5 Lies I Believed About Productivity (As Someone With ADHD)

Hello, Brains! I'm doing a puzzle. Why am I doing a puzzle? For productivity. Let me explain. You probably clicked on this video because you want to be more productive, right? Or have put a lot of time and effort into trying to be, and you're kind of just over it? You're not alone. Those of us with ADHD struggle with productivity. A lot. A big part of that struggle is that we've internalized messages about how to be more productive that aren't necessarily true. At least, may not be true for brains like ours. So today, I want to share five lies I believed about how to be more productive as someone with ADHD and the truth. But before I do, if you enjoy this video, give it a like. It's a quick and easy way to support the channel and what we do. It helps. A lot.

Lie number one, I need to be doing more. Heh, this is what my to-do list looks like. A lot of us with ADHD grew up being told that we had so much potential, and we just needed to try harder to reach it. Because of this, we assumed we weren't doing enough to reach this untapped potential. So we tried harder. We often felt the need to put in more hours and effort than everybody else, just to make up for our ADHD. And sometimes, maybe that worked. When we still fell behind, we added more to our plate in an attempt to catch up, to "make up for lost time", until our efforts were scattered and frantic. When we're not accomplishing as much as we would like to, it can feel like doing more is the answer. But in truth, we can easily end up with too many open tabs in our brain pulling us in too many different directions. We overcommit, and thanks to our time blindness, we may not even realize it. This can lead to even more balls getting dropped at work or in our personal lives, or things getting forgotten about entirely. Putting effort into more things than we can realistically handle leads to a lot of wasted effort. Even more dangerous, we tend to put in so much effort that we sacrifice our well-being in the process. We might melt down emotionally, shut down, or freeze from the pressure, and paradoxically, can't get stuff done. We give up rest, which rejuvenates us, or things that energize us, like hobbies or time with those we love. That might not cause problems right away, but over time, it does... Hello, burnout. Further, because we set unrealistic expectations, we also feel bad for not achieving the unrealistic expectation, a thing that was ultimately unlikely to happen in the first place. That doesn't mean you have to give up on reaching your potential. Although if you are currently experiencing burnout, you might be like, @#%! my potential. It means that doing more isn't a healthy and sustainable way to reach it. If a lack of effort isn't the problem, more effort is not the solution. The truth is, if we want to do more, we often need to do less. [Original jazz music by John T. Mickevich plays]

Lie number two. I need to get started sooner. ADHD brains struggle with time management. More on that in this video. And the standard advice we get when we find ourselves scrambling at the last minute or missing deadlines is: "well, get started sooner. " As Dr. Raffael Boccamazzo explains, "Getting started sooner gives us the opportunity to complete a project without the sense of stress and rushed energy that often takes a toll. That is true. And it's a lot more complicated than that. Our brains already struggle with task initiation, and the farther away from a deadline we're trying to get started, the harder it is for us. We face the same challenges with time management regardless of when we get started. And because work expands to fill the time (Parkinson's law) we might end up overcomplicating a project, spend way more time on it than we would have otherwise, and still end up scrambling at the last minute to finish it. Also, ADHD brains are already more likely to miss critical steps than neurotypical brains, and an overfocus on getting started sooner can exacerbate that. We might get started sooner at the expense of productivity-boosting steps like breaking a task down, setting up the environment, or making sure we have what we need to begin. For some tasks, like studying, we do get more bang for our buck if we get an earlier start, because our brains have more time to encode the information and we get more opportunities to practice retrieving it. For other tasks, it really depends. We generally don't want to wait until a deadline is looming and our brains kick into gear to look at a project. That can easily land us in crisis mode, wherein we realize we needed X supplies or Y amount of time and this is no longer how time or shopping hours works. But when it makes sense to start working on it depends. On whether or not we've done this task before and may need the extra time as buffer if we're wrong about how long it will take. On how important a task or project is. Mistakes are more likely when we're rushing, and doing something right before a deadline doesn't leave much room to catch and correct them. As someone in this community once pointed out, I'd love to start sooner, but "sooner" is when other things are happening that are also important. As for getting started earlier in the day, for those of us with a naturally later chronotype -- more about that in this video -- We may experience better cognitive clarity and more energy later into the day, or even well into the night. Which means a later start time could actually boost our productivity. When we let go of when we "should" begin and start at a time that works for our brain and what we've got going on, a lot of us have found that we can get more done. The truth? More important than getting started sooner is making intentional decisions about when to begin. What is this even supposed to look like? Now it's upside down. [Jazz Continues]

Lie number three: I need to be consistent. You've probably heard the saying, "Consistency is key. " For some things, like sleep, that is true. We need sleep. Like, every day. Ideally at roughly the same time each day. For others, like productivity, not so true, it turns out. Also, not possible. ADHD is a dynamic disability. How impaired or functional we are on any given day fluctuates quite a bit. That means what we're capable of on any given day fluctuates as well. When we try to force ourselves to perform as well on bad brain days as we do on good ones, that constant gear-grinding comes at the expense of our future productivity. in other words, allowing ourselves to have a bad brain day today can set us up to have an amazing one tomorrow. And allowing ourselves to ride the wave on a good brain day, even if that means working later that day, can boost our sense of efficacy and carry us through the rest of the week. I'm not saying we should work 18 hours one day and 2 hours the next. I'm also not saying I haven't done it. Part of why I've been able to accomplish what is by letting go of preconceived notions of what I "should" be able to do today. And when possible, following my brain's lead and adjusting as necessary. By accounting for fluctuations in our productivity, we can perform at a higher level, and deliver more consistently than we could by expecting our brains to function in a way that they just don't. Because the truth is, it's normal for ADHD productivity to fluctuate. So give yourself some grace. Be kind to yourself. It's normal. [Smooth Jazz]

Lie number four: I need to stay focused. Focus. The F word. I've spent a ton of time and energy on finding tools and strategies that keep me from getting distracted. And to a certain extent, I've succeeded. But at what cost? Many of us put so much emphasis on trying to focus and never getting distracted in the first place, that we get really frustrated any time something distracts us or forget to make space to let our brains wander or, you know, get water. *bleh* Distraction has its benefits. For one thing, it boosts creativity. Or sometimes what we're distracted by is an opportunity to experience joy. And stepping away from whatever it is you were focused on sometimes allows you to see pieces you otherwise would have missed. But even if focus is what matters, staying focused isn't the only way to achieve it. You can also put tools and strategies in place to help you refocus when needed. The truth is, for an ADHD brain, the real skill isn't in preventing distraction, it's knowing you will get distracted sometimes and that being okay. It needs to be okay because it is an undeniable reality. ADHD or not, you will experience distraction. With ADHD, you're more prone to it. Not an excuse, merely an explanation. One which we can view from a place of compassion and curiosity, rather than judgment. Once we accept we will get distracted, we can figure out how to work with that. That might mean finding tools and strategies for bringing our attention back, It might mean building in buffers to allow time to get distracted. It can mean having some focus sessions, and some where it's okay that we get distracted. It can mean meeting regularly with an accountabilibuddy, so if you got distracted, you have support getting back on track and maybe someone to help you realize you even did get distracted. What was I doing? [Jazz]

Lie number five: I need to get this done. Many of us with ADHD are so focused (hehe) on trying to be productive, we forget to ask ourselves if we even need to be. Sure, there are tasks that we do have to finish, but it turns out, that's not true for everything. Just because stuff is on our to-do list, doesn't mean we're morally obligated to finish it. First of all, it may no longer be relevant. When was this task assigned? By who? Might things have changed since then? Sometimes, something we think needs to be done isn't as important as we originally thought, or as important as taking a break. Sometimes we find ourselves falling victim to the sunk cost fallacy. We've invested so much time and energy that we're afraid to let something go. Sometimes tasks are so ingrained into our routine or job, yet aren't actually helping us achieve anything. The result? We can end up clinging to low value tasks that take our time, energy, and focus away from what truly matters or things we really want to do. So sometimes, no, we don't need to get the thing done. It's maybe better if we don't. That does mean we need to let people know if they're counting on us to do the thing, but there are often other ways to reach the same goal, and sometimes a goal no longer needs to be reached. Which leads me to one of the hardest truths to embrace. I'm allowed to quit. Letting go, especially of something that we were really excited about at one point and have sunk so many resources into can be really hard. Stopping before we're finished when we could keep going feels wrong to many of us, especially when being productive makes us feel valuable. But productivity isn't about what or how many tasks you do. It's about the impact of the importance of those tasks. So something I'm going to try to ask myself, and I encourage you to do the same, is this activity or task still worth it to continue with? If the answer is no, then cutting it or shelving it for now, or calling it good enough is a form of productivity. Before I go, I'd love your thoughts.

What lies did you believe about productivity that turned out to be untrue, at least for you? Let me know in the comments below. Let me know how you like this video and our new smooth jazz music. By the way, these lies only scratched the surface of productivity when you have ADHD, If you want to go deeper into any of these topics, I highly recommend you watch my video with Dr. Ari Tuckman. That video dives even deeper into how to structure your life so you have more time and energy for the things that matter most.

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