My brain feels zapped. I feel like I have reached capacity and need to delete some programming in order to free up memory space. Or maybe I just feel like an outdated broken computer?

I have been reading Tim Grahl’s new book Running Down A Dream: Your Road Map to Winning Creative Battles. I listen to Tim’s podcast The Story Grid, so I was actually just reading the book because I want to support his work. Also, I had listened to several episodes about the creation of Running Down A Dream, so it made sense to read the final product. I assumed that it would not have any relevant information for my life.

I assumed wrong.

I’m not even halfway through, but I have learned about so many tools that I cannot wait to implement in my life. First: Tim writes about removing non-essential activities to free up time for actual work. That’s something that has been on my mind all summer. I started watching less t.v. to free up more time for the activities I actually want to do before bed. I’m also making some other big changes that I’ll write about in later posts.

Tim also writes about creating systems for activities that can be put on auto pilot. This is something I have also been thinking about, but I have not put into action. But reading about Tim’s story, I feel motivated to take a look at my life and create some systems for the tasks that eat up my creative energy.

For example, the “getting ready for school shit show.” We do the same things every morning. I’ve been using checklists for several months, and the checklists help me cruise through the morning routine. But. I still make the checklists every night. And I usually forget to include something which throws me into panic mode. Why am I wasting that energy? Why not create a system? Something that I can build – which will take a little more effort in the beginning – but which will then serve me for the entire school year.

Over lunch, I just typed up some weekly checklists for the morning routine and the afternoon tango (homework! pack lunches! all that crap!) I’m going to print, laminate and hang the checklists in the kitchen. Then I can see if/how they help my overloaded brain and report back.

I want to do the creative work. I’ve started writing a fantasy series. I love it! But the work of motherhood drains my creative juices. So damnit, I need to put as much of my life as possible on autopilot, create systems and habits, and free up some brain capacity for the work that I was born to do.

Excuse me, I have to go print some checklists…