You have a list.

Maybe it's on paper. Maybe it's in your phone. Maybe it's running through your head right now.

And if someone told you to put that list away for a week, no planning, no organising, no keeping track of every little thing, something in you would probably feel uncomfortable.

Not because you need the list. Because of what the list helps you avoid feeling.

Today's journaling prompts are designed to help you get underneath the overwhelm and uncover the belief that's keeping you busy.

Journal Prompts

1. When I picture a day with nothing on my list and nothing that needs to get done, what is my first feeling? Not the first thought. The first feeling.
2. When I’m busy and productive, what does that say about me? You can expand this beyond productivity if it feels more true for you. When you’re helping, achieving, showing up, or staying involved, what does that mean about who you are?
3. When I’m still and unproductive, what does that say about me? On the days when you’re resting more, doing less, or not going above and beyond, what story do you make that mean about yourself?
4. If you had to stop writing to-do lists for one week, what are you actually afraid would happen? Keep going deeper than the obvious answer. Then go one layer deeper again.
5. What would it mean about me if I let myself rest before I earned it? Take the fear or belief that came up in the previous prompt and place it into this question. Notice what comes up without trying to change it.

The goal isn't to stop making lists. It's to notice what happens when there isn't something to organise, fix, achieve, or cross off.

Pay attention to what came up as you wrote today. Because the belief underneath your overwhelm is often easier to see in moments of stillness than it is in the middle of a busy day.

Resources Mentioned:

• The Should Session: To Stop you from bringing work stress home! Find out exactly what belief is keeping you stuck in should energy. Only 5 spots available, expiring on 10/6/2026.

Work with me:

1. Breakthrough Intensive - You already know you should slow down, delegate more, stop overcommitting & be emotionally present. So why can't you? That's what we figure out in 90 minutes + integration call 1 week later. Book your Breakthrough
2. Exhale: Private Coaching - For women ready to do this work until it sticks and you can't revert back. 3 open spots: Work with me

Connect with Sam: Instagram | Facebook