Wanjiru Kamau

Break a Project You Keep Avoiding Into Three Tiny First Actions

For the project you've put off for months: name the real blocker, define done, and get three sub-15-minute physical actions, the first startable right now.

At a glance

Best for: Anyone with a project stuck for weeks or months (taxes, portfolio, applications, a hard email) who needs momentum, not a bigger plan.
Tested on: Claude · Opus 5.5
You fill in: projectavoidancetime_available
You get: The real blocker It isn't the sorting. It's fear of what the total will say. "Might owe more than I think" and "feel slightly sick" point to dread… (full result below)

productivity

personal-growth

decision-making

Prompt

I've been avoiding a project. Help me start it, not plan it.

The project: {{project}}
How long I've been avoiding it, and what I think is stopping me: {{avoidance}}
Time I can realistically give it this week: {{time_available}}

Do this:

1. The real blocker: in 2-3 sentences, name what is more likely stopping me: unclear next step, fear of what I'll find, perfectionism, or a missing resource. Base it on what I wrote.

1. Done looks like: one sentence describing the finished project as something observable.

1. Three tiny actions, in order. Each must:

- take under 15 minutes
- start with a physical verb (open, write, call, put, send)
- have a visible done state
- require no decisions beyond the action itself
The first must be doable in the next 10 minutes, wherever I am.
Banned verbs: research, plan, think about, organize, review, figure out.

1. After action 3: the obvious fourth step, one line.

1. If I stall: one sentence I can tell myself, specific to this project. No motivational quotes.

Fill in

{{project}}: The thing you keep not starting.e.g. Sort two years of freelance receipts for my tax return
{{avoidance}}: How long you've avoided it and your honest guess at why.e.g. 8 months. Every time I open the folder I feel sick and close it.
{{time_available}}: Realistic time this week.e.g. About 3 hours across evenings

Example input

project: Sort out two years of freelance receipts and expenses so my accountant can file my tax return (deadline is 31 January).

avoidance: About 8 months. Receipts are split between a shoebox, my email, and photos on my phone. I think I've probably missed claiming things and might owe more than I think. Every time I open the folder I feel slightly sick and close it again.

time_available: About 3 hours this week, in evenings after 8pm.

2.5k0

Generated Outputs (1)

2 hours ago

Claude

Opus 5.5

2 hours ago

Generated Output

1. The real blocker
It isn't the sorting. It's fear of what the total will say. "Might owe more than I think" and "feel slightly sick" point to dread about a number, not confusion about the steps. The receipts sit in three places, so there's no single first move, which makes it easy to close the folder every time.

2. Done looks like
One folder, emailed to your accountant, with a spreadsheet listing every expense for both years and a matching receipt file or photo for each line.

3. Three tiny actions

1. Write "TAX, SEND TO ACCOUNTANT BY 15 DEC" on a sticky note and put it on the shoebox. Done state: the note is on the box. (2 minutes, possible right now.) Fifteen December gives your accountant six weeks before 31 January.

1. Search your email for "receipt OR invoice OR order confirmation" for the two tax years, and drag every result into a new label called "Tax". Don't open any of them. Done state: the label exists and has emails in it. (15 minutes)

1. Photograph the first 20 receipts from the shoebox with your phone's scan feature and save them to one album called "Tax receipts". Stop at 20 even if it's going well. Done state: an album with 20 images. (15 minutes)

After three evenings, every receipt is in one of two digital places and none of it depends on the shoebox.

4. After action 3
Email your accountant: "I'm gathering two years of receipts. What format do you want them in?" Their answer is the plan, and you don't have to design one.

5. If I stall
"Not knowing the number doesn't change it. It only shrinks the time left to deal with it."

Why it works

Avoidance usually isn't laziness. It's a step that is too big, too vague or emotionally loaded. Step 1 makes the model name the blocker from your own words, and the banned verbs list removes exactly the fake-productive steps ("research", "organize", "review") that let you feel busy without starting.

Each action has four constraints: under 15 minutes, physical verb, visible done state, no decisions. Together they shrink the task below the threshold where dread kicks in. Making the first action doable "in the next 10 minutes, wherever I am" matters most, because starting is the whole problem. "No motivational quotes" keeps the last line useful.

When not to use it

If the avoidance comes from something heavier, such as depression, burnout or a project you actually shouldn't do, tiny steps just delay the real conversation. For projects with legal or financial deadlines, the tiny actions get you moving, but you still need a real plan and professional help afterwards. If you avoid everything, not just one project, this won't fix that.

Comments (0)

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!