Rookie’s Guide to Managing Your Commute.

A commute is no joke. Two months ago, my commute was 8 minutes. I’d pop in the car, whistle, maybe listen to a song or a blip of a podcast and I was my place of work. Look at that.

Now it’s a different story.

My commute:

Drive to the train station (4 minutes)

Get on the train at 6:00 AM .(1 hour trip)

Ride the shuttle to my office (15–20 minutes trip)

Because of the non-alignment of the train, shuttle and the universe, I’m at my desk an hour earlier than everyone else. If I take a later train? I’m there 5 minutes late at best.

It took this ADHD brain awhile to get used to the idea that I’d be sitting in a train and a shuttle. But then I realized the gift it could be.

Managing a commute if you are a rookie like I used to be can be difficult but you can actually turn it around and make it work for you.

Let me show you how.

Your commute starts in your home.

There’s a chef’s term called mis en place. It’s that before you start to even think about cooking, you need to get everything in order: bowls, plates, utensils, etc. Everything in its place so that when you are ready to cook, you don’t have to go around searching for something or forgetting a major component.

You need to mis en place your life.

• Every night at 8:30 PM, my phone throws up an alarm: “Get ready now.” I put my show on pause, and I make sure the following is done:
• Clothes for the next day are put out.
• Briefcase is packed and my morning reading is set (I’ll get to it.)
• Any jacket or gear that I wear is in one place. (I get the privilege of working through a Chicago winter.)
• My everyday carry is in its place: AirPods, company badge, tiny knife, wallet, Fields Notes notebook.)
• Shoes by the door and if the trash needs to be taken out, that is by the door as well.

This way when I get up, I don’t have to make a decision. I’m going to take my shower, dry off, get dressed, gather my stuff and get on the move. By the first week, I didn’t forget anything once I had this system laid out. You must prep before you go to bed — when the morning comes, it’s too late, you aren’t on your game.

Other things to consider doing in the morning to prepare for:

• Getting your coffee going by having the mug and other stuff ready.
• Journaling — have the journal open and ready to go.
• Exercise — have your gym clothes laid out as well so you just have to throw them on and get to work.
• Breakfast — have that all prepped and ready to just reheat or blend. (I don’t eat breakfast in the morning. My stomach is weird. Or as my late mother would say, “sleepy!”

Whatever you can do to reduce the amount of decisions in the morning is going to make for a great commute. Absolutely destroy your choices and you’ll find it a lot easier to get out the door.

Commute by car.

If you are in a car that entire time, you have limited choices on how to spend your time: listening to the radio, listening to podcasts, or silence. Not a big fan of the radio. Unless you’re an NPR junkie (fine) I think it’s a huge waste of time to hear music playing. You don’t get to pick it; you have to endure it.

I’m pro-silence. Unwind. Think. Give yourself some space. You do that silence. Good for you.

But my love of loves are podcasts. Sweet, sweet podcasts. Download some and find stories, advice, humor and wisdom. Start with Radiolab. You won’t be disappointed.

Commute By Train or Bus

If you are riding the rails or the bus the same applies for commuting by car. But now you have the advantage — you have some room to move. Besides silence and podcasts, here are your solid advantages.

Books. You can absolutely destroy books on your commute. Fiction, non-fiction — whatever your heart desires. Get to reading.

My method is this. In the morning, I am attached to my book. I don’t have enough brain power built up to get to writing; I don’t have enough coffee in my system. (But we will get to that later.)

I dedicate my mornings to reading fiction. I don’t have to remember or process anything. I simply open up some fictional world and dive in.

I have a stack (it’s embarrassing) of fiction at home that has been untouched for a long time and my quest, my super-quest is get through the books I have amassed but have neglected.

I have that book in my bag and there it stays. I don’t read it at work or any other place. That’s my train book.

When I feel I’m nearing the end, I simply put a new book in my briefcase and when I’m done with one book, I can simply start another.

You’ll be shocked how much of a book you can crush with uninterrupted time. Whether it’s 15 minutes or an hour — you’ll find the time passes quickly before your stop.

If fiction isn’t your game like mine, I suggest asking around at work what non-fiction books are your co-workers and your boss enjoying. And if reading makes you queasy, I’d suggest delving into the podcast world. If you’re new to that, start with Radiolab and have your mind blown.

Writing. On my way back from work, I open up my laptop and write. Now you might be wondering, “I’m not a writer — why would I bother?”

Well, most of us are writers. We write memos and reports. We write thank you notes.

And if you are looking for a place to start when it comes to writing, I advise people to either journal or write thank you notes.

If you would like to start journaling, simply catalog your day.

• What went well?
• What didn’t?
• What are you wondering about?
• What are you hoping for?

This isn’t going to be edited or passed around. Just simply type. You’ll be surprised what wisdom and connections you make.

Another option is writing thank you notes. Oh, and I know what you might be thinking: “Ryan, the train is moving. I can’t write a thank you note. It will look I was being chased.” Well, you’re still going to use your computer. You are just writing the thank you and then when you get back to your office, you simply write it on a nice piece of stationary. (I hate writing a thank you note off the top of my head while trying to have nice penmanship. If I already have it down it goes much better.)

The Mandatory Gear

Solid briefcase. You need something that is going to take beating but looks great and has some style to it. I have a Filson 24 hour briefcase that I love. It’s great during the winter months and the hardware of the briefcase is solid.

Sure it’s a little on the expensive side, but I’ll have it forever.

Headphones. I can’t say this enough. Pick some high-quality and comfortable headphones. I use AirPods because they keep a charge forever and they are easy to put in and take out. Maybe you need some noise canceling ones such as the Sony by Wired. And keep a cheap pair in the bottom of your bag because that one day you forget them — it’s a complete disaster.

You can also use them at work to block out the distractions and the chatter,

Other items: a book, a spare battery for your phone, laptop, and well, let’s be real: snacks. Throw some RX bars on in bag because sometimes there’s a delay and you need to snack hard.

A commute doesn’t have to be this journey to Mordor; use it wisely. Sure you can play on your phone, get to the next level of your game, but wouldn’t it be better if you were the one to level up?

Ryan McRae runs a small, tiny blog called The ADHD Nerd. It’s about getting stuff done and being more productive in a distractive world.