when everything feels urgent in your business. That's actually the first clue that nothing really is the reason you can't figure out what to focus on isn't because you have too many important tasks. It's because you've lost the ability to distinguish between real urgency and manufactured drama. Hi, I'm Cindy Gordon, the creator of the Reality Check Method, and a business coach for Overwhelmed Entrepreneurs. This is a bonus episode of The Overwhelmed Entrepreneur and welcome to day one of the Overwhelm to Action Week designed to take you through the complete process of the reality Check method transformation. And today we're diving into one of the most common questions I hear from business owners. That's, how do I know what to focus on when literally everything. Feels urgent. By the end of this week, you'll have a complete roadmap from overwhelmed and stuck to clear and moving forward. Here's what happens to overwhelm entrepreneurs. Every single day you wake up, you check your phone, and you immediately feel that familiar knot in your stomach. 17 urgent emails, three. ASAP Client requests a marketing campaign that needs to be launched today and a dozen other. Tasks that all somehow became top priority overnight. This isn't just bad luck or poor planning. You are experiencing what I call the false urgency epidemic. Most business owners operate in a state of constant manufactured crisis where every email feels like it needs an immediate response. Every opportunity feels like it will disappear if you don't act right now. And every problem feels like it could destroy your business, but here's the reality check that you need. When everything feels urgent, it's usually because nothing actually is, you're addicted to the adrenaline rush of the crisis management, and your brain is interpreting busy as productive and stressed as important. The solution isn't to work faster. Or multitask better. The solution is to reality check what deserves your focus and what's just noise masquerading as importance. This framework has become my second nature in my daily routine because it cuts through the false urgency that paralyzes so many entrepreneurs. Here's how to filter what actually matters using three simple reality checks. The first is a 24 hour reality check rule. When everything feels urgent, ask yourself what actually happens if this waits for 24 hours, so not what your anxious brain imagines might happen, but what actually will happen? Most tasks that feel urgent can wait at least 24 hours without any real consequences. The second is the revenue reality check. When you can't decide what to focus on, follow the money. Ask yourself, does this directly generate revenue, save money, or prevent significant financial loss within the next 30 days? If the answer is no, then it's actually not urgent. It just feels that way. Third is the momentum check. Some tasks aren't urgent or directly revenue generating, but they create momentum towards your bigger goals. Ask yourself, does this move me measurably closer to my quarterly goal? If yes, then it's focus time. If no, then it goes on your someday list. Let me give you the simple focus hierarchy that actually works when everything feels urgent. Most of what feels urgent falls into three categories. We have true emergencies. These are actual serious client problems, system failures, or genuine deadlines. This is usually only one or two items on your entire list. We also have revenue activities. So this would be following up on leads, delivering client work, getting paid. These directly impact your bottom line. And finally we have the everything else category here. You find emails that feel urgent, but can wait. We have opportunities with made up deadlines, busy work that doesn't actually move your business forward. Here's your simple daily action plan. Each morning, ask yourself, what's one thing that's either a genuine emergency or directly brings in money? Do that first. Everything else can wait until that one thing is done. Here's what I want you to remember today. When everything feels urgent in your business, that's exactly when you need to slow down and reality check what's actually deserving your focus the most. You don't need to respond to every urgent request immediately. You don't need to treat every opportunity like it's. Disappearing tomorrow. What you need is clarity about what actually moves your business forward versus what just makes you feel busy. When you reality check your urgency and focus on what truly matters, you stop being a victim of false emergencies and start being the strategic entrepreneur that your business needs. This focus system is exactly what I help entrepreneurs develop through my reality check method and my one-to-one coaching. And in my Growth Collective Mastermind, I do this because when you can distinguish between real urgency and manufacture drama, you finally have the space to build instead of just survive. And remember, you've got this, but sometimes you just need to figure out what this actually is. Thanks for spending these few minutes with me today. Remember, overwhelm isn't permanent. It's simply your brain's way of saying pause and take a little reality check. If this was helpful, you'll love my weekly email tips where I share the systems that keep me and hundreds of other entrepreneurs on Track Link in the show notes. If you got value in today's episode, please share it with another entrepreneur who needs that reminder. If you're loving the show, I'd be so grateful if you could leave me a quick review. It helps other overwhelmed entrepreneurs find us. Make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss your weekly dose of clarity. For more resources and to connect with me, visit exclusively cindy.com. Until next time, remember you've got this.