In this episode, Kristi explores why lists are more than just an organizational preference—they’re a powerful neuroscience-backed tool for reducing overwhelm and increasing follow-through. She breaks down the Zeigarnik Effect and explains how unfinished tasks quietly tax the brain, fueling stress, imposter syndrome, and mental fatigue.

The episode then offers a practical communication tip for trial attorneys: using physical punctuation to help jurors track transitions, prioritize information, and stay engaged without verbal signposting.

LISTEN HERE:

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why unfinished tasks drain mental energy more than completed ones

2. How the Zeigarnik Effect impacts stress, focus, and follow-through

3. Why micro-actions matter more than motivation

4. How clearly defined tasks calm the nervous system

5. Why “planning” isn’t the problem—stalling is

6. How physical punctuation helps jurors recognize transitions

7. Why visual sameness causes jurors’ brains to disengage

8. How to use your body to signal authority, contrast, and closure

Key Takeaway:

Your brain doesn’t need you to finish everything—it needs clarity. Capturing unfinished work in specific, actionable steps reduces mental load, restores momentum, and creates the conditions for better communication and decision-making.

Favorite Moment:

The realization that lists don’t just organize work—they organize the nervous system—and that naming the next visible action can be enough to bring immediate relief.

Links & Resources:

1. The Zeigarnik Effect https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/zeigarnik-effect

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If this episode helped you feel calmer, clearer, or more motivated, leave a 5-star rating or review—it helps other trial attorneys find this work. And don’t miss next week’s episode, where we’ll talk about how to empower jurors to deliberate successfully.

Until then, keep fostering your voice.

TRANSCRIPT:

Helloooooo!!! Hello Foster Fam! We're a couple weeks into the new year now. How are you settling in? Are you like me where you need a routine? It's kind of a hard thing because I love having the time off and holiday activities, but at a certain point, I'm like..."Get me to bed at a reasonable time. Let me wake up for my regular morning walk. Enough with the snacks and specialty treats. Give me some solid meal planning."

I just do better when i have a routine. I also do better when I can stay mentally organized. So, let’s talk about something that has been quietly running my life for years…And I want to talk about them not just because they make me happy—but because there’s real brain science behind why they reduce overwhelm and increase follow-through.

Let's talk about LISTS. This is where the heavens part, light shines down and the angels sing "AHHHHHH".

I mean...I love me a list.

I love writing things down. And I really love checking things off.

Do you ever do the thing where you put things on your list that you know you already did just so you can check it off?

There is something deeply satisfying about that little checkmark. It gives me a sense of progress, control, and order—especially when life or work feels overwhelming. And the start of the year is when I have a lot to be keeping track of so, I am List Queen of America. And as funny as that sounds, this habit has been one of the most effective tools I’ve used for managing stress, focus, and forward motion.

What I didn’t realize for a long time is that my love of lists wasn’t just personality and my affinity for organization—it was biology. It turns out… there’s actual neuroscience behind why being a list-maker works. It’s called the ZeiGARnik Effect.

The Zeigarnik Effect is a principle from psychology that says:

Our brains remember unfinished tasks better than completed ones.

Incomplete work weighs heavier in our working memory than completed work. It's a lot of open tabs that the brain has to manage. Completed work we get to check off, close out, and move on. The brain releases it, but incomplete work creates a pressure or a compulsion to keep at it.

Here’s where this can start to work against us if we’re not careful though. The mental burden of having all that incomplete work can stir up that nasty old Imposter Syndrome, and turn up the volume on those broken soundtracks that keep you discouraged and keep you judging yourself for not measuring up to your expectation for goals you set, or the performance-level your job requires.

So, here's where the magic of lists comes in. Research shows that putting incomplete items on a list helps close the loop. When everything is floating around in your head, your brain is constantly trying to track it all. But when you put it on paper—or in a notes app, or a project manager—you’re essentially telling your brain:

“I’ve got this. You don’t have to hold onto it anymore.”

But...HOW you make your list matters. This is where most people miss the benefit of lists—and where overwhelm creeps back in. To reduce the mental noise and build some momentum to actually complete tasks, your list needs to be made up of super small mini-tasks. Don't just write "Do X project." That's gonna just lead to overwhelm. You need an ACTION plan.

Break your "X project" into specific, small items and THAT's your list. So...if my goal was to run a 5k, simply putting "run a 5k" on my goals list would only cause me stress, keep me drowned in self-doubt, and stuck.

So, the action list would break that goal down into small items that would help me build towards my completed goal. In addition to breaking things up into a training plan, I would also include micro-tasks like:

1. buy running shoes

2. download a Couch to 5k app

3. create a playlist

4. calendar workouts

5. get my accountability partner on Marco Polo for check ins

Now, I can get stuck in the planning stage, so it's important to get to the doing, but the doing is too overwhelming without the planning in place. The Zeiganik Effect says that taking the first step on a project, no matter how small, can create enough tension to motivate the continuation of the task. Planning isn’t the enemy—stalling is. And action doesn’t have to be big to be effective.

So, you have:

– briefs half-started

– motions you’re “thinking about”

– emails you’ve read but not answered

– prep tasks you haven’t clearly defined

Your brain is holding all of that open. And for you, as a trial attorney—who already carries enormous cognitive and emotional load—that’s a sure recipe for exhaustion. And it's only January!

Get that stuff on a list. Break it down into super small action steps. Your brain doesn’t need you to finish everything. It just needs you to START something clearly. Even a small action closes the mental loop enough to reduce stress.

This is why ACTION matters more than motivation. "Action breeds clarity." (that's one of my 2026 Soundtracks)

Remember, your brain hates ambiguity. It's all the undefined tasks that are keeping you swirling, stressed and overwhelmed.

“Prepare for trial” is overwhelming.

“Draft voir dire questions” is still pretty heavy.

But “Write five voir dire questions about credibility” THAT'S actionable.

The more specific the task, the less mental energy it requires.

This part of the year is when, collectively, we get obsessed with time management techniques and strategies. I mean, it's good to get some systems in place, but instead of managing time, try to think of it as managing open loops.

At the end of the day, ask:

– What am I leaving unfinished?

– Is it clearly captured somewhere?

– What is the next visible action?

You don’t need to do it right then, you just need to name it.

That alone will help your nervous system settle.

So, let's get to list-building. Micro-action steps for the win! 'Cause lists don’t just organize your work—they organize your nervous system.

—COMMUNICATION TIP—

I just want to give you a quick action, communication tip today. This is something simple you can start incorporating in even today. It's the idea of using your body as punctuation. In other words, helping jurors feel when something begins, shifts, or ends—without you having to say "moving on." or "next, I want to talk about." You don't have to announce when you effectively use physical punctuation.

This recently came up as a client was running through their opening with me, and I realized that i kinda felt like they left me hanging. I didn't have a clear sense of sections, or key points even. I wondered why I was feeling so...unfinished...and it occurred to me that I was missing some simple physical cues.

You've heard me say this before, that, when everything SOUNDS the same—when tone lacks variation, when the pace is steady, when there's no shape to the melody, when you're locked into the same pitch level with the same volume level—nothing has meaning. Sameness neutralizes your message.

The same thing happens when everything LOOKS the same.

Jurors’ brains are wired to prefer sameness because it conserves energy—but that preference works against learning and decision-making. They want it because then their brain doesn't have to expend energy. Brains are motivated to seek pleasure, avoid pain, and expend the least amount of energy. That's how it fulfills it's sole mission of keeping you alive. So, when you flatten out your message in sound and in look, your jurors subconsciously check out and their brains love it.

But...that's a terrible condition for decision making. You want their brains active. You want them learning, getting inspired, relating to what you're sharing, internalizing your key points. So, you're fighting their natural neuroscience. You HAVE to physically punctuate in order to them to make sense of what you're saying and pick up on your cues to transition. If jurors don’t sense transitions, their brains don’t know what to prioritize—or what to let go of.

So, for instance...(side note, i'm demonstrating some things. i'll try to say what I'm doing if you're only able to listen, but I recommend hitting up the video of this episode when you can so you can SEE what I'm up to)

So, when you are stepping into your authority to introduce your opening rule, it's important to establish yourself physically. Hands out, palms down, kind of in a table top "this is how it is" position. But after your rule, a lot of times it's easy to just keep going and you head right into your teaching section and you might miss the physical punctuation.

As a juror, that leaves me still receiving you as authority and everything takes on that serious "this is how it is" energy. Key points start to blur, you've got me on edge, and my brain checks out.

Instead, establish your authority, deliver you rule. Then pause. Bring your hands back to resting position — listeners, I have my hands just gently clasped a little higher than my waist line.

By stopping that assertive authority gesture, I'm physically signaling a transition, something different is coming up, we're changing the energy. Those are the signals my brain needs (and your jurors need) to keep me engaged while getting some emotional reprieve. I don't zone out, but I'm also not braced and hunkering down for all the heavy stuff.

Start trying this physical punctuation tactic. Use your body to finish a story. Settle your weight back when you've completed a section. Release a gesture you've been holding for a while. Create a nonverbal ending to create some closure and reinforce the impact of your message.

Tune in next week when we talk about how to empower your jury to deliberate successfully. Until then...keep fostering your voice.