Problem-Solving Worksheet: Move from Stuck to Action with a Clear, Step by Step Plan

About this tool

The Problem-Solving Worksheet helps you turn an overwhelming concern into a defined problem, possible responses, and a practical plan you can review after acting. It offers structure when worries blur together or you keep reconsidering the same choices without deciding what to do next. The exercise draws on structured problem-solving methods used in CBT, while professional problem-solving therapy includes assessment, guidance, and support beyond completing a worksheet.

The method follows a clear sequence. First, define the problem in specific, concrete terms, because a fuzzy problem cannot be solved. Then brainstorm as many possible responses as you can without judging them, since premature criticism shuts down the options that might actually help. Only after you have a list do you evaluate the choices, weighing the likely pros and cons of each.

From there you choose one option, make a concrete plan for carrying it out, and put it into action. The final step, review, is the one people most often skip and the one that makes the method a skill rather than a one-off. Looking back at what worked tells you whether to keep going, adjust, or try a different option, and it builds confidence that problems are workable.

Two distinctions help. First, separate problems you can influence from those you cannot; for the latter, the work is coping and acceptance rather than solving. Second, aim for good enough rather than perfect. A reasonable action taken is almost always better than a perfect plan that never leaves the page.

Problem-solving therapy has one of the larger evidence bases among brief CBT-based approaches. A 2009 meta-analysis by Bell and D'Zurilla pooled controlled trials of problem-solving therapy for depression and found it reduced depressive symptoms about as well as other established treatments, and it outperformed no-treatment and attention-only control conditions (Bell & D'Zurilla, 2009).

There is no score to calculate here; each part of the worksheet contributes to a plan you can test in everyday life. If brainstorming feels difficult, write down options before judging whether they would work. You can include asking for information, requesting help, postponing a nonessential task, or changing the size of the task. Evaluate safety, feasibility, and likely consequences before choosing an action. A short list may also reflect real constraints that deserve support.

Working through one problem with this worksheet is useful on its own, but if you find yourself facing the same kind of problem again and again, or low mood is making it hard to even get to step one, that pattern is worth bringing to a therapist. Problem-solving therapy is something many CBT-trained therapists practice directly, and you can search the Psychology.com therapist directory to find one.

Thomas D'Zurilla and Marvin Goldfried described problem solving within behavior modification in their 1971 paper. Later research evaluated problem-solving therapy as a structured psychological treatment. An updated meta-analysis by Cuijpers and colleagues in 2018 found benefits for adult depression, with estimates affected by study quality and differences between studies. This evidence concerns therapy as delivered in research; it does not establish that this worksheet alone treats depression or predicts an individual result.

For example, a concern such as being unable to keep up at work may become a specific problem: several assignments have unclear priorities. Possible responses include asking a supervisor to rank the tasks, clarifying which deadlines are flexible, or requesting help with a blocked task. A practical first action could be drafting a message that names the conflicting assignments and asks for a decision. This example is a planning prompt, not a rule about what you should disclose at work.

When reviewing an attempt, separate what you did from how others responded. You may have followed the plan carefully and still met an obstacle. Record the obstacle, whether your original assumptions were accurate, and what you would change. If you never began, make the first action smaller or identify missing information or support. Keep the next review tied to an event, such as receiving a reply, rather than waiting until the entire problem is resolved.

The CBT Worksheets library offers related exercises. A Cost-Benefit Analysis Worksheet can help compare options when each has meaningful tradeoffs, and a SMART Goals Worksheet can make a chosen action more specific. The Stress Level Test offers a separate self-assessment of recent stress. Its result can help you describe your experience, but it cannot tell you which solution to choose.

Reviewed by Michael Callans, MSW
Reviewed the steps for fidelity to structured problem-solving therapy.

References

1. Nezu AM, Nezu CM, D'Zurilla TJ. Problem-Solving Therapy: A Treatment Manual. Springer; 2013.
2. Bell AC, D'Zurilla TJ. Problem-solving therapy for depression: a meta-analysis. Clin Psychol Rev. 2009;29(4):348-353.
3. D'Zurilla, T. J., & Goldfried, M. R. (1971). Problem solving and behavior modification. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/4938262/
4. Cuijpers, P., de Wit, L., Kleiboer, A., Karyotaki, E., & Ebert, D. D. (2018). Problem-solving therapy for adult depression: An updated meta-analysis. European Psychiatry. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29331596/

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