If you have ADHD, typical productivity advice may not work well for you, as discussed in this YouTube video. For example, breaking a larger project into a list of smaller tasks may make you feel even more overwhelmed with all of the steps you need to take, or you may wind up just wasting time writing lists of what you have to do.
Starting around 12 1/2 minutes into the video, there’s a discussion about different components of motivation followed by some productivity suggestions that may be more useful (although, as with any advice, effectiveness isn’t always the same for each person or for each set of circumstances).
One example is working in brief “micro commitments” – instead of declaring that you’ll clean your whole kitchen in a single day, start by saying that you’ll put away three dishes. Don’t think about or list all of the things you need to do. Just tackle one small commitment. Maybe doing this will lead to a buildup of momentum, and if it doesn’t, at least you got something done. Other pieces of advice include making a particular task more like a game or using a Pomodoro timer with a work-break ratio that’s calibrated to you.
Also, even if you don’t have ADHD, it may be worth checking out the suggestions, because maybe they could still be effective for you.
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