Why Are You Not Achieving Your Full Potential?

Jessica Ging
Dec 19, 2025
3 min read

Updated: Feb 28

Do you struggle to meet deadlines?

Do you have trouble finding items regularly?

Do you feel overwhelmed by simple tasks?

Do your emotions cause challenges for you?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be struggling because of your Executive Functioning Skills.

Executive Function Skills are controlled by a very small portion of your brain that is located bright behind your forehead. This region is known as the prefrontal cortex and it has been described as the “conductor” of your brain. This “conductor” is responsible for activating different portions of your brain in order to pay attention and focus, start a task, prioritize and plan, estimate time, and so many other important aspects that are vital for every day functioning.

The Good News

Tools and strategies can be put into place to support the weaker areas of Executive Functioning.

What are the Executive Function Skills?

Depending on the author, the organization and names of the Executive Function skills will vary. For these purposes, we will use the following terms and definitions:

Organization - creating and maintaining a system for managing materials and information.
Self-Regulation - managing thoughts, emotions, and actions.
Cognitive flexibility - adapting to unexpected situations and change.
Time Management - Estimating time required for tasks and using time efficiently to complete tasks.
Task Initiation - Starting a task, even if it is undesirable.
Working Memory - Storing information that is needed to complete tasks mentally.
Perseverance - Enduring to complete a task despite how challenging it may be.
Planning - Establishing the necessary steps in order to complete a task.
Attention - Maintaining focus and attention on a specific task and switching to a new task when needed.
Metacognition - Understanding how one learns and what one knows.
Prioritizing - Understanding which is the most important task.

Each individual will experience Executive Function challenges in different ways.

This is a brief overview of possible challenges based on each executive function skill. If any of these descriptions resonate with you, you could be dealing with Executive Function challenges.