Cognitive Crafting: Heuristic to Catalyze Time Management

Today we’re talking about heuristics, or “life rules”—simple mental shortcuts that make decision-making easier and life more manageable. Here’s what you’ll take away from this episode:

✅ Create your own life rules! Heuristics reduce cognitive overload and help you make faster, smarter decisions. Start by identifying tasks that drain you and build simple systems to handle them.

✅ Use the one-touch rule. Instead of handling the same task multiple times, take action immediately. Sort mail as soon as it arrives, put items where they belong, and simplify your workflow.

✅ Group similar tasks together by assigning certain days for finances, creative work, or errands. This keeps your mind focused and reduces decision fatigue.

✅ Pay attention to when you have the most focus and creativity. Schedule deep work for high-energy times and save routine tasks for low-energy moments.

✅ My favorite heuristic, “everything is art,” changed the way I approach creativity. Look for opportunities to repurpose, reimagine, and bring meaning to everyday objects and decisions.

Want to bring more ease, creativity, and flow into your life? Start crafting your own life rules and see how small changes can lead to big transformations. What’s one heuristic you already use?

Episode Breakdown 🎧
00:00 Introduction to Heuristics
01:55 Personal Story: Overcoming Grief
02:59 Heuristics: Definition and Importance
05:01 Examples of Heuristics
07:16 Theme Days as Heuristics
09:14 Energy Matching Heuristic
12:23 Benefits of Heuristics
17:47 Crafting Your Own Heuristics
19:29 Dr. Lara Salyer’s Memoir
23:00 Prompt 1: Identifying Time-Consuming Tasks
24:06 Prompt 2: Effortless Tasks and Systems
26:24 Prompt 3: Peak Alertness and Creativity
27:49 Prompt 4: Repetitive Decisions
29:05 Prompt 5: Personal Flow States
30:09 Q&A Segment: Discussing Pricing with Patients
33:29 Closing

Links 🔗
Connect with Lara:
Website: https://drlarasalyer.com
The Catalyst Way: https://drlarasalyer.com/catalyst
Instagram: @drlarasalyer
Facebook:   / drlarasalyer  
Linked-In:   / drlarasalyer  
YouTube:    / drlarasalyer  
TikTok: @Creativity.Doctor


The Catalyst 🩺🧠🎨
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