You’ve been thinking about launching that podcast, creating that course, or finally setting up that email funnel. You know it’s important, yet every time you sit down to start, you find yourself doing something else—tweaking your website, answering emails, scrolling social media. Before you know it, another day (or month) has passed, and that big project is still sitting on your to-do list. Sound familiar? You’re not alone. The truth is, moving from procrastination to planning isn’t just about motivation—it’s about breaking free from the overwhelm and creating a system that makes taking action easier. Let’s talk about how you can finally stop spinning your wheels and start making real progress.

Procrastination Feels Safe, But It’s Holding You Back

Let’s be honest—procrastination isn’t just about being lazy or unmotivated. In fact, you’re probably very motivated when it comes to serving your clients, checking off daily tasks, or even brainstorming new ideas. But when it comes to starting something big—something unfamiliar—your brain starts throwing up roadblocks.

Why? Because procrastination feels safe.

I know this struggle firsthand. When I transitioned from doing weekly YouTube videos to launching my podcast, it took me over four months to actually get it off the ground. Normally, I'm not the kind of person who requires outside accountability, but I found that working with a business coach was essential in this situation. It wasn’t because I didn’t have the skills or the know-how—I had already been creating video content! But fear crept in. What if the podcast didn’t work? What if no one listened? What if I was making the wrong move?

And if I’m being really honest, there was something else keeping me stuck: I have a hard time letting things go, even when they’re no longer serving me. I had invested so much time into YouTube that it felt wrong to walk away, even though I knew my podcast would be a better fit for my business. The feelings of guilt and shame over the sunk costs of time, money, and energy.

Each of us has different reasons our minds keep us stuck, but at the core, it’s always some form of fear. Fear of failure. Fear of making the wrong choice. Fear of letting go. Even when I recorded my first-ever YouTube video, it didn’t come from a place of confidence or clarity—it came from sheer frustration. And let’s be real, frustration is not the energy content needs to be created with.

Maybe you can relate. You want to take action, but something keeps holding you back. The big projects—the ones that could actually move your business forward—sit untouched while you stay busy with smaller, more familiar tasks.

But here’s the truth: God didn’t call you to a life of hesitation. He called you to step out in faith.

That podcast? That course? That business idea? You weren’t given that vision by accident. But your calling requires action, not just thinking about it. The good news? You don’t have to figure it all out today. You just need to take one small next step forward.

Identifying Your Procrastination Triggers

If you’ve ever found yourself avoiding a big task even when you have plenty of time to complete it, you’re not alone. Procrastination isn’t just a bad habit—it’s often driven by subconscious patterns in the brain.

Your limbic system, which controls emotions and immediate responses, craves immediate gratification and pushes you toward default actions that feel comfortable. On the other hand, your prefrontal cortex, the part of your brain responsible for decision-making and long-term planning, knows that taking action now will benefit your own life in the long run. The battle between these two areas of your brain is what keeps you stuck in a procrastination habit.

So, what’s really happening when you avoid taking action? Instead of moving forward, you:

• Stay in the planning stage because research feels like a positive thing (even though it’s just another form of procrastination).
• Fill your day with smaller tasks that give you the illusion of productivity but don’t move the needle.
• Wait for the right time, thinking you’ll feel more prepared next time (spoiler: you won’t).
• Convince yourself that you need enough time to do things perfectly, which leads to poor time management and scrambling at the last minute.

What Are Your Triggers?

The first step to breaking this cycle is to understand what kind of person you are when it comes to procrastination. Ask yourself:

•    Do I avoid big projects because they feel overwhelming?

•    Do I tell myself I need to be in the right mood before I start?

•    Do I push things off to the following day just because I don’t feel like doing them now?

•    Do I struggle with effective planning and taking action in manageable chunks?

For me, my failure mode used to be over-researching and staying in the planning process for too long. I convinced myself I was “getting ready,” but in reality, I was stuck in a comfort zone of endless learning instead of doing. It boiled down to the fact that I lacked confidence in my abilities.

Identifying your trigger is powerful because once you know what’s keeping you stuck, you can break free from it. And the best plan of attack? Stop thinking about the whole project and start with the next small step.

Work Backward to Map Out a Plan

Now that you’ve done a brain dump, you might be staring at a long, unorganized list. That’s okay!

The next step is to take all those scattered ideas and create a planning process that works for you.

The easiest way to do this? Work backward.

Instead of getting stuck in the planning stage and overthinking where to begin, start with the big moment—the finished project. Then, break it down step by step, moving in reverse. This method helps you avoid poor time management, keeps you from getting lost in the details, and makes sure you’re focusing on what truly matters.

Just in case you’re like so many of my clients, what holds you back is not knowing how to put it all together. They do better if they have a head start to motivate them into future actions. You may find it easier if the process is started for you. Then, you only need to tweak the small steps for yourself. If this sounds you, here are a couple of sample workflows to get you working backward from completion to idea:

Creating an Email Funnel

Are you a little bit stuck on creating that next sales funnel to grow your email list?

• Completion: Finalize and promote the lead magnet

– Promote the lead magnet on social media, website, and email list

– Schedule a launch debrief meeting to discuss what worked well and what didn’t work well

– Collect and analyze metrics to measure the lead magnet's success

– Make adjustments as needed to improve future lead magnets

• Launch: Publish and distribute the lead magnet

– Test the lead magnet for usability and functionality

– Publish the lead magnet on your website or landing page

– Develop a plan to distribute the lead magnet to your target audience

• Design: Create an attractive and effective design for the lead magnet

– Determine the design elements needed to make the lead magnet visually appealing

– Work with a designer or use a design tool to create a polished final product

– Ensure that the design aligns with your branding and messaging

• Content: Write and develop the content for the lead magnet

– Develop an outline for the content and determine what needs to be covered

– Write, edit and proofread promotional material, such as social media posts

– Write, edit, and proofread the content for accuracy and clarity

• Idea: Brainstorm and plan the lead magnet concept

– Determine the problem your ideal client is attempting to solve

– Brainstorm potential ideas for the lead magnet

– Decide which one idea is aligned with your paid offer and the problem your ideal client is attempting to solve

By working backward from completion to idea, you can ensure your lead magnet is well-designed, effective, and aligned with your brand and messaging.

Example: Launching a Podcast

Let’s say your goal is to launch a podcast. Instead of asking, “Where do I start?” ask, “What does the end result look like?” Then, break it down step by step.

1.    Final Step: Your first episode is live, and you’re promoting it everywhere.

2.    You’ve submitted your podcast to directories like Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

3.    You’ve recorded and edited your first 3-5 episodes.

4.    You’ve outlined episode topics and planned content for your first season.

5.    You’ve chosen your podcast hosting platform.

6.    You’ve selected and set up your microphone and recording software.

7.    First Step: You’ve committed to your podcast idea and created a timeline for launch.

By doing this, you’ve taken a big task and turned it into a clear plan of attack with specific times for each step. Instead of sitting in front of a blank page, wondering where to begin, you now have a roadmap that makes it easy to take the next step.

Why This Works

• It removes uncertainty. Instead of staring at an overwhelming list, you now have clear action steps.
• It prevents the “last-minute” scramble. By breaking it down, you give yourself plenty of time to work through each phase.
• It keeps you from skipping important steps. Working backward forces you to think through everything, so nothing gets missed.
• It turns procrastination into action. A clear plan eliminates the need for “the right time” because you know exactly what needs to happen next.
• At this point, you’ve moved from procrastination habit to an effective planning strategy. Now, it’s time to set a realistic timeline and make sure you follow through.

Set a Realistic Timeline

Now that you have a clear plan of attack, the next important thing is setting a timeline that works. Most entrepreneurs fall into one of two traps:

1. They think they have plenty of time, so they keep putting it off until the last minute.
2. They believe they need the perfect conditions before starting, so they never actually begin.

Both of these are just different forms of procrastination, and both are rooted in subconscious habits rather than logic. To break free, we’re going to use a simple NLP reprogramming exercise.

Rewire Your Procrastination Habit with This Exercise

If you’ve been stuck in failure mode, struggling to take action on a big task, try this quick visualization technique:

1. Dissociate from the struggle – Close your eyes and imagine watching yourself on a movie screen. See yourself staring at the blank page, hesitating, feeling overwhelmed.
2. Fast-forward the scene – Picture your future self taking action with confidence. You’re at your desk, working on your project with ease.
3. Step into the future version of yourself – Now, mentally step into that scene. How does it feel to be in full action mode? What’s different about your mindset?
4. Future pace your success – Imagine a few months from now when your project is complete. How does it feel? What opportunities have opened up? What doors has God placed in your path because you took action?
5. Anchor this feeling – Take a deep breath and commit to embodying this version of yourself, the person who plans effectively, follows through, and stays out of procrastination mode.

By shifting your default action from avoidance to small, intentional steps, you train your brain to respond differently the next time you feel overwhelmed.

At the end of the day, the only person who can take control and move forward is you. You're the one in charge, so it's up to you to make things happen. Believe in yourself and your abilities, and take that first step towards creating a simple system that works for you. You've got this!

Double Your Timeline for Success

One of the best time management techniques you can implement is doubling your estimated timeline. Why? Because most of us underestimate how long things will take. Or maybe that is just me? 🤷‍♀️

If you think you need:

    •    Two weeks to outline your podcast, give yourself four weeks.

    •    Three days to set up your course platform, give yourself six days.

    •    One hour to write an email sequence, schedule two hours.

This doesn’t mean you’re working slowly—it means you’re working realistically. When you plan for extra time, you avoid the pressure of rushing at the last minute, and you allow space for adjustments. This also removes feelings of guilt when things take longer than expected.

The goal isn’t to create short-term bursts of productivity—it’s to build a powerful tool for long-term success.

Time to Wrap This Up

God doesn’t call us to wait for the perfect time—He calls us to take the next step. You don’t need to see the whole path right now. You just need to trust that every step forward is leading you to something worth pursuing.