can drain your focus, energy, and sanity. It’s spring – let’s tidy that shit!
Step 1 : Braindump the Chaos
Get a piece of paper (or five) and purge every single thought, worry, or task onto the page. Don’t do this digitally – it’ll be much more cathartic if you make it a physical list.
Now go through each item and ask, “Does this matter? Why am I holding onto this?” If there’s no good reason, and it really doesn’t matter, toss it.
Spend a few minutes afterward in mindful meditation to help you reset.
Step 2 : Cut the Energy Vampires
Energy monitoring. Keep track of what (or who) leaves you feeling energized vs exhausted. If it consistently drains you, unsubscribe.
Regrets and “what ifs”. Living in the past is like keeping rotten food in the fridge – Toss it!
Guilt and obligation that isn’t yours. Not your problem? Drop it!
Toxic relationships. Some mental clutter comes from people draining the life out of you. If they harshen your vibe, cut them out.
Self-doubt and imposter syndrome. If it’s not making you better, it’s weighing you down.
Mindless distractions and doomscrolling. Don’t let the algorithm dictate your mental real estate. If it doesn’t add value to your life, it’s a distraction.
Embrace minimalism in mind. If a thought, relationship, or commitment isn’t a “hell yes!”, it’s a “fuck no!”
Set hard boundaries, and stick to them – No apologies, no guilt. What needs to be cleared away so that you have room to grow?
Step 3 : Hit the “Reset” Button on Your Mindset
Sometimes a deep reflection can help you evaluate where you are vs where you want to be.
Sometimes you just need a kick in the ass. Here are some quick reset ideas :
Cold shower : Shocks you into a different mindset
Brisk walk : Moves stagnant energy out of your body
Powerful affirmations : Repeat something that actually hits (not just “I am strong”, but more like “fuck it!”)
Keep Your Mental Space Clean (Or At Least Less Messy)
Decluttering isn’t a one-time thing – make it a daily habit! Your mind should be a place you enjoy, not a cluttered attic full of ghosts and rabid mice. If a thought, habit, or person isn’t paying rent for your mental real estate, evict them immediately.
Any “quick reset” ideas? Drop them in the comments below!
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Is it just me, or does winter feel like it lasts for years? I loathe bundling up in bulky clothes just so I can step out the door, so I generally don’t leave the house unless I really need to (even though I know it only makes things worse). Because of that, I find myself restless as all hell. I’ll start working on something and then find 50 more things I could do. Before I know it, I’m driving myself crazy learning things I don’t really give a shit about and stressing over a massively unnecessary task list.
The Struggle is Real. Every year.
Perfect example – The other day, I found myself freaking out about my blog. Am I in the right “niche” for what I want to create? I even went down a rabbit hole about AI agents—do I need one? Do I even know what one is? Researching and tweaking and…all of a sudden I have a task list full of bullshit busywork! Why? Apparently I’m bored!
I slammed the brakes and thought “Does any of this really matter? No? Then fuck it!” In this scenario, all I need to concern myself with is creating valuable content that I enjoy sharing. There’s no reason to overcomplicate that.
Simplify and Break Free
I’m sure you can relate, especially during winter. You have this tired, restless energy, but you have nothing useful to do with it so you just stress yourself out. What can we do?
What matters? Make a list. Keep it as simple as possible. Embrace some selective apathy instead of spiraling and drop the guilt about things that don’t really matter to you.
Create small “chaos breaks”. Dance, wash five dishes, or write out a messy braindump (and then throw it in the recycling bin if it ultimately doesn’t matter!)
Get outside, even for five minutes – just enough to feel the cold slap some sense into you. Like I said, I loathe bundling up, but the crisp fresh air does do wonders for snapping me into a different mindset.
Channel restless energy productively. Work on something that does matter to you, whatever that may be.
Bonus : Create something to look forward to. You don’t need to lock anything in – just let yourself dream a little. Personally, I like to brainstorm ideas for summer travel, tattoos, parties, my garden, local hiking spots, concerts, and exterior property maintenance. Most don’t happen, but that’s fine—I like having options.
Conclusion
It’s normal to feel restless in winter, and it’s ok to feel like you’re in a rut sometimes. Check your priorities, cut the bullshit, and give yourself something to look forward to! And enjoy these times of rest and reflection while they last.
If you liked this article, please give it a “like”, share it with friends, subscribe if you’re new, and leave me a comment down below – What do you do when you’re feeling restless?
Well… that’s one way to do it…! Image created with Copilot
Why Your Digital Life Needs an Audit
Your digital life is your second home – So why let it turn into a dumpster fire of random files and endless notifications? Do you really need screenshots of that recipe from 3 years ago?
The mental load of digital clutter distracts from creativity, focus, and growth. That’s not to mention the importance of securing your accounts and cutting down on unnecessary digital footprints.
It’s time to reclaim your digital life on your terms. I do this at least once a year, and I always feel like everything’s so much easier to deal with afterwards!
The Punk Manifesto for a Digital Audit
In brief : Keep what’s relevant, and what empowers you. Delete what doesn’t. When in doubt or overwhelm, archive ruthlessly into the searchable abyss.
The PARA Method (ref “Stop Scrolling” post) can be applied to almost anything that can be organized and searched.
This is about freedom, not perfection.
There is no “one size fits all” system – Do what works for you.
The Checklist
I tried to be inclusive, so not everything will apply to you. Do whatever you need to do. It may help to rearrange this list by which device it makes the most sense for you to work on each task (for example, laptop, phone, or tablet) – An analog mind map might help with organizing, or a digital file.
It might also help to review this list and select your top 3 areas : What stresses you out most? Where do you spend the most time looking for what you need? Start there.
In no particular order, here we go…
Email – Aim for “Inbox Zero”
Unsubscribe from any boring junk
Flag spam as such
Set up folders / labels for organizing essentials
Create filters for automation (if that would be helpful)
Create a separate “junk email” that you never bother to check
Create a spicy auto reply (”I’m busy doing awesome things, I’ll get back to you ASAP!”)
Phone stuff : voicemails, texts, contacts
Cloud and device files and stuff
Delete or archive old or unnecessary files (duplicate photos, outdated documents)
Organize other files into intuitive folders (use PARA, organize by year, or both!)
Backup important files (only important files!)
Consider backing up to an external hard drive
Delete unused apps, programs, and home screen distractions
Cleanup desktop, and downloads folders
Update software and apps you do use
Utilize your computer’s built in disk cleanup, storage optimization, defrag; clear cookies & cache
List cloud files to tackle (ie Google Photos, Google Drive, etc)
Clean up browser bookmarks & history
Turn off any annoying notifications
Social Media
List the social media you use (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, etc)
Unfollow accounts that are inactive or don’t add any value to your headspace
Audit your profiles for authenticity
Check privacy settings
Avoid oversharing!
Clean up saved posts and playlists
Security and Passwords
Consider using a password manager
Update weak or repeated passwords
Enable two factor authentication on important accounts (Google, banks, etc)
Check for and remove old accounts
Update security software
Subscriptions and Permissions
Cancel services you no longer use or need ($5 subscriptions add up!) – try the Rocket Money app (I plan to soon!)
Audit app permissions (who really needs access to your location?!?)
List the e-commerce sites you use (Amazon, eBay, Temu, etc)
Gamify the process by making a points system for every action completed, and treat yourself to rewards for milestones of points earned
Journal through the process :
How can streamlining your digital life help you take charge of your time and energy?
What do your digital habits reveal about your priorities?
What do you actually need to feel organized and in control of your digital life?
What habits led to clutter, and how can you avoid that next time?
Personally, my YouTube subscriptions were out of control, as was the spam in my email – It’s so much easier to deal with now that I’ve culled the clutter! And archiving has been my BFF for old files that I’m just not sure if I’ll need sometime in the future (but probably won’t, lol).
Tools to Simplify Your Digital Life
I don’t use password managers, but I’ve heard good things about LastPass and BitWarden. If you’re like me & prefer an analog password manager, here’s one I created to print!
Digital note apps : I use Notion, but Google Keep, Obsidian, Capacities, and Evernote are other good options.
Focus apps : I liked Forest when I used it, it’s cute. Freedom is another that I’ve heard of.
To do list apps : I’ve used Notion and Google Keep for that. Todoist is pretty popular. For household cleaning tasks, I’ve been using Sweepy for years!
Try & use whatever resonates with you!
Embrace Your Chaos Free Digital World
Digital audits are less about perfection and more about taking back your time, space, and energy. Take control of your digital world, and rule it like a boss.
If you enjoyed this post, please give it a “like”, help someone else ditch digital chaos by sharing this guide!, and leave a comment down below to let me know : What area are you going to start with? Did I leave anything out?
zen BLITZ 