How To Focus With ADHD Without Medication, Like A Total Boss
Scroll to the bottom for the article summarization or keep reading for the more in depth understanding…
You know those moments where you’re focusing really hard on a tedious task, only to catch yourself diving head first into a pool of Youtube videos on “how to make spaghetti tacos” just 5 seconds later? Yeah, me neither…(cough, cough).
Ok, you know that for some mysterious reason focusing can feel absolutely impossible if you’re doing something tedious. It especially doesn’t help to have a million other thoughts on your mind, (which are probably happening right now).
As someone that has gone from being diagnosed with ADHD since I was 8, to becoming a full-on, certified ADHD coach over the past 18 years, here’s what I’ve found to be the most helpful tools.
So here are some powerful tools that can help you focus with your ADHD without medication:
1/3: Setting intentions
Remember this new saying: “Tomorrow starts tonight”. Imagine you had a friend that always told you to do their homework for them, just so they could take it easy. Yeah, what a pal…
Well, I’ll admit, this is exactly what I’ve done to my “tomorrows self” plenty of times. I had gotten too used to the oh so comfortable saying, “oh I’ll just handle it tomorrow”, (which I’m sure the “future version of me tomorrow” never appreciates.)
The big lesson: don’t be that friend that gives all your homework to your future self. Think of the “you tomorrow” as their own person with their own plans, desires and problems. So why add more work to their day when you can help set them up for success today?
Here are just a few ways you can set your “tomorrows self” up for success, tonight:
Prepping: If there’s something you want to take care of tomorrow, put it in the place you know you’ll be most likely to do it.
Ex)
If you want to pay your bills, throw them on your bed so you’re forced to at least have to make contact with them opposed to just leaving them on that one area of your desk where bills seem to “mysteriously” disappear.
Make A List: At the end of the day, write down a list of what you know you will do tomorrow. If you have anything that has an exact time (like a meeting), then write it down with the time it will happen.
Ex)
1. Meeting @10am
2. Pickup kids from school @2
3. Pay bills before dinner
Hey, it sure beats spending 45 minutes on your phone the second you open your eyes in the morning, while wondering “what was I doing today?”. Well guess what? You just so happen to have a magical list that is already laid out for you and it’s even in chronological order!
Get Mad Deep: Ask yourself, “what kind of person do I need to be to get tomorrows work done?”
Ex)
If you have a lot to get done, maybe your “way of being” for the day should be “driven” or “consistent”. If you have to handle something you know will be a bit draining, maybe your way of being should be “self-nurturing” or “patient”.
2/3: Have tools setup to work for you
Here are some simple but powerful tactics you can try:
Have a clock present
Use “Pomodoro”
Don’t multitask (unless its something audio + a simple tedious task like washing dishes or doing laundry)
Take a lot of short breaks
Create a space with a lot of lighting the way you like it
Don’t give yourself too much to do in one day (and give yourself a nice buffer of time in between each task)
Eat healthy so you don’t get drained
Keep your phone out of the room
Create an incentive, like giving yourself a little reward if you do a big draining task
Know your “why” behind the activity & how it can affect your life positively or negatively, so you feel more connected to it
Subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of this page so you’re always updated on ADHD tips…wait, how did this get in here. Whoops ;)
Get a powerful fidget device like a rubber band or a pen
3/3: Rethink your environment…All of them!
Yes, the most important way you can get focused is by changing your environment. However, I’m going to explain something you may not have considered.
Your environment can be more than just the 4 walls around you, such as:
Friend Environment: The friends you surround yourself with (those who drain you, distract you, don’t care about bettering their habits like you do. This can really rub off on you).
Phone Environment: The super distracting apps on your phone, (social media, cough cough).
Work Space Environment: Does your work environment give you space to breathe? Does it make “deep work” seem super easy to get into quickly? Does it motivate you? Does it have the kind of lighting that get’s you in the zone? Is it clean? Your subconscious will pickup on all of these things and take up a lot of your focus, so it’s best to create an environment that feels like a blank slate that you can fill with your focus.
Computer Environment: Are there a million tabs open? Do any of those tabs contain distracting videos, games or articles? Are there emails you’ve left open for weeks?
Note Environment: You write notes all the time, but do they take up space and never seem to get finished? Do you have a million pieces of note paper crumpled up in your purse or pocket that you promised yourself you’d “handle” later if you just wrote it down? Do you have over 1,000 notes on your notes app that you thought would help you remember something that end up adding to the immense number of random letters to yourself about how you’d be better this time?
Let’s not even get started on storage environment, car environment or closet environment. I don’t want to make life feel hopeless!
The point is, you are the creator of your environments, so take them seriously. The more you work on each environment, the easier you will be able to focus on that area. I mean, it’s pretty hard to focus when you’re juggling a million thoughts at once like, “Oh yeah, I forgot I had to handle that” or “Whoops, I forgot to take care of this” or “Ugh, this is so much junk! Why are there spaghetti tacos everywhere?”.
Of course, there are a million different ways you can focus more without relying on medication. But the most important thing that all of these tactics have in common is that they have your “future-self’s” best interest at heart. Be your own tag team buddy instead of leaving all your problems in your “future-self’s” hands.
We get food for ourselves to eat for the rest of the week and that seems to work a heck of a lot better than having to hunt your food every single day, so why not prep your focus before hand today so you have an easier time tomorrow.
If you think you need some extra help getting focused, see if ADHD coaching is for you here or snag a free 1 minute virtual coffee here!
↓ The article summarized for my fellow ADHDers ↓
The 3 main points and everything in them:
Set intentions before doing something rather than just doing something and seeing how it works out.
Use tools. Here’s a list of what I wrote:
• Have a clock present
• Use “Pomodoro”
• Don’t multitask (unless its something audio + a simple tedious task like washing dishes or doing laundry)
• Take a lot of short breaks
• Create a space with a lot of lighting the way you like it
• Don’t give yourself too much to do in one day (and give yourself a nice buffer of time in between each task)
• Eat healthy so you don’t get drained
• Keep your phone out of the room
• Create an incentive, like giving yourself a little reward if you do a big draining task
• Know your “why” behind the activity & how it can affect your life positively or negatively so you feel more connected
• Subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of this page so you’re updated on ADHD tips…, how did this get in here ;)
• Get a powerful fidget device like a rubber band or a pen
Re-think your environment. Basically everything around you is your environment, (even the apps in your phone). So be ore intentional about that.
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