ldstephens

Re - Writing notes helps you remember — and forget

Juha-Matti Santala

Writing notes helps me remember things.[…] If I don’t remember it by heart, my notes remember it for me and thus I can go back and find things that I’ve deemed worthy of remembering. But it also helps me forget. If there’s something that keeps bothering me and steals my (very sparse) brain cycles — usually for worrying purposes —, writing it down tells my brain it’s okay to let it go. I do this often with my journal into which I pour my worries.

Early in my adult life, I learned to write it down. While on my first real job, my boss asked me to do something important, and I forgot. He reprimanded me and told me that from then on, instead of trying to remember everything, I should start a list, write everything down, and refer to it frequently. I told myself, ‘I’m never going to forget again.' I write everything down.

I’m not smart enough to remember everything I need to. And honestly, I don't want to clutter my brain with things I might forget, especially if it's important.

For years, Drafts has been my go-to for capturing anything I need or want to remember. Whether it's the middle of the night, during my daily walk, while on the phone, or anytime an idea strikes, I jot it down in Drafts. It frees my mind. Then, during the day, I process everything I've written.