Every adult with ADHD knows the trouble with time… there’s just never enough. But if you look closer, you’ll discover some simple ways to get more done during your waking hours. Try one of these 30 Best Practices today and see how it might help you!
1. Stack non-critical tasks together.
Switching gears between different types of tasks can be a huge productivity killer. Most people need up to six minutes to just start one task. When you task-switch, you’ll likely lose several minutes to get into a productive mental groove geared toward a specific type of task. Therefore, it saves time and brain energy to do similar tasks together. If you know you have a time of day when your energy tends to wane, try stacking tasks like laundry and dishes. You’ll move your body and feel that sense of completion between those bigger tasks, and not get stuck behind a screen with eyes glazed over.
2. ADHD shortcuts abound.
ADHD shortcuts are available everywhere when you begin to observe other productive people. Do you have a particularly productive friend you admire? They likey build productive shortcuts for almost everything they do. Instead of hiding in shame, ask others about their shortcuts that save minutes here and there daily. If you use a computer, learn the keyboard shortcuts for the programs you use most often. If you can permanently delegate one of your regular tasks to someone else, do it. Is there a route to work with less traffic? Where can you hit two birds with one stone? Pre-planning can help you combine tasks.
3. Digitally detox.
A digital detox typically only happens these days by accident… Perhaps you could try leaving your phone in your car, or at home while out on errands. A digital detox is defined by periods where you deliberately unplug from your devices at certain times of day. Since distractions abound, it’s important to stop and allow your brain, eyes, and nervous system to regulate without constant input. Practice doing nothing. Ditching distractions can be one of the most effective ways to get things done in less time. Undistracted folks are nearly four times as productive as those who constantly tap their phones.
4. Lighten your commitments.
One of the best ways to save time and boost productivity is by paring down on what you’re committed to. Even when you can access super-productive states, having too many ‘irons in the fire’ can slow you down and steal your focus. When you spread yourself across too many fronts at once, all activities slow down, stand still, and sometimes even slide backward.
5. Plan 10 minutes before and after work.
10 minutes of dedicated time planning each evening will save you from 30 minutes of ad-hoc preparation each morning. Likewise, starting your morning on purpose 30 minutes early will likely inject at least 60 additional productive minutes into your day. Think about it.
6. Organize your space.
Disorganized ADHDers waste so much time. An ADHD shortcut is to get organized, but this is easier said than done for most. How much time do you think the average ADHD adult wastes searching for misplaced items? Save time by organizing your living and working spaces and saving time daily. To help you get organized, take the Time and Space Style Inventory. to learn about your style preferences for organizing and then get busy –
7. Productively use “Wait Time”.
Waiting time does not have to be wasted time. Instead of grabbing your phone while waiting at the doctor’s office, the post office, or on hold for the next available representative, start linking up simple tasks to complete while you wait for your appointment. How about sorting through your snail mail, writing those thank you notes you’ve been putting off, reading the book you keep meaning to read, reviewing and editing your to-do lists, etc.
8. Handle two-minute tasks immediately.
“The 2 Minute Rule” is one of the greatest tips I picked up from David Allen’s book, “Getting Things Done.” If you roughly estimate that a task is going to take you less than two minutes to accomplish, do it right now. It’s a waste of time and energy to keep small tasks like this on your to-do list in the back of your mind.
9. Ask questions before you start.
This is a biggie for most ADHD adults. Perhaps impulsivity drove you to act before you checked things out as a kid, but as an adult, the trial-and-error process of doing before you have the details down can be a huge time-suck! If you think asking questions and relying on others as a weakness, you’re mistaken. Asking questions will not only help you complete expected tasks more effectively but also bring you closer to the people around you and likely save you a huge chunk of time. It’s a Win-win.
10. Buy in bulk and power-prep food.
Buying and cooking food are two of the most common unplanned activities in which ADHD people underestimate their time. Most people buy replacements in small amounts only when they need them and think about food only when they’re hungry. The problem is that these issues will often arise at inopportune times. The most efficient way I’ve found to counteract this is by doing bulk loads of both. I know I’ll always need gas in my vehicle. So instead of putting in $25 here and $25 there, I top up my tank every time I’m at the station, regardless of the sticker shock. Likewise, I know I’ll be hungry at lunchtime every day this week. So on Sundays, I’ll grill up five extra chicken breasts and make a chicken wrap or sandwich for every day of the week.
11. Save Time by Talking over Texting – Pick up the phone.
We’ve become so accustomed to communicating digitally, sending emails, IMs, and texts, etc. that we sometimes forget that we can get the same tasks accomplished in a fraction of the time with one or two quick phone calls. My rule of thumb is – if text exchanges exceed 3 back and forth with a friend, I pick up the phone.
12. Time limiters avoid mindless browsing online.
Web browsing is an immense time suck. Before you realize it, you may have spent hours browsing while generating very little value. If you struggle with scrolling, try setting timers on your phone, or invest in a ‘blocking’ app to help assist.
13. Standardize common tasks.
If you find yourself performing the same set of tasks regularly then it makes sense to establish an efficient, standardized way of accomplishing them. Are certain tasks easier to perform in the morning? Are there additional resources that can be utilized only at a certain time? It’s up to you to find an efficient pattern, standardize it and follow it.
14. Make better usage of commute times.
Listen to audiobooks, make calls, do some proactive time planning, etc. I use Evernote on my iPhone and capture tons of ideas and thoughts when I’m commuting and traveling on business.
15. Write DAILY to-do lists.
So many people with ADHD reject writing in favor of ‘more convenient’ digital ways to remember. The problem is – reminders only focus on triggering you to remember, they don’t help you plan and organize details! If you’ve never written out a list (or if it’s been awhile) try again. This may seem daunting but realize that your working memory is limited to about 7 things max. (That’s why old-school phone numbers were always made of 7 digits – it was easier to remember the pattern of 3 and 4.) So, think old school again. To free up your brain, and lower your stress write out your tasks. If you don’t set up to-do lists for yourself you will end up wasting minutes trying to remember things that would have taken you seconds to write down.
16. Consolidate all daily errands into one trip.
I’ve lived in a rural community for more than 20 years now, and this is key to time-saving. Where I live, a round trip to the post office is 30 minutes. Therefore, it’s imperative to my time saving for me to do many errands at one time and on one trip. Consolidate all of your errands into one trip instead of driving back and forth several times from home to the store to home to the bank to home, etc.
17. Limit overthinking with time-blocks.
There comes a time when you have to stop evaluating something and just bite the bullet and do it. Contemplating taking action takes up time and still postpones taking action. It gets nothing accomplished. If you’re a chronic over-thinker, try using the T chart of writing down drivers and resisiters for the big decisions you are trying to make. On the left write the drivers (positive reasons for it) and on the right side, write the obstacles and drawbacks. Sometimes just writing things out offers enough perspective to help you remove the barriers to your progress.
18. Exercise daily.
I know it sounds counterintuitive. You have to spend time exercising. But research has shown that exercise boosts cognitive function, creativity, problem-solving, and productivity. A NASA study showed employees who exercised daily worked at 100% efficiency after seven hours, while those who didn’t saw a 50% drop, meaning it took them twice as long to accomplish the same thing.
19. Use timers.
Not only do timers help you take the cookies out of the oven in time so they don’t burn, but they also really help you track time on tasks! I use a timer to limit the amount of time I spend on daily tasks such as email, returning calls, focusing on work, and even when I’m going to give myself time on social media. This has helped me immensely. Timers get my attention and stop me from chasing distracted rabbits down the rabbit holes. Timers help me ‘contain’ idle time and focus on important daily goals.
20. Start with easy wins.
One big misnomer for ADHDers is the ‘Eat That Frog’ concept. Unless you’re adept at inhibiting distractions and shifting focus, eating the big frogs first thing in the morning may not be possible with ADHD. Instead, try starting with easy, warm-up, starter tasks. For instance, if you have 3 loads of laundry to fold, tell your brain to just fold 1 thing… Soon you’ll be folding your clothes and not facing the dysregulated emotion of having to do it all. Since you started, it’s easier to just keep going. Set your day up to start with easy things first. Get a few wins under your belt and then move on to one big or tough task in each work segment.
21. Harness the power of teamwork.
I heard a story once about some horses that competed to see which could pull the most weight. One horse pulled 3,000 lbs and another one pulled 4,000 lbs. Someone suggested the horses team together to see how much they could pull. Most guesses were in the 7,000 lb to 10,000 lb range but when those two horses worked together, they pulled an amazing 20,000 lbs. That’s the power of teamwork. Good teamwork can get a large project completed in an amazingly short amount of time.
22. Say NO!
While saying yes can take us down some wonderful roads, there’s also a ton of value in saying “no.” We’re only given a certain amount of hours in our lives; do you really want to give yours away so easily? If you don’t have time to commit to a new project, complete a favor, or serve on another committee, it’s a good idea to just say “no.”
23. Focus your attention on one thing at a time.
Multitasking is a myth. Your brain can only focus on one thing at a time. When you’re in ‘Task Positive Mode’ your vision narrows, as does your concentration. Picking the one thing is hard. But when you do – you can focus intently on one task and finish it to completion, rather than bouncing between several started yet unfinished items on your list.
24. Pare down your e-mail inbox.
As a first step, cancel any e-mail newsletter subscriptions that you do not read anymore. If you subscribe to more than one newsletter in a certain category (e.g. tech newsletters), choose the one that delivers the most value to you daily and get rid of the rest. The e-mail inbox should only be for priority communication, otherwise, it just wastes your time. Make use of services like Unroll.me to help you sort and automatically unsubscribe to unwanted mailing lists.
25. Delegate to multiply time.
When you delegate low-priority tasks you save time. Eliminating time-wasting activities is a time multiplier. Screening phone calls can be a time multiplier. By practicing creative procrastination on anything that doesn’t propel you toward your goals, you can multiply the amount of time you have to achieve those goals.
26. Turn off your phone and the TV.
With ADHD, you need to accept that your attention is your most valuable resource. When you constantly pummel yourself with inputs, you put your brain into hyper-performance mode. It’s critical to balance this performance mode and allow your brain to just chill regularly. Research overwhelmingly shows how valuable it is to invest time in a deep rest state. Yoga Nidra protocols can help you experiment with non-sleep, deep rest resets.
27. Use technology to automate tasks.
The more you automate, the more time you’ll save as long as you’re automating things that matter. For instance, I have plenty of clients who are ‘Techies’ who LOVE to figure things out and use tech as a distraction. Instead, automate the stuff you avoid because you hate it. Consider setting up email filters, installing Carbonite to automatically back up your hard drive, and setting bills to automatic bill paying. When you automate important, non-urgent maintenance tasks – be sure to create a master list that you check in on periodically.
28. Keep tasks simple.
Simplicity is the most overlooked ADHD shortcut. KISS (Keep It Simple, Silly) is the philosophy for any ADHD brain who loves over-complicating things. Keep your to-do lists and planning simple, and avoid the allure of the next new thing. Your brain is a pattern recognition machine – so use patterns to make habits easier to remember and build.
29. ADHD Shortcut = Learn about your executive function challenges.
Stop looking outside of yourself to find the perfect tool to help. Go internal to learn more about your particular executive function breakdowns. This free downloadable Executive Function self-assessment can help you zero in on the real problems to solve. Then – solve those first. There will always be shiny new apps and new books that promise to make your day faster and more efficient. Stick with one, and learn to rely on it.
30. Sharpen your saw.
Stop, drop, and PLAN. Use Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to help you chip away at bad habits and set yourself up for success. Bottom line: You need to invest in planning to save hours of grief in the future. With ADHD, you need to develop easy ways to look into the future and catch up with the actions you’ve taken to stay on track. With many ADHDers, planning is a skills gap. Perhaps you’ve never really learned how to. Now’s a great time to start! Developing a planning ritual weekly (or more often if you’re busier) is essential to your success, even if you don’t like to do it.
Conclusion
These time shortcuts will help anyone make the most of the time they have. With adult ADHD, it’s critical to make peace with your brain and build skills and habits that work WITH your brain, rather than against them. If you’d like to explore how coaching can support you in building better time habits, book a complimentary Discovery Call with me today. Coaching is designed to support you and your ADHD brain to work more effectively together.
