Tips for Getting Stuff Done

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[delusioninabox]

Daily #2,185! One step. All you have to do today is take one step. 

[hogwartsfemme-deactivated-deact]

before I start my homework let me just say:

one of the most underrated and under-represented things about self-care / recovery is making things manageable. like yeah, my room’s still a mess. I haven’t vacuumed or properly cleaned the bathroom in ages and there’s still trash in here, but this is a mess I can manage.

maybe the floor needs vacuuming, but the clothes and stuffies that were strewn all over it are in their rightful places now. maybe there’s still trash in here, but now it’s all in a couple of tied bags I can take out when I leave next. maybe the bathroom’s not as clean as it could be, but I made my bed for the first time in weeks. maybe I won’t finish the rest of my cleaning today or even tomorrow, but it’s already infinitely better than it was when I left it this morning.

self-care and recovery are hard when you look at them from the perspective of how far you have left to go in total. that’s why the key is to break things up. make it manageable. even one baby-step forward is infinitely better than sitting in place anxiously contemplating the enormity of the challenge ahead.

so go do one little thing that makes your world a slightly less tough place. sit outside for ten minutes, even if you don’t go anywhere. pick up the trash into bags, even if you don’t clear out the rest of the mess. take small steps and before you know it, you’ll have made big strides from where you started.

[executivefunctioningtips]

Stretching

If you want to make stretching a part of your daily activities, but you struggle with boredom as you count to 10 for each stretch, try this--

For each number, move your eyes to a different object. You can make a game out of it--try to find (for example) ten different objects that are blue.

I’ve found this helps to counter the boredom and keep me present.

[packbat]

If a person can’t get out of bed, something is making them exhausted. If a student isn’t writing papers, there’s some aspect of the assignment that they can’t do without help. If an employee misses deadlines constantly, something is making organization and deadline-meeting difficult. Even if a person is actively choosing to self-sabotage, there’s a reason for it — some fear they’re working through, some need not being met, a lack of self-esteem being expressed. People do not choose to fail or disappoint. No one wants to feel incapable, apathetic, or ineffective. If you look at a person’s action (or inaction) and see only laziness, you are missing key details. There is always an explanation. There are always barriers. Just because you can’t see them, or don’t view them as legitimate, doesn’t mean they’re not there. Look harder. Maybe you weren’t always able to look at human behavior this way. That’s okay. Now you are. Give it a try.

— “Laziness Does Not Exist” by E Price on Medium

(And a footnote I didn’t see explicitly covered in the article: laziness still doesn’t exist when it is you yourself making no progress and not knowing why. You deserve that respect and consideration, too, even from yourself.)

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

I’ve found this works best for the Habitica website because of the reward system, but I imagine it could work fine on regular checklists as well.

If there are larger tasks that you feel overwhelmed by, try sub-tasks for those.

For example, I have “Writing” as a daily task, and my goal is to write 500 words a day. To help reach that goal, I have the smaller goals: “100 mark”, “200 mark”, “300 mark”, “400 mark”, “500 mark”. On really tough days, I may have “One sentence”, “Two sentences”, etc.

For my daily task “Drawing”, I usually make my goal to add 10 or 15 small parts to a drawing. So I have the smaller tasks “5 parts”.

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

Here’s an excerpt from a page I read online, explaining Interval Training.

“1. Set a task to focus on (writing, drawing, strength training, meditating, etc).

2. Set a timer for 10 minutes. 5 minutes is also fine if 10 is too long. Don’t go longer until you get good at 10 minutes, then increase to 12 and eventually 15. I don’t find I need to go beyond 15-20 minutes even when I’m kicking butt.

3. Do nothing but sit there and watch your urges, or push into your discomfort by doing the task.

4. When the timer goes off, give yourself a 5-minute break.

5. Repeat.

You can train for several intervals, or potentially for an hour or two. Then take a longer break, and do another set of intervals after that.

This kind of interval training is fantastic, because it’s not that hard, you really train yourself in discomfort and watching urges, and you can get a lot done this way.”

source

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

While looking for online tips, I found something that’s been helpful from time to time-- “Set a timer for one minute, and work on your project until the timer goes off. I can handle doing something for just one minute.”

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

The website Habitica can help motivate people to get tasks and chores done. (And if something happens, such as illness, taking a vacation, or something else, then you can “check into the inn” to pause damage. A quick google search will help you figure out how to do this, if you don’t know how.)

If you’re like me and feel overwhelmed by a lot of new functions at once, don’t bother trying to access every feature immediately. Simply start with a few to-do list tasks, and gradually increase the number of tools on the website you access, as much as you feel is helpful / necessary.

[executivefunctioningtips]

Do adhd meds help with executive dysfunction? I constantly feel like I’m going through the motions in life and have no motivation to do much, other than browse the Internet (on top of all my other ADHD/autistic traits). I’m not diagnosed w anything yet, but I feel like if I was maybe I could get some help. I hate this brainfog that’s been worse lately. I feel like I’m functioning, but barely holding my college life together. I’m a junior; you’d think I’d be on top of things by now. Plz help.

I totally understand where you’re coming from, and it’s a hard situation to be in.

A friend of mine takes medication for her ADHD, and it certainly helps her with focus and motivation, and I’ve known it to be really effective for others as well. I hope it works for you!

Keep in mind that different medication has different effects on different people–I don’t remember the name of the brand, but there’s a certain type of ADHD meds that interact badly with people who have mood disorders, so it would be a good idea to check with your psychologist (if you have one or can afford one) about that.

Best of luck to you, anon!

(Your ask reminded me to update my blog with a few tips that I’ve been using recently, I’ll post them in a moment!)

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

If you find yourself avoiding a task, stop what you’re doing and think.

What barrier is in the way of you doing this task?

Do you have to draw a hand at an angle you haven’t learned?

Is the kitchen sink so dirty that you’d rather the dishes pile up than have to clean it?

Is your room messy, but you won’t clean it because you don’t know where to put things?

Consider your obstacles, and find ways to overcome them.

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

If you’re having trouble getting yourself to start something, try making yourself just do the first few steps.

For example, if you know you need to draw but you’re struggling to get yourself to do it, don’t worry about the actual drawing process right now. Just set up your computer, grab your tablet and pen, plug in your tablet, open the drawing, zoom in, and click on the necessary brush (or whatever your specific process may be).

It may be easier to start on the actual project at that point, but if not, then it will be all set up and ready for later, and there won’t be as many steps involved before starting.

[executivefunctioningtips]

Spending time with your pets

This is less focused on executive dysfunction and more aimed towards people with misophonia--

If your sound triggers include noises your pets make, and you aren’t able to spend much time around them because of it, here’s a method that I use:

I work “hang out with cats” into my schedule, giving it about an hour, and then I grab my headphones and some sort of device that plays sound. I sometimes draw to music, but I usually go with a video game of some sorts. That way I can hang out with them without my misophonia acting up.

I’ve found that I started looking forward to these sessions, as they give me a break from other work, and I get to play a video game while not feeling guilty / feeling like I’m “wasting time”.

As for being around them for shorter periods of time (example: having to be in the kitchen while they’re eating), I’ve taken to singing loud enough to drown out the noises.

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

I’ve found that doing things with people can be very helpful.

If you and a friend or mutual both need to do homework (or anything else), make it a date--both agree to work on your respective tasks / do a certain amount for the night. Maybe tempt each other with rewards (a little doodle, a shoutout, a small drabble, reading a page of the other’s favorite book, whatever) for finishing.

[executivefunctioningtips]

Choosing a meal

Make a list ahead of time of all the potential meals you can have.

You can sort it by time of day, how heavy or light the meal is, how easy it is to make, what types of nutrients it provides, whatever is most helpful for you.

You can even make a chart that schedules out your meal for each day of the week. (And provide an alternative meal for each day in case the one listed for the day isn’t available or sounds very unappealing at the time.)

[executivefunctioningtips]

Showering

One of my main problems with showering is, basically, having nothing to do while I’m in the shower.

For anyone who struggles with this as well, here’s some ideas on how to fill the time:

- Pick a topic (movies, shows, books, characters, animals, songs, etc.) and see if you can find one for every letter of the alphabet.

- Sing

- Write songs or poetry

- Make a re-write / spoof of a song you like (I personally like to change the lyrics to fit fictional characters and stories)

- If you’re a writer or a role-player, think about plots for your novel or role-play. Figure out the answer to a question you need to know for the plotline (character motivations, details of someone’s powers, whatever necessary).

- Play music (place your device somewhere it doesn’t risk getting wet, of course, unless it’s water resistant)

- Practice words of a language you’re learning

- If you play a sport or an instrument, mentally practice doing so

- Do hand stretches 

[executivefunctioningtips]

Brushing your teeth

One trick I’ve found for this is to count the number of circles on each row of teeth, so I have a specific goal to work to. 10 for the front of the lower set, 10 for the top, 10 for the back, 10 for the front of the upper set, etc. Whatever is necessary.

(This is meant to work as small goals to help you through the process of brushing your teeth, not as “you must do exactly this number for each section”. If you find that this makes you more anxious / obsessive over exact numbers, it may not be a helpful method for you.)

[executivefunctioningtips]

General

Focus on one thing at a time.

This can be really hard to do, but do your best. It helps a lot.

Think to yourself--what’s one single thing I can do to tackle this issue? What is one small step?

Then do it.

Don’t rush, don’t look at the 50 other steps ahead of you. Go one at a time.