How to Stop Overplanning
- Eric Kaufmann
- Feb 13
- 6 min read
TL;DR: If you plan constantly but still struggle to start, you’re not lazy or unmotivated. Overplanning is often a form of procrastination rooted in fear and perfectionism. This article explains why it happens and shows you how to take small, messy steps that actually lead to progress.
Table of Contents
Hi Friend,
Last week, a new client shared a familiar executive function frustration: “I’m always overplanning instead of actually doing.”
That morning, he spent two hours designing a new to-do list system. Color coding. Prioritizing. Time blocking.
By 10 a.m., nothing was done.
He was about to jump into four back-to-back meetings, and he already knew how the rest of the day would go....
By the time he had a break, it would be 3 p.m., his energy would be gone, and his fancy to-do list system would have nothing crossed out.
The day had barely started, and overwhelm was pulsing through his body.
He said, “I just always feel behind. I try to plan, but I always overdo it and never follow through. I can't stop overplanning.”
This is a common executive function gap for many of us. I’ve seen it in myself.
I used to start my mornings by prioritizing and time blocking every second of my day. Real productivity-nerd stuff.
Thirty minutes later, I’d have a beautiful plan and zero progress.
At some point during the day, I’d inevitably realize I had fallen for the planning fallacy once again and scrap the plan completely.
You’d think I would’ve stopped doing this, but I didn’t.
Why? Because planning every single detail felt productive. It seemed important. But it held me back.
See, the truth is, planning can be a sneaky form of procrastination. And for many of us, it’s rooted in fear and perfectionism.
More often than not, overplanning causes analysis paralysis, aka complete executive function shutdown.
Today, I want to show you a simple, neurodivergent-friendly strategy to manage the need to overplan.
Let’s dive in.
Why Does Overplanning Feel Productive?
Many neurodivergent adults, like those of us with ADHD or who are autistic, find themselves planning instead of doing. At its core, this is a safety behavior.
Unclear tasks trigger anxiety. Big goals trigger self-doubt. Important projects at work create perfectionism. When something feels unclear, scary, or anxiety-ridden, our brains seek certainty.
So, we try to make the “perfect plan.”
This is a slippery slope because planning feels productive. It boosts dopamine and gives us a false sense of control as we feel like we are progressing, when in reality we haven’t begun.
For many adults with ADHD, overplanning turns into analysis paralysis because our creative brains can see many pathways forward. We become focused on choosing the right one, which becomes procrastination.
That’s why we get trapped in planning mode.
Deep down, we know this is true:
We don’t need a perfect plan to start.
We don’t need a perfectly time-blocked calendar.
We don’t need every step mapped out.
We need the next smallest, doable step.
Not “outline the entire project.”
But “open the doc and write a messy first paragraph.”
What’s the Cost of Overplanning?
Overplanning results in lost time, analysis paralysis, and procrastination. Then we find ourselves deep in the executive function shame spiral, “should-ing” all over ourselves.
“I should have started this last week.”
“I should be able to just make a decision!”
“What’s wrong with me?!”
And as the anxiety builds, we miss opportunities to travel, get promoted, or build meaningful relationships.
Instead of booking flights, we plan every aspect of a trip. Then, as prices increase, we become overwhelmed and drop it completely.
Work deadlines fly by because we are trying to figure out the perfect way to get started.
Rigid plans fall apart, causing arguments or distress in our relationships.
The psychological toll is real. The constant need to refine, redesign, and perfect creates intense stress and anxiety that can lead to burnout.
Overplanning costs time, resources, and momentum, leading to analysis paralysis, where excessive detailing prevents action, fosters anxiety, and causes missed opportunities. It results in rigid, fragile plans that cannot adapt to change, often leading to burnout, project delays, and decreased morale.
I recognize that planning is an important executive function skill for the adult world. But we don’t need to have every step mapped out before we start.
Sometimes, we need to get messy.
How to Stop Overplanning
For my fellow overplanners out there, I have a phrase you can keep in mind:
“Be messy, not Messi.”
Lionel Messi is one of the greatest soccer players of all time. His speed, field vision, dribbling, and scoring abilities are nearly perfect.
We don’t need to be like him. We need to be messy.
A few years ago, my coach shared this phrase with me. Since then, I’ve become much more comfortable taking messy action. Action without certainty. Action without guarantees.
That shift has allowed me to take risks without knowing if things will work out. And honestly, it’s fueled some of the accomplishments I’m most proud of, such as:
Writing a weekly blog for the past two years.
Booking a backcountry snowboarding trip to Japan without knowing the language.
Speaking at Neurodiversion in 2025 and being moved to the mainstage 15 minutes before my talk started -- check it out. 👇
In practice, being “messy” means setting and taking a small, imperfect step and letting that be enough.
Be messy. Because momentum, motivation, and confidence follow action, not planning.
Three strategies to help you take messy action
Here are three strategies to help you take messy action:
1) Set a timer to plan.
Choose a time that feels realistic, subtract a minute from it, and set a timer on your phone.
2) Find a few small steps.
Then, try to beat the clock! The goal is to write a messy plan with 2-3 small steps before the timer goes off.
3) Send it!
With your messy plan in place, it's time to take action on that first, small step.
Side note: This might feel like you’re lowering your standards, but you’re not. You’re learning how to move forward, take risks, and recognize small steps as meaningful wins.
Pro tip: Use a “good enough” chart.
Deciding what “good enough” actually looks like before you start planning helps manage perfectionism. You can download my good enough chart for free here.
Summary
If you find yourself planning endlessly but struggling to begin, you’re not lazy, and you’re not broken.
Planning can be a form of procrastination when it’s used to avoid uncertainty, discomfort, or fear of getting it wrong.
Instead of trying to be Messi, be messy:
Set a timer to plan.
Identify three small steps. Make them so small you’d be silly not to do them.
Send it!
That first small, messy step forces you into action, boosts dopamine in your brain, and activates momentum.
Keep in mind, you’re allowed to change your mind. Plans rarely go perfectly. Good enough is truly good enough.
In service,
Eric
FAQs
Why do I keep planning instead of doing?
Many neurodivergent adults plan instead of doing because planning feels safe. When tasks feel unclear, scary, or emotionally loaded, planning reduces anxiety and gives a false sense of control. The problem is that planning can become a sneaky form of procrastination. To stop overplanning, your brain doesn’t need a perfect plan. It needs the next smallest, doable step that feels safe enough to start.
Is overplanning a sign of poor executive function?
Overplanning isn’t a character flaw or a lack of motivation. It’s often a sign of executive function overload. Adults with ADHD or autism may overplan because unclear tasks trigger anxiety, perfectionism, and analysis paralysis. Learning how to stop overplanning means supporting executive function skills like task initiation and cognitive flexibility, not forcing yourself to “just start.”
How can I stop overplanning and take action?
To stop overplanning, focus on taking one small, messy step instead of building the perfect plan. Set a timer for planning, limit yourself to mapping out only the first 2–3 steps, and define what “good enough” looks like before you begin. Momentum, motivation, and confidence follow action, not planning.
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About the Author
Eric Kaufmann is an Educational Therapist, Certified Executive Function Coach, and speaker. He is the Co-founder of UpSkill Specialists, an executive function coaching company that helps adults and workplace teams overcome disorganization, procrastination, and productivity roadblocks.
Want to learn more about 1:1 coaching? Click here.
Interested in hosting a workshop for your team or company on how to improve executive function skills in the workplace? Click here.
Looking for guidance on how to become an adult executive function coach? Click here.
P.S. Free Mini Course: Break the Procrastination Cycle
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If you or someone you care about struggles with procrastination, this course is here to help.
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