Weekly Email: July 7, 2025
I hope your summer is going well. For me, this is one of the busiest times of the year with summer baseball, family travel, and numerous other responsibilities. I’ve also heard from several students recently who feel similarly stretched, trying to keep their heads above water while juggling everything going on. If that’s you, you’re definitely not alone.
In this week’s email:
Student Tip: When life feels overwhelming, I find a “mind dump” especially helpful. Taking a step back, writing down everything I need to do, and creating a clear plan helps me reset and regain control.
Program News: If you need help planning your next classes, reach out to our Academic Advisors (academicadvising@sbts.edu). They’re ready to assist you and keep you on track.
Student Tip: The Mind Dump
There are some times in my life where I just feel like I have so much going on that I look back over the past week and it seems like I’m not performing well on anything.
Sound familiar?
I was talking with a colleague recently who was in a similar situation, and one of the suggestions I gave him that has been super helpful for me is this idea of just a mind dump.
About fifteen or so years ago, I read David Allen’s Getting Things Done, and it was pretty transformative. One of the key ideas that stuck with me was that your brain isn’t meant to hold your to-do list. It’s for thinking creatively, forming relationships, and focusing on what matters. But there are periods where things get logged in your head. You’re trying to remember everything, and it becomes overwhelming. This is where a mind dump helps.
What Actually Works
Basically, it’s getting everything you’re thinking about on paper. I prefer handwriting, but you can type if that’s faster for you.
Take 45 minutes to an hour and write down everything that comes to mind. Don’t categorize, just capture. This could be as simple as “take out trash on Thursday” or as big as “organize church building campaign” or “finish the Hermeneutics final project.” Big or small, write it down.
When you think you’ve got everything, sit in silence and let more thoughts surface. Usually more will come. After your initial brain dump, check your task manager and old emails for anything you forgot. But get everything from your mind first.
Next, categorize everything into broad buckets: personal, work, ministry, school. Don’t get too fine-tuned here. Then use the Eisenhower Matrix to prioritize. While this framework isn’t perfect, I do find for this exercise it to be helpful. You will want to think through these four categories:
Urgent and important: Categorize these items to do first such as finish a book review that is due in the next couple days
Important but not urgent: Tasks such as an assignment due in the next three weeks or planning out your kid’s birthday party in the next month.
Urgent but less important: This category is tricky because these are the non-critical tasks that are usually easy to do and when we’re stressed it is easy to prioritize over the urgen and important, which usually take more work.
Neither urgent nor important: When you have a lot on your plate you need to remove these tasks or at the very least put them on a separate list for later when things are not as busy for you.
Here’s the key: After you complete your mind dump, identify the next concrete action for your important tasks. When things are overwhelming me, it’s often because I haven’t figured out the actual next step. “Plan vacation” is overwhelming. “Research flights to Florida” is actionable. Write down when you’re gonna do it. Look at your calendar. Having it all in front of you makes progress possible.
When I do this exercise it oftentimes reveals that I’ve probably said yes to too many things. Over the years, I’ve learned the importance of having a vision for what I want my life to look like and saying no to things that don’t fit. You can’t say yes to everything. Part of living a fulfilling life is saying no to the not urgent, not important things.
One warning: I often put too many things in the “urgent and important” category. Go through again and ask, “What’s the real urgency here?” Ideally, you want to work on important but not urgent tasks. That’s where real progress happens.
This process might create anxiety. “Oh my goodness, I have so many things to do!” That’s normal. Sit with those feelings instead of grabbing your phone for distraction. Going through that stress and getting everything on paper is worth it.
For me, by the time I realize I need a mind dump, it’s probably too late. I should do this monthly, but honestly, I’m not great at that. Usually I only do it when I’m completely overwhelmed. I’ve tried putting it on my calendar. I’ll do it for a couple months, then think, “I don’t need this anymore.” But the reason I felt organized was because I was consistently dumping everything onto paper. Being more consistent would help, even though it’s something I want to get better at.
Your Next Move
The next time you feel overwhelmed, when you look back and feel like you’re not performing well on anything, try this. Grab a notebook, find 45 minutes, and dump it all out. You might be surprised by the clarity that comes from getting everything out of your head and onto paper.
Program News: Fall Semester Begins August 4
The fall semester is quickly approaching, so now is the time to finalize your class schedule. If you would like guidance choosing your next courses, our Academic Advising team is here to help. You can schedule an appointment by emailing them at academicadvising@sbts.edu. They are available to talk via Zoom, phone call, or email to help keep you on track.
Our Fall 1 Experiential Modulars also begin on August 4, with the on-campus portion scheduled for September 8–10. Here are the available classes for Fall 1:
20220XMD: Old Testament II with Dr. Jim Hamilton
22100XMD: Biblical Hermeneutics with Dr. Brian Vickers
40020XMD: Introduction to Biblical Worship with Dr. Matthew Westerholm
Register for Experiential Modulars here.
Quick Reference of Upcoming Term Dates:
Current Week: Summer, Week 6 (July 7–13)
Fall 1 Term Begins: August 4, 2025
Fall 2 Term Begins: October 6, 2025
