Hello, ADD-“enjoyer” here.
I think I am not alone when, typically, I am constantly overwhelmed. Too many thoughts and impulses. So I don’t make a lot of decisions; I usually respond to other people’s decisions or I let me guide by suggestions from the people around me.
Now I am in the situation that some things are changing at my work. I have actual influence this time, I could say “next year I want to work on X” and X might actually be my new job.
I have some ideas where to start thinking (start writing down random thoughts and see if I can make a list), but as I am always overwhelmed I am having trouble to “find the right mood”. I always get distracted by other thoughts and I always end up doing things entirely unrelated (currently I am baking bread, collecting documents for my insurance, and I am almost ready to pick a new e-mail provider)
Does this feel familiar to anyone? Probably ;-)
I feel like I need the right circumstances. Should I start with some mindfulness-excercises? Walk for a bit? Find an empty room with no distractions? Find some good background music?
How do you deal with this? What works for you?
Thanks for your input :-)
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I personally have issues concentrating when there is too much stimuli. It’s not possible for me to change the environment to suit my needs, so I change myself instead. I bring musicians ear plugs to work with me now which has helped tremendously.
I also have a journal, one for work and one personal. I like that you’re writing stuff down already. Keep it in one place.
Much love and support. Life is a learning experience.
“It doesn’t exist if it isn’t written down”. Someone said that to me long ago, and it really changed my perspective.
I recently came across the PARA concept - everything we deal with falls into one of these 4 categories: Projects, Area of Responsibility, Resource, Archive.
I restructured my OneNote notebooks to use it, and it’s been a game changer. Now when an idea comes my way, I can immediately categorize it so I know what to do with it (even if just on my head). I added a final R to my notebooks - Reference, because I save a lot of info that I need access to.
It surprised me that at any one time I have about 30 ongoing personal projects. Seeing them laid out as tabs in my notebook makes them more apparent, instead of just floating around in the back of my head. I’ve even Archived a few after seeing them languish, and realizing they were fleeting ideas I really don’t need or have time for.
I’ll second PARA. It works well for me. I used it as an organizing principle in my notes and todo software.
Thank you! I’ve looked into PARA, and … Area’s and Resources seem quite close? The difference is that Area’s are driven by duty/responsibility while Resources are driven by interest? How do you divide the two?
I think I already have this division in my work-life. We have tickets that have clear targets (projects), we have a wiki for useful information (long-term).
I will keep it in my head while organizing my private life.
The Pomodoro method works for me. Set a timer for 25 minutes. Decide the task (or task list) you’re going to do. Make it as specific as possible, for example “write 10 ideas of things to do at work next year and rate them by how desirable and achievable they are”. Then start the timer and do the task. When the timer goes off, you have to take a 5 minute break. Whether you’ve been productove or distracted, doesn’t matter. You HAVE to take a break. Drink something, go to the toilet, reply to a message whatever. Timer goes off after 5 minutes of break time. You’ve got a fresh start to try again.
For me, the first pomodoro is often wasted, sometimes even the first 2, but the forced break (I only have 25 minutes to a “deadline”) and mental reset afterwards help to create that setting to be productive.
Great idea!
I’d consider breaking it down a little more - first go just make the list of ideas. Then a second time for prioritizing or developing pros/cons.
thank you! This sounds very useful, I will try it. And the actual real-life experience of wasting the first 2 tries is very helpful :)
At its core, my problem is that I tend to get angry and frustrated with myself, instead of being kind to myself. Self-kindness is easier said than done.
Pomodoro is just a structure that helps me to be kind to myself. Feel free to adapt it to your own needs, as long as it helps you to be kind to yourself and “reset” from distractions.
Things that I have found useful:
- MENDS as a routine, as often as I can remember (meditation, exercise, nature, diet, sleep)
- Mind mapping to take notes and reorganize / review it often (I use XMind)
- Keeping searchable notes (I use Joplin, but OneNote and Evernote work too)
- Using the above as part of an organization system (look up GTD and “building a second brain”)
- Microdosing psilocybin
- Get your hormone levels checked - if they’re outside the normal range, it can exacerbate ADHD
Good luck! It has been a multi-year journey for me, but a successful one.
Great list! I use a plain txt file that I started about 25 years ago for notes, now 28,000 lines. It used to contain even all passwords, until password managers became a good option.
This is probably not the answer you are looking for but I have found I am very focused when it is “other peoples time”. When I have free time I struggle to do anything productive or otherwise because there is everything I need to do in that amount of free time. If I am late, procrastinating, or absent from something like work or school I get so much more done because then I feel compelled to do “that one last thing” before I go. I’ve cleaned my whole house because I was waiting for the right time to walk to the bus stop. The problem with this is that people tend to dislike flakyness or inconsistency when they expect you to show up on time. 🤷