I feel like the time blindness leads to those three items, and the time blindness is the symptom. You can have all of the other things you’ve listed without having time blindness.
"Interstitial Journaling" (write a few lines every time you take a break, noting the exact time each when you make each entry) has been incredibly helpful! I do that but then also say what I'm going to do next, estimate how long it'll take, and then record the result and how accurate my my estimate was and how well I stayed on task and what might have been a factor for any distraction or interruption. The "meta-cognition" is super effective. A up-and-about or non-desk focused version works well with a wristwatch and a pocket notebook.
I struggle with anxiety and avoidance of tasks. I find these time management tools help with tasks that are relatively low on the “avoidance severity” scale, but they fail utterly if my brain has decided that a task is more aversive than it is rewarding, or if I fear failure / low evaluation from others. I use these coping strategies regularly but still note that aversive tasks can be on my todo list for months.
I was just diagnosed with ADHD and my OT told me to refer to your videos. I'm pleasantly surprised at the information in this and I'm so glad that you do what you do.Thank you so much!
I have a theory on time blindness. I looked at my friends who are successful and have adhd. They have bad anxiety. I do not and I am not great at life. I started thinking about regulation of emotions and my ability to "down regulate" (I believe that is the term) my emotions to the point that I do not FEEL the future. I can look forward in time to plan but I cannot bring a sense of urgency back with me that translates into action. I liken it to an analogy of a person spending 100 years reading every sentence in existence about the way a third degree burn feels vs holding your hand to the fire for a split second. A feeling leaves a mark. Basically time blindness could be related to emotional regulation somehow. Just an idea I've been thinking about. Thankyou for your continued devotion to helping adhd people.
I was thinking about the same thing! Ever since I was able to regulate my stress and anxiety, I've been more time blind than before, procrastinating more than normal, and not even caring about not doing some task. I also saw a video about a TH-camr with AuDHD saying that she was able to manage time and complete tasks on time because of her anxiety, so I think your theory might be somewhat right
I agree as well. I struggled more with anxiety, and even panic attacks, in my early to mid 20s, but did not struggle so much in my work and home life in terms of getting things done and being successful (compared to now, at 37 - I was never a high earner, but I at least held down jobs for years and got positive feedback & promotions). In the past few years especially, I have no real anxiety in the sense it is a diagnosis; no sense of urgency - I was even told this by two former managers, and I worked in a job that kind of required it. I've been fired from two jobs in the past few years due to being chronically late, and a PIP this past year at my current job. While developing a disability also played a role, I only recently was diagnosed with ADHD, and learned how much that has impacted my life. Despite all this, my emotions are actually fairly stable, except for frustration, mainly at myself. Your theory does have me wondering if I still had more sense of urgency, more anxiety, if I would be less of a procrastinator and better at time management, like I was before. If that is a "motivator" to not fail expectations. Not that that's a good trade-off. But there is so much variety in people with ADHD, I don't think any of us is better off than another. We'll always be a step (or two) behind "normal" people, regardless of our individual struggles.
This would make sense as when you have anxiety that is related to a task it is then kept in your mind for longer and we all have more motivation when the fear of failure is looming and the adrenal glands are putting out the stress hormones, well until we burn out from over stress.
For years I've considered using timers, but haven't been motivated enough to get around to doing it. I'm looking forward to your tips for self motivating.
Love my kitchen timer! I got two of them, digital and analogue. Found out I prefer the oldfashioned analog tool. Usually I can´t stand tictac, but the kitchen timer is allowed to produce the sound. The sound reminds me that I´m busy with a task.
I didn’t see the issue that I have always struggled with in trying to implement solutions like this - I spend all of the time i should have been working trying to find the timer! My usual solution to losing absolutely anything I ever touch is to buy/create so many of that item that I can usually find ONE of them when I need it (and five or six of them when I don’t!), and I’m on a fixed income, so I have a limited ability to buy stuff AND the clutter resulting from needing dozens of flashlights and lighters and copies of keys, etc. I honestly love these ideas, but don’t know how I could make them work in my own life other than to budget for a dozen or more kitchen timers to add to the clutter… 🥴
I'm getting started in rolling my own home automation and had that exact thought/concern about timers. My idea is to get a group of big, smart LED timers I can mount on the wall that will all sync to whatever the latest timer I set on either my phone or my Sonos device, and show me the time remaining for that timer in every room I walk into. There might be some smart timers that work with an app that can do the same thing!
I’ve been going through a hard time and my problems with task management have tripled. Thank you for these videos, if you have more tips please continue this mini-series
I personally struggle with using the Eisenhower Matrix simply because, most of the time, I cannot identify what is to be considered important and urgent, important and non-urgent, etc. I see the value of this matrix, but what questions or "criteria" could I use to help me recognise a task on my list and assign it to the appropriate quadrant?
Here’s what helps me *Urgent important = tasks that have a time limit and there are consequences if not done. *Not urgent but important = this is where “adulting” takes place. The maintenance of life. A good quadrant to live in. Get good stuff done without the time freak out. *Urgent not important = has a time constraint but no consequences if deleted. *Last quadrant no urgent not important = Fun things in life I hope this different definition helps.
I've tried using a spring loaded kitchen timer to help me stay on track while working. However, it rang so loud it scared the crap out of me. I impulsivity threw it across the room. So that didn't last long. 😆
My goodness you’re so correct about the technology thing. I homework done via computer is way harder than paper. Reading way easier on physical book. I’m going to try the timer.
Techie here. Apple Watch with preset timer or better yet ask Siri to set a timer. Phone set to do not disturb and set on a charger out of reach. I always have my timer with me, be it organizing the garage, editing digital files, cleaning the kitchen, invoicing, bills, etc. The ticking ofI spring wound timer create a mild anxiety as am way too easily distracted by noise. Instead of going manual which adds more stress inducing clutter sitting in my files, shelves or surfaces. I’ve switched to a 90% digital workflow which has allowed me to create rules and automations that do the tasks that I used to avoid. I full embraced tech’s advantage over paper but you have to use the tech as a tool, not a source for distraction or entertainment.
For me (YMMV), the sweet spot for Pomodoro intervals is 8 minutes of focus, 8 minutes rest. I may dial the “difficulty” up or down based on external factors (e.g., lack of sleep or particularly motivating task), but only a click or two in either direction (not jumping from 8 minutes to 30).
thank you so much for just..keeping putting out info for us (I myself have adhd and a daughter with asd and a son with adhd).. I'm an IT'er so if there is a hi-tec solution, i know it and have it set up and in place, and while it works for a lot of things, even I am aware that sometimes more low-tec or analogue things just work better/suit the task more
Thank you for this video. 1 or 2 years ago ( i don't remember if it was 2024,23,22... sounds all the same for me... TIME flies so fast and i don't even notice it😅) i bought such a timer and tried the pomodoro technique but failed at it. That the 25 minutes are recommended for a 'typical adult' and not for people like me..😂.. is new information for me. Now i feel motivated to try this method again. I always thougt i'm even too stupid to do something without distraction for 25 minutes (which i thougt were recommended for adhd).
Pro tip: don't install apps on your phone. Only use it for alarms, notes, calendar, and phone. No notifications, no badges, no games. Honestly, quality of life is not improved by mobile games ever. If you must game on mobile, use an old phone separately. Greatest advice I can offer any ADHD sufferer.
There's a practical need for many apps, but I have switched off notifications for most apps. Just phone, messages, Whatsapp and location alerts for dog and hubby. They are also the only ones that come to my watch and I feel able to leave my phone further away. Has really made a difference! I also have a rule for reading news only once a day. Otherwise it's and endless refresh loop.
I have a spring-loaded egg-shaped timer exclusively for Pomos. It's white and this does not pain me to have on my desk. My first one was a tomato shaped one, but after finishing one thesis with it, it decided to give up on me 😅
Pomodoro technique is intimidating to me because I feel like if a break is imposed on me, I'll lose momentum and forget where I was in my task. Of course I have no sense of how long things will take, and I assume I would just tell myself "I'll take the break when I am at a good break point" and then that never comes. I'd just "snooze" my 25 minutes for 4 hours. It feels like it would be an added stressor and responsibility I'm ignoring. When I was working a job I used to resent being required to take a lunch by a certain time (while appreciating that unions implement protections for a reason). The only thing I would be able to ruminate was my task I wasn't doing! I don't eat in public for medical reasons, so it was literally just wasting 30 minutes stressing out and trying to focus on a thing that was no longer in front of me. If I leave the flow state, it's just gone. "Coming back to" a task is always just a light "starting over" because I have to go back over everything from the beginning, and spend a few minutes going "oh yeah, I have to do this, I forgot that part". Maybe that just means it wouldn't work for me, or that learning to rest is a skill I'll have to implement. I feel like discipline is largely lacking within me, and I can only run on momentum. There have been times in my life where I'll exercise for an hour daily, for months, sometimes over a year. But if I get sick or otherwise take a rest day, I'm liable to forget I had a "habit" and won't notice until a month later that I'd stopped. It's very all or nothing. It's scary to have hobbies that are not made for every-day, they will fall to the wayside and where other people can do things a few times a week, I'll be reduced to once a month. Even with someone else to have accountability to, like my physical therapist. I just don't do my responsibilities, and let my massive guilt serve as penance.
I assumed pomodoros aren't so much for making you take a break from a task you're in the flow of but for trying to make yourself do a task that isn't flowing. So if it's a really boring task you're really struggling to do you can tell yourself 'just do 10 minutes and then you can break' makes it less daunting then picturing a huge boring project that'll take hours, you can just focus on the 10 minutes
Neither of those methods work for me. Once I start, I have no problem focusing to get the task done. The issue is feeling the URGENCY to get started. And with the matrix, if it isn't urgent, I either forget about it or ignore it until it becomes urgent. I'm looking for solutions to my urgency-dependent procrastination. Has there been any research on the actual effectiveness of these methods? Because I feel like so many people recommend these and other methods and always tack on a disclaimer, ie: your mileage may vary. I come here to learn research-backed information, not to just hear what everyone else is saying.
This is the bigger problem for me too. Most tasks I'm okay at staying focused on once I start, but actually getting started is the really hard part, so things get procrastinated on for ages. Mum's said its always been the case since I was a child - knock my homework out no problem once I started, getting me started was a whole ordeal though
Spring loaded kitchen timers can very much be hit or miss for me. I have yet to find a truly reliable system, but having a wristwatch again is very helpful for me. I use a combination of hourglasses and my phone for now, as the kitchen timers I have tried up until now have not been helpful for different reasons. I have not given up on them, but I have stopped buying regular ones, because that is just money out the window for me. Next time I buy one, it'll be one with very clear visuals for time left. I also want a wall clock.
organisation is basted on a future sense of self which is what I have the most issues with as I just stagnate in my 'now'. TBH all my days off work are spent looking at how chaotic my life is and then just standing in my kitchen drinking coffee wondering when my reward sytems will kick In to make sense of where to even start. Then I just end up on youtube for hours after giving up. 😢 elsonhower thing will hopefully help.
I’m interested to know if anyone else in this comment section gets really stressed out watching the time. I think this is a positive management tool, but I do tend to get stressed out. I feel I have to rush, and that gets me hyped up and anxious. What I have found really helpful is using timers to see how long a task takes. The goal is to help me estimate time better. I’m not giving up on this, but I do put the timer in the other room so I’m more realistic about it. I’d love to hear if others feel the same or if I’m a lone wolf with this.
A very clever modification here. and any comorbid anxiety could lead to this issue of stressing over time. I like your tailoring the ideas to you as an individual.
Whilst these are absolutely valid strategies for time management and ADHD, there is nothing particularly catered to the condition in these approaches. For instance, most basic self-help books will teach the same approaches. I feel it would be more helpful to guide people through common pitfalls and alternate approaches to the same techniques.
Would it make sense to also use the timer to time your break (or time spent allowing yourself to be distracted)? Because I've found when I'm trying to stay focused on a task and I get distracted, I end up getting stuck on the distraction much longer than on the original planned task. It can sidetrack an entire day.
Can you please mention at the beginning of a video that all this tips doesn't work without pills? Mentioning tips in isolation give normies the impression that ADHD can be cured with just a cheap plastic clock, and therefore support stigma.
Some of them might help for some of us unmedicated, it is not all or nothing, but that being said, you definitely have a point. Nothing has helped me stick to these strategies more than when I have been on the right meds, but honestly, they are worth testing out either way, because while their efficacy is usually a lot better with meds, even a 10% wobbly bump in EF will be worth a lot of effort for most of us. Again, I also think you have a really good point re support stigma. I hope the flannel dude takes in into consideration in later videos because it is really valid input.
I often tell my sister, “time is a social construct,” whenever she worries about us running late. 😅 What’s the point in getting all stressed out about it, we’re already late! She has medicated ADHD and I am newly adjusting to my post-concussion brain. She has acquired lots of coping skills over the years and tries to instill them in me too, but I’m kind of enjoying my new free-flowing brain after a lifetime of perfectionism and anxiety. I used to be the uptight one frustrated with her, now she is the one irritated with me. 🤭
It's not just time blindness, it's resistance to obligation, fear of deadlines, resentment of impositions.
Resentment of impositions - I relate to this. Well said
Thank you for sharing these specific things. 🙏🏾🎯
You should also look at: "Pathological Demand Avoidance"
I feel like the time blindness leads to those three items, and the time blindness is the symptom. You can have all of the other things you’ve listed without having time blindness.
Every. Single. Day!
"Interstitial Journaling" (write a few lines every time you take a break, noting the exact time each when you make each entry) has been incredibly helpful!
I do that but then also say what I'm going to do next, estimate how long it'll take, and then record the result and how accurate my my estimate was and how well I stayed on task and what might have been a factor for any distraction or interruption.
The "meta-cognition" is super effective.
A up-and-about or non-desk focused version works well with a wristwatch and a pocket notebook.
That's a really great idea, thanks for sharing.
I struggle with anxiety and avoidance of tasks. I find these time management tools help with tasks that are relatively low on the “avoidance severity” scale, but they fail utterly if my brain has decided that a task is more aversive than it is rewarding, or if I fear failure / low evaluation from others. I use these coping strategies regularly but still note that aversive tasks can be on my todo list for months.
I was just diagnosed with ADHD and my OT told me to refer to your videos. I'm pleasantly surprised at the information in this and I'm so glad that you do what you do.Thank you so much!
my pleasure. be well
I have a theory on time blindness. I looked at my friends who are successful and have adhd. They have bad anxiety. I do not and I am not great at life. I started thinking about regulation of emotions and my ability to "down regulate" (I believe that is the term) my emotions to the point that I do not FEEL the future. I can look forward in time to plan but I cannot bring a sense of urgency back with me that translates into action. I liken it to an analogy of a person spending 100 years reading every sentence in existence about the way a third degree burn feels vs holding your hand to the fire for a split second. A feeling leaves a mark. Basically time blindness could be related to emotional regulation somehow. Just an idea I've been thinking about. Thankyou for your continued devotion to helping adhd people.
I think you might be on to something. I for one would definitely like to see that looked into.
I agree.
I was thinking about the same thing! Ever since I was able to regulate my stress and anxiety, I've been more time blind than before, procrastinating more than normal, and not even caring about not doing some task.
I also saw a video about a TH-camr with AuDHD saying that she was able to manage time and complete tasks on time because of her anxiety, so I think your theory might be somewhat right
I agree as well. I struggled more with anxiety, and even panic attacks, in my early to mid 20s, but did not struggle so much in my work and home life in terms of getting things done and being successful (compared to now, at 37 - I was never a high earner, but I at least held down jobs for years and got positive feedback & promotions).
In the past few years especially, I have no real anxiety in the sense it is a diagnosis; no sense of urgency - I was even told this by two former managers, and I worked in a job that kind of required it. I've been fired from two jobs in the past few years due to being chronically late, and a PIP this past year at my current job. While developing a disability also played a role, I only recently was diagnosed with ADHD, and learned how much that has impacted my life. Despite all this, my emotions are actually fairly stable, except for frustration, mainly at myself.
Your theory does have me wondering if I still had more sense of urgency, more anxiety, if I would be less of a procrastinator and better at time management, like I was before. If that is a "motivator" to not fail expectations. Not that that's a good trade-off. But there is so much variety in people with ADHD, I don't think any of us is better off than another. We'll always be a step (or two) behind "normal" people, regardless of our individual struggles.
This would make sense as when you have anxiety that is related to a task it is then kept in your mind for longer and we all have more motivation when the fear of failure is looming and the adrenal glands are putting out the stress hormones, well until we burn out from over stress.
For years I've considered using timers, but haven't been motivated enough to get around to doing it. I'm looking forward to your tips for self motivating.
Love my kitchen timer! I got two of them, digital and analogue. Found out I prefer the oldfashioned analog tool. Usually I can´t stand tictac, but the kitchen timer is allowed to produce the sound. The sound reminds me that I´m busy with a task.
Great tip!
I didn’t see the issue that I have always struggled with in trying to implement solutions like this - I spend all of the time i should have been working trying to find the timer! My usual solution to losing absolutely anything I ever touch is to buy/create so many of that item that I can usually find ONE of them when I need it (and five or six of them when I don’t!), and I’m on a fixed income, so I have a limited ability to buy stuff AND the clutter resulting from needing dozens of flashlights and lighters and copies of keys, etc. I honestly love these ideas, but don’t know how I could make them work in my own life other than to budget for a dozen or more kitchen timers to add to the clutter… 🥴
I'm getting started in rolling my own home automation and had that exact thought/concern about timers. My idea is to get a group of big, smart LED timers I can mount on the wall that will all sync to whatever the latest timer I set on either my phone or my Sonos device, and show me the time remaining for that timer in every room I walk into.
There might be some smart timers that work with an app that can do the same thing!
Yes, I have the same issue and I’ve found that a simple analog alarm clock is a surprisingly useful tool!
This series is so helpful..
Please continue this series sir..
Btw your valuable video save me many times...
Love and respect from India 💐
Thank you!
I’ve been going through a hard time and my problems with task management have tripled. Thank you for these videos, if you have more tips please continue this mini-series
Samsung Galaxy Note is the greatest investment of my tech life. Having a disconnected older one leftover after upgrading was an ever bigger benefit.
good tip!
The hero we didn’t know we needed
I personally struggle with using the Eisenhower Matrix simply because, most of the time, I cannot identify what is to be considered important and urgent, important and non-urgent, etc. I see the value of this matrix, but what questions or "criteria" could I use to help me recognise a task on my list and assign it to the appropriate quadrant?
Same. Plus sometimes I just need to start with mundane stuff to get going and to be able to move on to more challenging tasks.
Exactly! When everything seems urgent and important, how do you suss out what truly is urgent and important?
It doesn't help much when one struggles with self motivation either.
Here’s what helps me
*Urgent important = tasks that have a time limit and there are consequences if not done.
*Not urgent but important = this is where “adulting” takes place. The maintenance of life. A good quadrant to live in. Get good stuff done without the time freak out.
*Urgent not important = has a time constraint but no consequences if deleted.
*Last quadrant no urgent not important = Fun things in life
I hope this different definition helps.
@@cyana5867Who says having fun is not important?
I've tried using a spring loaded kitchen timer to help me stay on track while working. However, it rang so loud it scared the crap out of me. I impulsivity threw it across the room. So that didn't last long. 😆
My goodness you’re so correct about the technology thing.
I homework done via computer is way harder than paper.
Reading way easier on physical book.
I’m going to try the timer.
Techie here. Apple Watch with preset timer or better yet ask Siri to set a timer. Phone set to do not disturb and set on a charger out of reach. I always have my timer with me, be it organizing the garage, editing digital files, cleaning the kitchen, invoicing, bills, etc. The ticking ofI
spring wound timer create a mild anxiety as am way too easily distracted by noise. Instead of going manual which adds more stress inducing clutter sitting in my files, shelves or surfaces. I’ve switched to a 90% digital workflow which has allowed me to create rules and automations that do the tasks that I used to avoid. I full embraced tech’s advantage over paper but you have to use the tech as a tool, not a source for distraction or entertainment.
For me (YMMV), the sweet spot for Pomodoro intervals is 8 minutes of focus, 8 minutes rest. I may dial the “difficulty” up or down based on external factors (e.g., lack of sleep or particularly motivating task), but only a click or two in either direction (not jumping from 8 minutes to 30).
Great idea!
thank you so much for just..keeping putting out info for us (I myself have adhd and a daughter with asd and a son with adhd).. I'm an IT'er so if there is a hi-tec solution, i know it and have it set up and in place, and while it works for a lot of things, even I am aware that sometimes more low-tec or analogue things just work better/suit the task more
GREAT IDEAS! THANK YOU AND KEEP POSTING PLEASE!
Thank you for amazing work you do, it is really helpful!
You are so welcome.
Thank you for this video. 1 or 2 years ago ( i don't remember if it was 2024,23,22... sounds all the same for me... TIME flies so fast and i don't even notice it😅) i bought such a timer and tried the pomodoro technique but failed at it. That the 25 minutes are recommended for a 'typical adult' and not for people like me..😂.. is new information for me. Now i feel motivated to try this method again. I always thougt i'm even too stupid to do something without distraction for 25 minutes (which i thougt were recommended for adhd).
see the above suggestion for trying 8 minute Pomodoros instead.
Yes i will , and will try it, thank you very much 🙏🏼
Pro tip: don't install apps on your phone. Only use it for alarms, notes, calendar, and phone. No notifications, no badges, no games.
Honestly, quality of life is not improved by mobile games ever. If you must game on mobile, use an old phone separately. Greatest advice I can offer any ADHD sufferer.
Only problem is you can reinstall them
There's a practical need for many apps, but I have switched off notifications for most apps. Just phone, messages, Whatsapp and location alerts for dog and hubby. They are also the only ones that come to my watch and I feel able to leave my phone further away. Has really made a difference! I also have a rule for reading news only once a day. Otherwise it's and endless refresh loop.
I have a spring-loaded egg-shaped timer exclusively for Pomos. It's white and this does not pain me to have on my desk. My first one was a tomato shaped one, but after finishing one thesis with it, it decided to give up on me 😅
Thank you!
You're welcome!
This information is helpful. Thank you.
You are welcome! Glad it was helpful.
Pomodoro technique is intimidating to me because I feel like if a break is imposed on me, I'll lose momentum and forget where I was in my task. Of course I have no sense of how long things will take, and I assume I would just tell myself "I'll take the break when I am at a good break point" and then that never comes. I'd just "snooze" my 25 minutes for 4 hours. It feels like it would be an added stressor and responsibility I'm ignoring. When I was working a job I used to resent being required to take a lunch by a certain time (while appreciating that unions implement protections for a reason). The only thing I would be able to ruminate was my task I wasn't doing! I don't eat in public for medical reasons, so it was literally just wasting 30 minutes stressing out and trying to focus on a thing that was no longer in front of me. If I leave the flow state, it's just gone. "Coming back to" a task is always just a light "starting over" because I have to go back over everything from the beginning, and spend a few minutes going "oh yeah, I have to do this, I forgot that part".
Maybe that just means it wouldn't work for me, or that learning to rest is a skill I'll have to implement. I feel like discipline is largely lacking within me, and I can only run on momentum. There have been times in my life where I'll exercise for an hour daily, for months, sometimes over a year. But if I get sick or otherwise take a rest day, I'm liable to forget I had a "habit" and won't notice until a month later that I'd stopped. It's very all or nothing. It's scary to have hobbies that are not made for every-day, they will fall to the wayside and where other people can do things a few times a week, I'll be reduced to once a month. Even with someone else to have accountability to, like my physical therapist. I just don't do my responsibilities, and let my massive guilt serve as penance.
I assumed pomodoros aren't so much for making you take a break from a task you're in the flow of but for trying to make yourself do a task that isn't flowing. So if it's a really boring task you're really struggling to do you can tell yourself 'just do 10 minutes and then you can break' makes it less daunting then picturing a huge boring project that'll take hours, you can just focus on the 10 minutes
Sir what you think about James clear book atomic habit. has mentioned all the key Importance of Time Management to making the Goals.
Neither of those methods work for me. Once I start, I have no problem focusing to get the task done. The issue is feeling the URGENCY to get started. And with the matrix, if it isn't urgent, I either forget about it or ignore it until it becomes urgent. I'm looking for solutions to my urgency-dependent procrastination. Has there been any research on the actual effectiveness of these methods? Because I feel like so many people recommend these and other methods and always tack on a disclaimer, ie: your mileage may vary. I come here to learn research-backed information, not to just hear what everyone else is saying.
This is the bigger problem for me too. Most tasks I'm okay at staying focused on once I start, but actually getting started is the really hard part, so things get procrastinated on for ages. Mum's said its always been the case since I was a child - knock my homework out no problem once I started, getting me started was a whole ordeal though
Spring loaded kitchen timers can very much be hit or miss for me. I have yet to find a truly reliable system, but having a wristwatch again is very helpful for me.
I use a combination of hourglasses and my phone for now, as the kitchen timers I have tried up until now have not been helpful for different reasons.
I have not given up on them, but I have stopped buying regular ones, because that is just money out the window for me.
Next time I buy one, it'll be one with very clear visuals for time left. I also want a wall clock.
you really do need to individualize these suggestions. nice ideas here
organisation is basted on a future sense of self which is what I have the most issues with as I just stagnate in my 'now'.
TBH all my days off work are spent looking at how chaotic my life is and then just standing in my kitchen drinking coffee wondering when my reward sytems will kick In to make sense of where to even start. Then I just end up on youtube for hours after giving up. 😢 elsonhower thing will hopefully help.
I’m interested to know if anyone else in this comment section gets really stressed out watching the time. I think this is a positive management tool, but I do tend to get stressed out. I feel I have to rush, and that gets me hyped up and anxious.
What I have found really helpful is using timers to see how long a task takes. The goal is to help me estimate time better. I’m not giving up on this, but I do put the timer in the other room so I’m more realistic about it.
I’d love to hear if others feel the same or if I’m a lone wolf with this.
A very clever modification here. and any comorbid anxiety could lead to this issue of stressing over time. I like your tailoring the ideas to you as an individual.
Whilst these are absolutely valid strategies for time management and ADHD, there is nothing particularly catered to the condition in these approaches. For instance, most basic self-help books will teach the same approaches. I feel it would be more helpful to guide people through common pitfalls and alternate approaches to the same techniques.
Would it make sense to also use the timer to time your break (or time spent allowing yourself to be distracted)? Because I've found when I'm trying to stay focused on a task and I get distracted, I end up getting stuck on the distraction much longer than on the original planned task. It can sidetrack an entire day.
Can you please mention at the beginning of a video that all this tips doesn't work without pills?
Mentioning tips in isolation give normies the impression that ADHD can be cured with just a cheap plastic clock, and therefore support stigma.
Some of them might help for some of us unmedicated, it is not all or nothing, but that being said, you definitely have a point.
Nothing has helped me stick to these strategies more than when I have been on the right meds, but honestly, they are worth testing out either way, because while their efficacy is usually a lot better with meds, even a 10% wobbly bump in EF will be worth a lot of effort for most of us.
Again, I also think you have a really good point re support stigma.
I hope the flannel dude takes in into consideration in later videos because it is really valid input.
very true. meds help but the methods can too and do even better if combined.
i really miss times when a lot watches had bip-bip every 15 min without really having to set them to do so.
I dont like the jolt type seconds hand. i prefer the sliding type..time doesnt stop for any amout of seconds but moves on constantly
it’s not for everyone but might help others. keep trying new things to find what fits you.
I often tell my sister, “time is a social construct,” whenever she worries about us running late. 😅 What’s the point in getting all stressed out about it, we’re already late! She has medicated ADHD and I am newly adjusting to my post-concussion brain. She has acquired lots of coping skills over the years and tries to instill them in me too, but I’m kind of enjoying my new free-flowing brain after a lifetime of perfectionism and anxiety. I used to be the uptight one frustrated with her, now she is the one irritated with me. 🤭
I can appreciate your position. Thank you for sharing your experience.
then I'm finding timers under piles of stuff in 6 months
But then I need to do them.
a big thanks for you incredible videos from Germany 🫶
My pleasure!