Stop Spinning Your Wheels and Finally Prioritize Projects That Matter

Ever feel like your creative projects are a runaway train, with new ideas constantly derailing your focus?

For many creatives, the abundance of exciting ideas often leads to a paralyzing dilemma: unfinished projects, lingering guilt, and a creeping sense of stagnation.

The result? Overwhelm, frustration, and a feeling that you’re not making progress on what truly matters.

But here’s the good news: you can break free from the creative chaos.

This article will give you a clear, actionable solution to overcome project paralysis and regain control of your creative journey. With the help of the Agile Decision Matrix—a flexible, iterative approach to project prioritization—you’ll learn how to align your projects with your values, intentions, and goals.

By the end of this article, you’ll have a practical roadmap to turn your cluttered project list into a focused action plan.

Ready to reclaim your creative confidence and start making meaningful progress on what matters most to you? Let’s dive in.

Why creative overwhelm is your biggest obstacle

Nothing drains creative energy faster than the feeling of spinning your wheels. When your projects pile up, indecision creeps in, and the overwhelm keeps you from the one thing that actually moves you forward: action.

Creatives naturally thrive on ideas.

But when you have too many ideas, it’s hard to know which ones deserve your focus.

If you don’t figure out how to make smart decisions about where to invest your energy, you risk ending up with a lot of half-finished projects—and a creeping sense of failure.

So, how do we fix this? It starts with understanding why you’re stuck in the first place.

What keeps creatives from prioritizing projects effectively

Let’s break down what’s holding you back. It often comes down to these key factors:

• Too many exciting ideas. The rush of a new idea often feels more exciting than finishing what you’ve started.
• Unclear intentions. If you don’t know what you’re aiming for, how can you know if you’re on the right track?
• Fear of choosing wrong. What if you pour all your energy into one project, only to realize later it wasn’t the best choice or didn’t yield the results you wanted?
• Lack of a system. Without a clear way to evaluate your options, everything seems equally important, making it hard to choose.

Recognize yourself in any of these? You’re definitely not alone.

Your instinct might be to dive into the first project that catches your attention and bury yourself in the work. Resist the urge! Without taking the time to pause, organize, and prioritize, the clutter and overwhelm will keep winning.

How to prioritize projects like a pro

To break through the clutter, you need a reliable system for project prioritization. I recommend starting with an Agile Decision Matrix—a flexible, iterative approach to organizing your projects that gives you autonomy and clarity without locking you into rigid rules.

There are many productivity systems that use a decision matrix (Eisenhower, RICE, Value-Risk, etc.), but today, we’ll design our own tailored to your needs. Ready? Let’s get started!

Step 1: Mindset matters

• You control what’s important. You’re the one in the driver’s seat here.
• There’s no absolute right or wrong—sometimes you won’t know what’s better or worse until you start.
• Think of every adjustment to your system as an experiment. Pay attention to what is working and what isn’t, but don’t get attached to specific results or approaches.

Step 2: Gather your materials

• Use whatever tools work for you. Whether it’s Notion, a sketchbook, Google Sheets, or even a simple list, the key is getting your ideas down so you can keep track of them.
• I recommend using a table format, but starting with a hand-drawn list of projects will work just as well.

Step 3: Clarify your intentions

Take a moment to think about what direction you want to move in—creatively, personally, or professionally. Ask yourself: What interest do I want to commit to exploring right now? This will serve as your compass, helping you evaluate which projects align with your values and goals.

Just pick one intention for now and write it down.

For example, one of my current intentions is to: Support creatives adapting to the fast-paced, ever-evolving world of creative work.

Step 4: Choose a single project characteristic related to your intention

Now, think of a measurable quality of your projects that ties directly to your intention.

I like to use “Resonance,” but you can pick whatever fits best. Here are some examples:

• Importance
• Urgency
• Income potential
• Difficulty
• Cost

Step 5: Score and sort your projects

Look at your current list of projects and give each one a score based on the characteristic you chose. I usually use a 1-10 scale, but feel free to choose a system that works for you.

The project with the highest score is the one to start with. Once you finish that project, move on to the next.

Step 6: Reflect and adjust as needed

As you start using this process, pay attention to what’s working and what’s not. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different metrics or approaches. Some possible adjustments:

• Add or remove evaluation criteria.
• Use a decision matrix for more than just projects—try it for tasks, tools, or even intentions.
• Explore different tools. If Notion feels too complex or a hand-drawn table doesn’t offer enough flexibility, experiment until you find what works best for you.

Transitioning from prioritization to action

Now that you’ve prioritized your projects, it’s time to focus on execution through effective action management, and here is a bonus tip:

The process you just learned can help you prioritize tasks within your projects!

Clarity, confidence, and creative breakthroughs

Let’s summarize the key takeaways:

• Why you feel stuck: Creative overwhelm happens when you have too many ideas and no structured way to prioritize them. This leads to indecision, unfinished projects, and burnout.
• The solution: By defining your intentions and aligning them with your values, you can create a personalized roadmap to evaluate and prioritize your projects.
• Your next step: Using the Agile Decision Matrix, you can organize your projects based on criteria that matter most to you—whether it’s urgency, importance, or resonance.

With this system, you’ll regain control over your creative work, stop spinning your wheels, and focus on the projects that truly move the needle. No more unfinished projects lingering in the background or that creeping sense of guilt.

Now, it’s your turn. Put this process into action and watch your creative work transform into focused, meaningful progress.