Conserving Your Cognitive Cash

Do you ever get to the end of your work day exhausted? Would you like to know how to conserve some of that mental energy? Would you like to be able to tap a payload of mental muscle you’ve been squandering your entire life? Yes. Then let’s talk about context…

Context Is Vital…

It defines the meaning of our experience. That’s why we get excited by a sweaty bag of five peanuts on an airplane; not so exciting at a barbecue. And why the garden that seemed too small when I first visited my house with a realtor, now appears much bigger when I’m standing behind a lawn mower. (Apparently, it’s darkest before the lawn.)

Without context, the perceived facts around a particular person, situation or object, information is mental noise. Fortunately, we’re incredibly skilled at establishing context in, even swiftly observed, situations.

Here’s The Catch…

Creating (and switching) context takes some serious mental effort. For example, technology has enabled us to make lightening-fast shifts in our work-space. I can have Word, Photoshop and Facebook open at the same time and switch between them with a single click. And while being able to write my book, edit a photo and engage in internet banter with the entire “world” might make me a Renaissance Man (backed by some serious RAM) my actual (in between my ears) memory can’t keep up.

Every shift between programs represents a shift in context. We need to let go of the details of one project and mentally regroup around a completely different set of relevant data points. And this repetitive flushing and rebooting of our short-term memory as we switch between contexts is mentally draining. That’s why, at the end of a busy day, you feel so exhausted; even if your “heavy lifting” has been entirely mental.

Conserve Your Cognitive Cash

As much as is feasible, when you plan your day limit the number of contextual shifts you are required to make. By grouping together tasks that have a similar context, you are spending your “cognitive cash” more wisely.

For example: Schedule time immediately after a meeting to take action on any new directives that arise. Recognize that if, after the meeting, you begin an unrelated task and then return to your post-meeting agenda at a later time, that’s extra cognitive cash you’re spending.

I appreciate that, in the frenetic day-to-day, you sometimes need to leap contextual divides. You’re chipping away at one task when something “explodes” elsewhere and demands your immediate attention. Next time this happens to you, before you switch from one task to another, take contextual notes. Write a brief reminder to yourself—this is the step I’ve just completed, this is my next action step and these are my current thoughts on this project. When you return to your project, you can leap back into it far more smoothly and with less cognitive effort.

The take home for today is this. Keep context in mind and be quick to ask: How can I schedule my day to conserve cognitive cash?

Quick Confession: Despite my “Renaissance Man” comment, my Facebook Page is very new (and actually looks totally lame). I could do with some fans.

If you have a Facebook account and would like to connect with my page, here’s the link: Steve’s Facebook Page Once you’re at the page, click the button that looks like this…

And, as always, if you’d like to ask a question or make a comment, there’s the “Speak Your Mind” box below…

It’s always fun to hear from you,

Steve