Brain dump everything. See the shape of it.
Type the whole mess in any order. As you write, it gets sorted into what is time-sensitive, what is an actual task, who you owe something to, and what is just an idea worth keeping. Free, private, and gone the moment you close the tab.
This runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere, stored, or used to train anything — refresh the page and it is gone.
Your sorted list appears here as you type. Nothing is graded, nothing is deleted — the same thoughts, grouped so you can see what is actually urgent.
What is a brain dump?
A brain dump is writing down everything in your head without sorting it first — the tasks, the dates, the promises, the vague worries and the ideas you have not decided about. The relief is not from finishing anything. It is from no longer having to rehearse it all to keep it alive.
The catch is what happens next. Most brain dumps end up on a page that is never opened again, so a week later you are holding the same list in your head. The organising step above exists for exactly that: seeing which items have a real deadline, which involve someone else, and which were never tasks at all usually cuts the list down before you do anything.
Stuck on what to dump? Work through these.
The hardest part is remembering what you have forgotten. These prompts pull it out. Answer them straight into the box above.
Open loops
- What have I said “I’ll do that later” about this week?
- What am I avoiding because it needs more than five minutes?
- What did I start and not finish?
Other people
- Who am I waiting on?
- Who is waiting on me?
- What did I promise someone and not write down?
Dates creeping up
- What expires, renews, or runs out soon?
- Whose birthday, appointment, or trip is coming?
- What has a deadline I haven’t looked at properly?
Money and admin
- What bill, claim, refund, or form is outstanding?
- What subscription should I cancel?
- What do I need to book or renew?
Head noise
- What keeps coming back at 2am?
- What idea do I want to keep but not act on?
- What am I worried I’ve forgotten?
The part that usually fails
A brain dump resets your head. It does not keep it that way, because the next fortnight of context — the reply you are waiting on, the date that moved, the thing someone promised you — arrives after the page is closed.
Struxy is built for that gap: you keep dumping in plain language, and it keeps the tasks, people, dates and promises connected over time instead of starting from an empty page each week. It is private by design, and you stay in control of what it remembers.
Brain dump questions
What is a brain dump?
A brain dump is the practice of writing down everything currently occupying your head — tasks, worries, dates, promises, half-ideas — without sorting, judging or prioritising as you go. The point is to move things out of working memory first and decide what to do with them second.
How do I do a brain dump properly?
Set a timer for ten minutes, write one thought per line, and do not stop to organise. Include the vague things — “something about the car insurance” counts. When the timer ends, group what you wrote into time-sensitive items, actions, people you owe something to, and ideas you are keeping but not acting on.
How often should you do a brain dump?
Most people find weekly works, with an extra one whenever they notice the 2am recall starting. A brain dump is a release valve, not a system — if you are needing one daily, the underlying issue is usually that captured items are not being kept anywhere you trust.
Is this brain dump tool free and private?
Yes. It is free, needs no account, and runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is transmitted, stored on a server, or used to train any model. Refreshing the page clears it.
What is the difference between a brain dump and a to-do list?
A to-do list contains things you have already decided to do. A brain dump contains everything, including the things you have not decided about yet. That is why brain dumps feel like relief and to-do lists often feel like pressure.