My "Get Unstuck" Process for When Everything Feels URGENT but I Can't Move

You can actually grab a free copy of this exact system HERE.

System Focus: Executive dysfunction recovery

Tools Used: Notion

Transformation Area: Breaking urgency spirals + creating clarity when everything feels urgent

Before

When I’d fall behind, everything would start to feel urgent. My brain would spin out. I’d stare at my screen, try to start anything and completely freeze.

The pressure to catch up made it worse. I’d procrastinate until I was panicking, force myself to power through something, and then burn out. Rinse, repeat.

I knew how to get things done… but when I was in that stuck place, I couldn’t access that knowledge. I just sat there in a shame spiral, feeling like I was falling apart.

After

I built a Notion-based system called my “Get Unstuck” template.

It’s a guided system that I open whenever I feel frozen, behind, or unsure where to start. It walks me through a series of calming and clarifying steps—no thinking required.

Here’s what it does:

Step-by-Step Breakdown

1. Regulate

   • The first step is simple: Breathe. Regulate.

   • It reminds me I’m not broken—I’m just overwhelmed. It’s okay.

2. Braindump

   • I do a quick, messy brain dump of everything in my head: to-dos, worries, random thoughts, everything.

   • This helps get the chaos out of my brain and into a safe place.

3. Extract

   • Then I pull anything actionable from the dump into a task list embedded in the same page.

   • This separates the actual to-dos from the spiraling.

4. Organize

   • The template uses an ADHD-friendly version of the Eisenhower matrix to sort tasks:

     • What’s actually urgent?

     • What’s easy?

     • What needs more mental load?

   • I answer modified questions that help my brain figure out what really matters right now.

5. Action Plan

   • Based on what I need (dopamine, momentum, relief), I can choose to:

     • Knock out the easy stuff to build momentum

     • Handle the real emergencies

     • Or chip away at heavier tasks with clarity and intention

Key Outcomes

• Fewer spirals. I have something to do when I feel stuck…not just sit in it.

• Quicker recoveries. I go from frozen to focused in minutes, not hours or days.

• No more pushing through. I work with my brain instead of against it, and feeling BETTER + clarity is what gets me moving, not “grit”.

• Regulation-first workflow. I stop making decisions in panic mode.

Why It Works

This system catches me in the moment when I’m spiraling and walks me out step by step. It removes the pressure to “figure it out” when I’m dysregulated and gives me structure when I can’t find it on my own.

Every time I use it, I feel like I’m stepping back into clarity and power—not because my brain suddenly got better, but because my system held me until I could move forward again.