Practice tool · 10 minutes
Next step finder
Free — no account needed to read
Turn a goal that feels too big into one action you can take this week.
Work backwards from the goal until you reach something you could do in an hour or less — then give it a time and a place.
The questions
- Which goal or project is this for?
- What would “done” look like, clearly enough to recognise?
- What has to be true before that? And before that? Keep asking until you reach something small.
- What is the very next physical action? Something you could start in the next few days and finish in an hour or less.
- When and where will you do it?
- What might get in the way — and what will you do if it does?
Afterwards
Turn your answer into one next step, and take it to My Schedule.
Lessons behind this tool
- From a goal to this week’s action — Big goals are reached through small actions on ordinary days. Always know the next step and when you will take it. (7 min)
- The next action — For anything stuck, ask one question: what is the very next physical thing to do? (7 min)
- Starting hard tasks, finishing tasks — Beginnings stall on dread; endings stall on the last dull ten percent. (7 min)