You know that ‘cooked’ or fried brain feeling ...

When we’re overloaded with too much information, our response might be to say, ‘I can’t take anymore, I’m done.’ 

The ‘I’m done’ statement sounds like we are cooked, roasted, ‘done’ 
and baked. 

And in a way, we are. 

Our brain feels fried and full and there isn’t any more space to take in more content, information or learning.

Whatever we try to add in, seems to overflow and doesn’t stick or stay there. This is cognitive overload. 

Like the overflowing of a dam wall, rising river waters in times of flood, a monster tide on the full moon or a 
glass overflowing at the kitchen sink: all of these situations show 
us what is happening in our brains with information. 

There’s too much information for the space available.

Our brain doesn’t seem to have evolved to cope with the huge amounts of information we’re expecting it to today. 

We don’t help ourselves by doing these 3 things: 

1. trying to just ‘soak up’ information 
2. multitasking with more than one device or source of information 
and
3. repeatedly switching between the sources. 

Look out for when you’re feeling cooked and ‘done’. It’s a clear signal to try a new or different way of handling information. And we don’t have to suffer this. 

Check if you’re doing any of the 3 things listed above. As you reduce these and bring in contrasting behaviours that help with cognitive load coping, you’ll feel better ... quickly. 

Read more in my book:
‘Argh! Too much information, not enough brain: A practical guide to outsmarting overwhelm’. 

The foolish economy of not taking a break

“We don’t need a morning tea break, let’s keep working.”
“We will have a working lunch.“ 
“This is really important, so let’s keep going.”

There they are. The statements of overload and worry that ‘we won’t get through this’ so ‘we have to push on’. 

As a participant and team member I’ve experienced leaders who won’t take a break. 

And as a speaker and facilitator, I’ve had clients not want their team to take a break. I often have to fight for, advocate for or at worst, implore leaders to give people a break. 

The science is well documented: We need breaks. 

Not just to recover physically, but mentally ... to synthesise information, consolidate information and even ... go to the bathroom! 

A lot of good stuff happens in the break from the talking, thinking, listening and pushing of information. 

Connections, reflections and important thought processes are being executed. Brain actions that may not be possible during the intensity of the never-ending workshop or meeting need to happen, and a break is when it occurs. 

To think we ‘can’t afford’ to take a break is foolish. 

What are you worried will happen? 
Disengagement? Loss of momentum? Slower progress? It’s already happened because there wasn’t a break. 

At the least, break so people can empty their ‘cognitive load’ - the information they’re holding in their brain, and just like a truck we can’t carry more when it’s full. We must empty and ‘unload’ before we expect people to ‘reload’. 

Breaks are mandated in fields like aviation, healthcare, transportation, building and construction ... even retail. 

The consequences are disastrous when breaks are ignored or deemed less important than pushing on through. 

🌕 Break during a meeting or workshop 
🌕 Break between meetings and workshops
🌕 Break during intense and heavy work
🌕 And break for longer than you think. 

You don’t need a complicated well-being program. Just take more breaks.

Dr Amy Silver said...

“You will want to keep this one close to hand; it could become your guide to getting more of what you want out of your life.”

Thank you Dr Amy Silver MAPS ClinPsyD MA MPhil BSc(Hons) for reading and reviewing ‘Argh! Too much information, not enough brain; A practical guide to outsmarting overwhelm’. 

She said, “In a world where overwhelm is a state that many of us suffer from, this book is the manual on how to manage it. 

“As with all Lynne Cazaly books, this is an immensely practical book, that reminds us of the power we can have over our complicated lives even though it seems, well, overwhelming. 

“With clear strategies and immediately usable tools to neutralize the sensation of being out of control, this book is for anyone struggling to keep on top of their to do list!”


To outsmart overwhelm, overwork and information overload ... have a read of ‘Argh!’  

Where does your work come from

How do the things on your ‘to-do’ list get there? 

We can be overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of tasks and things we have to do. 

A reality is that we may not ever get to the end of our task list. 

So how do you become overloaded? 

When you see things starting to pile up, stay alert to the overload of work. 

Consider if:
- I created the work
- I allowed it to be added to my list of responsibilities (and yes, sometimes that’s the nature of work, we have to do things as we are directed or expected)
- I ignored it and then more and more work was added to my list 
or
- I outsmarted it...I stayed alert to what was happening. Consider whether or not a task or project is really what you need and want to do, whether it belongs with you.  

We may not be overloaded and overwhelmed with work everyday. But the next time you feel the pressure of ‘there’s too much to do’, consider where it’s coming from. 

Too much to deal with

I’ve been reading, researching and thinking a lot about overwhelm.

Overwhelm means to bury or drown beneath a huge mass of something. And frequently ... it’s our work and responsibilities!

When you see the usage of a word over time, it’s interesting to note when it started, peaked and what it is doing today.

Overwhelm as a word was at its peak in the 1800s. Use tapered off in the early to mid 1900s and the word has experienced a great resurgence of use since 2019. 

I wonder why?!

The Cambridge Dictionary says overwhelm is a verb, of force. To defeat someone or something by using a lot of force.

Alternatively, the emotion defines overwhelm as to cause someone to feel sudden, strong emotion.

At its simplest, overwhelm means to have ‘too much to deal with’.

We’ve all experienced this - a time when things felt ‘too much’.

Rather than just ‘sucking it up buttercup’, ‘soldiering on’ or ‘pushing on through’ in a war with our overwhelm, I think we can do something different...

My book ‘Argh!: Too much information, not enough brain’ is out.

I hope it helps you outsmart overwhelm from some different perspectives.