Time management and ADHD
A longer post, but hopefully worth your time.
I’ve tried a few different time management approaches to time management over the years but haven’t been able to find one that really worked. I’ve always been able to manage my time enough, but never been quite satisfied with it.
A combination of having recently changed role and it being a very busy start to the year caused me to pause and decide that I needed to crack this once and for all to get the most enjoyment out of my working life.
This is the first time I’ve looked at this since the relief and resulting journey of self-acceptance after my ADHD diagnosis.
So this time, rather than reach for one of the thousands of time management approaches again and try and bend myself to fit, I decided to create my own based on what I am no longer afraid to say I need.
The main elements of this are as follows.
- Dedicated planning at the start of the day. I’ve alighted on thirty minutes. The proof in the pudding was that in the teeth of a manic week, I took two hours out to work on this approach and was still effective.
- Prioritised tasks for the day. Pretty common to all time management approaches. As well as supporting judgement calls on time, for me this makes focusing easier as it reduces risk of procrastination.
- Priority definitions. Again, to reduce risk of procrastinating and overthinking, I’ve predefined a set of criteria for “high”, “medium” and “low” priority based on the specifics of my role.
- A “priorit-o-matic”. Often, “medium” priority taks are important but not urgent, and there can be multiple things to choose from. In the absence of a compelling reason to bring any one to the top, it becomes a more personal choice. To help aid prioritisation both then and later, I spend some time tuning a number of factors to what I think I’ll need for that day, and let that lead my thinking about what I’ll tackle (see below).
- A view of what great would look like for that day. I was inspired by reading Roxie Mafousie’s Manifest as a way of cultivating the energy you seek. By taking a view of how I want to feel first thing, it provides focus, an incentive and energy to tackle the day positively.
- A thought for the day. I like a good quote, so each day I tap into how I’m feeling, or how I want to feel, and try and find an inspiring quote to further lock me in and focus. ChatGPT is awesome for this by the way.
- Planning for emotional triggers during the day. Rather than the decades of denying them, I’m accepting, owning and planning for them. The approach I’ve taken is in four parts and based on a combination of what I learned from CBT therapy and my own mindfulness training:
— Triggering situation. Knowing what it is and where it might happen so I can be prepared and aware.
— Feelings. Being able to put a name on the feelings helps with meta-cognition in the moment.
— Ways to mitigate. Coping strategies for when the situation occurs.
— What progress looks like. Not holding myself to perfection whilst looking for signs of personal growth. - Planning for possible distractions during the day. As an ADHD person, I’m more prone to distraction by nature and whilst I manage it, having a thought of how to mitigate it ahead of time reduces the effort a little. I’ve discovered it’s also a relief to talk about it “out loud”.
- Rules to overcome procrastination. In Shane Parrish’s excellent Clear Thinking, he talks about setting rules as a way of avoiding decision paralysis. My planner includes rules for a number of routine things that would otherwise burn mental calories overthinking decisions.
- “Real talk”. For if I have a moment in the day where I need to give myself an affirmative chat.
I use a Miro board for mine, with virtual “stickies” to customise it each morning. This is what it looks like.
