Tag Archive for: productivity

ADHD Tool Tip: Reduce Decision Making Part 2, Meals

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I’m beginning by reiterating that this series of blog posts in which I’m sharing my recommendations for ADHD tools is my answer to the many requests I get from coaching clients who want me to tell them what to use to solve a particular problem. I am generally reluctant to make recommendations as no one product or tool or strategy works for every person. Nonetheless, I understand the desire to have choices narrowed down and to know what someone else found useful.

This post addresses reducing decision-making in the moment to improve time management and productivity and to reduce analysis paralysis. Part 1 discussed managing the decision of what to wear. Part 2 in this post focuses on the decision of what to eat (sort of).

How often do you skip breakfast because it’s just too hard to prepare or takes too much time in the morning and you just don’t know what to make? How many times have you lamented that you should save money by taking your lunch but the task of making a lunch each morning feels like too much? How much food have you thrown away because you went to the grocery store with good intentions of eating breakfast or taking your lunch to work or preparing dinner but forgot what you bought when it came down to deciding what to make each day?

This is common among my clients with ADHD. And it’s frustrating for them. They have discovered that the key to success is, again, to reduce the number of food decisions they are required to make in the moment when they’re trying to get out the door in the morning or rushing to get a meal on the table in the evening.

How to do this? Answer: Food planning and food prepping.

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Planning meals ahead of time of course reduces decision-making in the moment and ensures you will eat healthy and eat what you buy. I like this meal planning pad because it has a magnetic back so you can keep it visible on the fridge. On the left side of the page, write in meals for each day of teh week. On the right side of the page, list your grocery items. There’s even space for writing notes at the bottom of the page.

Though you can tear off and dispose if the pages at the end of each week, I think it’s a better idea to keep the pages of menus that really worked for you, your family, and your budget. Eventually, you’ll have weekly rotations of meal plans and grocery lists that are go-tos for you.

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As for prepping meals, my ADHD clients take the worry out of mornings by preparing breakfast and/or lunch for each morning of the week and store it in their fridge in grab-and-go containers. These glass food storage containers are microwavable and have locking lids (so no spills).

 

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Some clients even label a container for each day of the week, further simplifying things and eliminating even the decision of which container to pull out of the refrigerator. The name labels pictured here are waterproof and come with a permanent marker.

If you want to experiment with any of the products I’ve listed in this post, you can click on the highlighted text or the picture to buy it from Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I encourage you to only use ADHD tool recommendations that feel right for you and how you operate.

 

ADHD Tool Tip: Use a Weekly Planner to Assign Priorities to Each Day

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As I continue in this series on my recommendations of ADHD tools, please remember that these recommendations are based on my personal success with various tools and those of my clients. This series of posts is in response to the frequent question of what do I think is the best tool to use to solve a particular ADHD challenge.

I am generally resistant to giving my opinion on that and instead encourage inquirers to do their own research. Yet, I understand that research sometimes returns an overwhelming amount of information that either causes analysis paralysis or a hyperfocused deep dive in search of the most perfect tool, neither of which results in actually acquiring a tool to assist with moving forward. So, this series of posts is designed to narrow the choices and give some useful information.

 

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I have found that a weekly planner, such as the one pictured here, goes a long way in helping me get my head wrapped around a busy week or around a multistep project.

 

This planner has tear-off sheets that I can post on my fridge, my cork board, or tuck into my purse and take on-the-go. Sized like a standard sheet of notebook paper (half size available, too), it doesn’t easily disappear on my desk. Plus, the simple design ensures that what I’ve written isn’t lost in a  flashy background.

The undated pages allow me the flexibility

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to use it when I need it and set it aside on weeks that I don’t. The structured layout aids me in organizing my thoughts and creating a plan for execution. I particularly love the brain-dump column on the left side of the page

. Once I get the brain dump complete (or at least started and added to as I go), I can assign tasks in a meaningful stepwise order to the days of my week.

And while, yes, all of these things can be accomplished digitally, don’t underestimated the power of handwriting information to support the brain’s working memory. Ample research supports this. Thus, even if you use a planner like this to map out your week then misplace it, you’re still more likely to remember and accomplish key tasks than if you don’t use it.

To read more specifics about this weekly planner or to purchase it from Amazon to experiment with, click on the highlighted words or any of the pictures. Full transparency, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Only purchase this planner if you believe it may meet your needs.

ADHD Tool Tip: Use an Analog Timer

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Coaching clients frequently ask for recommendations of ADHD tools, apps, worksheets, planners, and products that they can use to improve productivity, time management, memory, focus, and other executive function skills. I generally balk at telling clients to use specific products because everyone is different and no one thing works for every person. The products that make my life easier may not be helpful to you.

Nonetheless, I recognize that the abundance of product options available can be overwhelming and potentially either cause paralysis or hyperfocus and rabbit-hole diving. Having someone narrow the field for you can be useful. So I am beginning a series of posts in which I share an ADHD product that I really like and provide informational bullet points on it.

I’m beginning the series with a tool for time management and productivity: a timer. You may be familiar with the Pomodoro Method, in which you break focused work into timed intervals separated by short breaks. A timer is a key tool for this strategy.

Most Pomodoro timers are digital, like the one pictured here.

 

This one is simple to use. You can change the interval time or the break time just by turning the cube over so that the desired time is on the top side.It vibrates to indicate that the interval has expired. It can be very useful for people who judge the passage of time well.

 

For those who don’t, though, it’s important to make the passage of time visible, to give time a spatial dimension. That’s what analog clocks and timers do for us. They show us how much time has passed and how much time remains so that our brain doesn’t have to struggle to guess.

This timer is visually simple and color-coded to aid the brain in determining how long you have worked and how long you have before stopping work to take a break. Likewise, it gives visual information regarding how much time remains in a break. It has lighted face and it’s easy to set by turning the knob.

It helps the brain process and understand time better. The body becomes familiar with what the passage of time feels like. Combined, this leads to better productivity and improved time blindness overall.

Either of these timers can be purchased from Amazon by clicking on the image or the the highlighted descriptive words. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I am not implying that the timer method will solve issues with time blindness, focus, or productivity for every person with ADHD. If, however, you think you might benefit, I encourage you to experiment with using a timer.