adhd and productivity Archives - Ellen's Blog, Professional Organizing for Kingwood & Houston

When I start working with a new ADHD client, my first step is to share resources that will help them, their family and their colleagues understand more about ADHD and brain based conditions. I am a student of all things ADHD. I love gathering practical tips, information and resources. Sharing ADHD resources is what I do!

It was exciting to attend the CHADD and ADDA conference, known as the International Conference on ADHD. It’s billed as “your one-stop shop for a world of expert insight on the latest in ADHD treatments, advancements, research, and more.” It was a 3 days of powerful learning from authors, consultants, researchers and professional organizers. Attendees are clinicians, social workers, productivity and organizing professionals, and those with ADHD. I’d like to share a bit of what I learned and some resources for you to learn from as well. Each of these presenters offers programs, books and other options for learning more about your ADHD.

Research

Ellen Littman, PhD spoke on the topic of Females with ADHD Across the Lifespan. The presentation focused on women’s research and the interplay of neurology, genetics, hormones and social conditions. Her research highlighted how executive function, the ability to organize, plan, initiate and complete tasks was different than the same scenario for men. As a practitioner, this information explained much. My takeaway was how important it is to share with my clients that the ADHD brain is different in a good way.

Stephanie Sarkis, PhD talked about More Than Just Medication. Ms Sarkis shared how nutrition and exercise play important roles in self care. If you have not had success with your medication, follow Ms. Sarkis to learn more about cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness, and healthy supplements.

Relationships

Melissa Orlov presented the topic Diminishing Anger in Relationships Impacted by ADHD. Ms. Orlov is a well known author on marriage and relationships. The presentation focused on communication, strengths and practical tools. Ms. Orlov shared practical ways to diminish feelings of anger and improve communication. Here I learned that by focusing on how to best communicate is based on how two individuals weave their partnership.

Technology

Judith Kohlberg, shared information about ADD and Digital Distraction. Here Judith shared proactive tips to work productively with alarms, structured work spaces and technology that helps. Ms Kohlberg reminded me the power of timers. There are many different fun timers on your phone, such as the bomb alarm and the AidaReminder that can help remind you, help you transition or help you create a new routine. Ms Kohlberg also reminded us to expand your idea of organizational support to include other people, such as a professional organizer, body double, tech tamer or ADD coach.

Productivity

Terry Matlen MSW presented Distracted and Disorganized. Ms Matlen asked audience members to share their own sure fire ways to conquer distraction and disorganization at home and at work. Audience members appreciated learned from each other. In Ms Matlen’s audience, I learned that my clients with ADHD are resourceful, creative and can get the job done. It’s up to you to set the structure that works best for you.

Cris Sgrott-Wheedleton CPO presented Three Common Mistakes People Make about Time Management. Cris’s engaging presentation included time for the audience to review their best work time and slot in how to be more productive. It’s much easier to accomplish more by using your high energy time, setting boundaries on distractions and helping others set up these systems in compliment to your productivity.

Want to be immersed in learning about ADHD? The International Conference on ADHD is the place to go!

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ADHD and other brain based conditions impact productivity. It’s the quest to “get stuff done.” You start and are interrupted by other people, social media or the thoughts in your head. With so much going on in your head, it’s difficult to focus. With each distraction, it takes an average of 15 minutes to regain complete focus. It can be hard to get started on a task or to go back to a task the next day. All of these aspects of executive function interfere with productivity. Here’s help to address distractions and productivity.

Task batching

Task batching is multiplying the same task or do the same task repeatedly in a sequence. It’s when you bake 4 banana breads instead of 2, write 12 blog posts correlating to your themed blog calendar, or make 4 calls back to back. The reason task batching helps is you have gotten past getting started and now you are in the flow of getting a task done. You minimize distractions with staying focused on one task or series of tasks. A few of my favorite task batching ideas are to answer email 3 times a day, block times of the day to respond to phone calls, or do your marketing on the same morning each week. Task batch with any action by doing these together at the same, established time.

Chunk your task

Do you have items like this on your list: do taxes, send newsletter, or write a book? Each of these tasks is a multiple step project requiring many small tasks for completion. Splitting these tasks into smaller chunks, or even micro-chunks, can help you get stuff done. Start by capturing your task on a list. Write the next step for the task and a completion date. Write this as a series of steps and check these off as you accomplish each. Another option is Trello, an online task management tool, to break down a project to make it more manageable. A mindmap can help too. Breaking a task into smaller, manageable, chunks helps you accomplish more.

Write it down when interrupted or the at the end of the day

You are about to finish up your day and you are in the middle of your work. Write down where you are and what you are doing. Writing this down helps you start back up where you left off and gives you a frame of reference for your work. If you are in the middle of your work and you are interrupted by a phone call or colleague, use a post it note to write down where you are. It’s not surprising that these notes not only save time, and also keep you at a high pace of action.

These 3 options are small ways to be more productive. Here’s a daily tool for productivity!

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ADHD Resources