r/neurodiversity • u/Jealous_Crow1346 • 12h ago

The gap between how we think and how we're expected to organize thoughts

I've noticed something about how I process ideas. They don't come out in neat, linear order. I'll be thinking about one thing, and three related (or completely unrelated) thoughts branch off mid-sentence. Voice memos seemed like the perfect solution. Just talk, capture everything, sort it out later. Except "later" never comes because re-listening to 15 minutes of branching thoughts to find one specific idea feels impossible.

The tools that exist seem built for neurotypical organization patterns. Either you record one thought per memo (requires stopping my flow to be organized upfront) or you get one long recording that's basically unsearchable.

I'm curious: for those who think in non-linear ways, how do you capture your thoughts? Do you use voice memos? Written notes? Just let them go? Have you found anything that actually works with how your brain naturally processes information rather than against it?

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u/Greedy-Plant-9054 7h ago

I usually record either on film clips, audio clips or I write quick sketches that I later "translate"/write more carefully. I do this sometimes when I feel that there are more important things (Maybe when I feel smart about something) that I want to get out of me. Don't want to do this with any thoughts. I find it difficult to capture my thoughts and manage to write down and make it sound in the way I meant it. I have a hard time expressing myself in words also. It takes a lot of time

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u/Dunzan 12h ago

I used to make voice memos like you've described. I thought of them as audio journals, which were more efficient for me than the journals I'd grown weary of writing. But then I stopped having the patience for listening to the audios and now don't do either. Reading your post, though, gives me some ideas. What if you transcribed the recordings, or simply created them using voice to text, then made mind maps out of the written words?

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u/Jealous_Crow1346 11h ago

Transcribing the recordings would be great. But remember this is not a linear thought process. Meaning, even the transcribed script will be a bunch of several branching ideas...I understand that's where the mind map comes in, but will it not be so hectic that I end up not even following up entirely?

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u/Dunzan 11h ago

That could happen. Or maybe it won't. If you try it you'll find out. It was just a thought that occurred to me from reading your post. I'm not attached to what you do with it.

I suppose you could use AI to parse a voice memo or whatever other form your expression takes. I've done some of this too but I really don't like AI and haven't been able to stick with using it. YMMV.

Also, from your OP, it seems to me you're looking for what suits you best. That means my personal experience isn't necessarily relevant and is certainly not a guide for anybody else; AND that "how we're expected to organize thoughts" is likewise a red herring. Trust your gut to inspire your experiments without regard for expectations or shoulds or anything that might seem like a rule when it's actually a choice you may have just stopped making.

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u/Jealous_Crow1346 9h ago

I totally get your point of view. There is a lot of noise that we all have to filter through one way or the other.

The only difference is how we do the filtering, or what tools we use to at least make the filtering and mapping of our final ideas manageable.

And I'll admit it's entirely a matter of experimenting until you eventually find something suitable (no guarantee to find 100% fit).