Executive Function Isn't Just Starting — It's Finishing, Too
In this episode, Gretchen talks with Sarah Ward — speech-language pathologist and Co-Director of Cognitive Connections — about why task completion is its own executive function skill, separate from starting. Gretchen opens up about her own struggle to finish things (yes, including a song she wrote herself about it), and Sarah brings decades of clinical experience into genuinely tiny, doable tweaks for classroom teachers, coaches, and tutors alike. They cover why students insist they're "done" when they're not, a simple reframe for procrastination, and why this year's college freshmen are struggling in ways past cohorts haven't. If you work with students who swear they're finished when they're not, this one's for you.
You'll Hear Us Talk About
"Mind miming" — a mental simulation trick that helps students actually finish what they start
Why so many students insist they're done with something... when they're not
A simple reframe for procrastination — Sarah's "hesitator" vs. "procrastinator" distinction
The "job talk" trick that gives any task a real finish line
Why this year's college freshmen are struggling with executive demands in new ways
Sarah's favorite definition of emotional regulation — the ability to tolerate discomfort
About Sarah Ward
Sarah Ward, M.S., CCC/SLP, is a licensed speech-language pathologist and Co-Director of Cognitive Connections, LLP, where she has spent over 30 years working in diagnostic evaluation, treatment, and case management for children, adolescents, and adults with developmental and acquired brain-based learning challenges, with a particular focus on executive function. She holds an adjunct faculty appointment at the Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions and co-developed the 360 Thinking™ Executive Function Program with Kristen Jacobsen, which received the Innovative Promising Practices Award from CHADD. Find her at efpractice.com.
Links + Resources
Sarah's website: https://efpractice.com
Learn More About the Anti-Boring Learning Lab
Download our free Toolkit: https://antiboringlearninglab.com/resources
Connect with Gretchen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gretchen-wegner
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FAQ: Who Should Teach Students How to Learn?
(Episode 5 of the Academic Coaching Podcast, featuring Sarah Ward)
What personal experience shaped Sarah's focus on executive function?
Sarah's path into this work was shaped by two life events close to home: her husband's severe traumatic brain injury from a cycling accident, and her daughter's ADHD and dyslexia. Both pushed her past simply naming executive function skills toward the harder, more practical question of how to actually rebuild and develop them.
Is task completion really its own skill, separate from getting started?
Sarah argues yes. She breaks down why students (and adults) stall out near the finish line: they never clearly visualized what "done" actually looks like, working memory tricks them into thinking they've finished when they haven't, or perfectionism keeps pushing the goalpost further away.
What does "mind miming" actually involve, and how is it different from just visualizing something?
Mind miming is Sarah's term for mentally simulating an action step by step, the way a mime pantomimes picking something up without the object being there. Gretchen and Sarah demonstrate a related improv game live in the episode to show how this kind of embodied simulation strengthens working memory and follow-through.
What's a practical example of a "tiny tweak" teachers or coaches can use immediately?
Sarah shares a classroom strategy where, instead of repeating verbal directions, students physically point to where they'll go to gather each item they need. That small gesture forces a mental simulation of the action, which cuts down on how often adults have to repeat themselves.
How does the "hesitator" reframe actually change a student's behavior?
Sarah walks through a real coaching example where switching a student's self-description from "procrastinator" to "hesitator" opened up a completely different, more solvable conversation, one focused on identifying the specific thing causing hesitation rather than treating it as a fixed trait.
Why does calling a task a "job" help students actually finish it?
Sarah explains that vague tasks like "doing homework" or "studying" have no built-in endpoint, but a job title like "flashcard maker" or "summarizer" does, because there's a clear, checkable outcome once the job is done.
What specifically is different about this year's college freshmen?
Sarah names several converging factors: less sustained reading, AI's effect on writing and drafting skills, the jump from a structured high school day to unstructured college schedules, and lower academic expectations left over from the pandemic era that are only now correcting.
How does Sarah define emotional regulation?
Her preferred definition is the ability to tolerate discomfort, doing something unpleasant simply because it needs to get done. She connects this directly to overprotective parenting and coaching dynamics, and why students need room to feel the discomfort of a task rather than have it managed away for them.
Where can I learn more about Sarah Ward and her courses?
Visit efpractice.com for webinars, foundation courses, parent-focused sessions, and materials on building executive function skills, ranging from single-session lectures to multi-week intensives.