Being ADHD we love the NEW!!! The problem is, since everything is new, and projects get old fast, we never seem to finish anything. That’s just how our dopamine seeking brains work. It want’s constant shots of dopamine from constant successes. So, we need to change how work on projects, vs how Neural Typical (NTs) work on projects.
So here are some of my best practices on completing a project.
In a normal project, there are 3 things that I consider important.
Before I get into that, though. I want to discuss Creativity, Inspiration, Incites and Genius moments. These are very important to completing projects for ADHDrs.
Inspiration is what powers an ADHDr through a project. As mentioned, we get bored with projects regularly. We become especially frustrated with a project when we hit a road block, and don't see a way around it. Fear not, my friend, there is a way to manage this issue.
Buddhist teachers often tell their students that the answer to a problem won't come when you're staring at it. Instead, it will come when you wash the dishes, and your mind is thinking of other things. This moment of clarity comes not because you forgot about the project, but just the opposite. You allowed your mind to freely look through everything you know in search of a solution. And, then like a balloon popping, you have a major incite, inspiration, eureka moment, flash of creativity that motivates you to return to the project and work on it.
Case in point, while writing this blog, I had to stop to work on another project. I saved the blog as a draft, and then searched to make sure the blog actually got saved. I was shocked when I didn't find it in the saved drafts folder. I got pissed and just about gave up on this blog before remembering that I had recently copied the blog and it was probably still in the paste buffer. Or at least the first few paragraphs.
Later, while working on the other project, I remembered that I had switched editors and that the reason why my blog was in the paste buffer, was just in case the switch didn't migrate my text to the new editor. And, it didn't. Tumblr needs to update that part of their migration process. However, there was something else that I missed when I switched editors. I forgot to set the blog that the article was to be posted into.
So ... When I checked the default blog that the editor posts to, sure enough, there was my post. =)
For an ADHDr, this causes a huge negative event loop involving a lot of negative thoughts. I call this a Negative Thought Storm. It's ADHD depression, which can last up to days, where the ADHDr is constantly being reminded by their internal monologue about how stupid they are, and why didn't they back up their blog before saving it. It's a simple copy and paste operation. And, on and on and on ...
And, just as easily, we can snap out of this depressive thought storm with a simple incite that it might have been saved else where. =O
By contrast, for an NT, this would not have stopped them. They would have grumbled and started over immediately.
It's the ability to self sooth that we lack. The ability to shunt our emotions that makes projects like this, even a blog hard to complete.
It's those sparks that inspire us to look once again and see if maybe there is hope. Maybe, there is another way to achieve the impossible and complete the project.
ADHDrs are impulsive by nature.
"Oh Shiny! =) Let's do that instead. This is boring"
Impulsive can be bad due to that reason, but it can also be good when tied to inspiration. Suddenly an idea strikes and if we don't write it down, act on it, figure out how it works into the project we are working on, we may loose the idea for ever. It's very hard to recover this type of inspiration.
Projects need all the positive motivation they can get. So when a tough task comes along, we can see it as a challenge to figure out vs a road block that stops us, or worse something that was nice to work on but now collects dust.
I draw, sketch, take notes, take pictures, walk through isles at the store subconsciously thinking about how to solve a problem with a project. And, it can take months, because I may not like the answer. Or, something I hadn't considered, has to find a way to make it ways to the forefront of my thoughts. But, when it does, and it takes hold, the positive motivation is there and it's strong.
Case in point, I was wrapping my a Physics class I'm taking and had an inspiration to start 3 other web development projects. The physics class was getting boring, and I wanted it to be DONE!!! But, if I started the projects before finals, I would not study. So, I had to be patient and wait.
So, I dreampt of the web development project and wrote notes and stories about it. While finishing the work I needed to do in physics. I used that energy to propel myself to finish another project. It was hard, but worth the effort and the wait.
Richard Fineman, a noted physicist, stated, "People who look like geniuses really don't solve problems out of thin air with bolts of lightening. They study problems and hold them in their head for years at a time, looking at new discoveries that come along and see how they apply to the problem they are working on."
Frank Llyod Wright, basically demonstrated the same principle with the "Falling Water House". You see, the Mr. Wright had been commissioned to design the house a month earlier, yet when the customer called to say he was coming, him and his team had nothing to show for it. An, hour later, when the customer arrived, there stood 4 beautiful renderings of houses in the woods with the brook running.
Astounded and dumbstruck, the team asked Mr. Wright, "How did you do that?" His answer was simple. "We have been thinking about these plans for a whole month. Considering ideas, and discarding other things that didn't seem to fit. All we needed to do now is just put everything we had together into these renderings and let the customer choose."
We, ADHDrs, have a super power to dig ourselves into a PhD level education on a topic at a whim. (Back to Impulsivity). We can spend days learning about every aspect of a topic. To the point where Einstein's statement makes sense .. "1% inspiration, 99% perseperation." We love discovering, we hate actually producing, because of all the issues that come up in actually executing the vision we see in our heads.
ADHDrs need body doubles for their projects to succeed. People with RSD (Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria) definitely need body doubles to draw positive motivation from. Otherwise the roar from the inner monologue screaming like a hurricane that our finished project will be a total waste of time and ignored by everyone and worse yet, considered a piece of shit! So, get a body double.
A body double doesn't hold you accountable, they instead perform 2 tasks:
they simply ask, "How is the project going?"
they tell you stories of how your project will be used by others.
Motivation. External motivation fuels internal motivation.
A body double also helps you bounce ideas off of, when trying to solve a difficult problem, because it's not just you trying to find an elegant solution, but both of you thinking about the problem. And, you don't feel alone with the problem anymore, you have a partner.
A body double doesn't have to be someone that works with you, it can be a pen pal. I've had many over the years, that I just chatted with through IM. I was the most productive during those times as I had someone who was always concerned that they were bothering me, yet was curious as to what I was trying to develop as well. And, cheered me on to keep going. =)
Body Doubles are great for helping you manage expectations.
When you're creating something, there is very little organization. Nor, should there be. The process of creating something is messy. You are trying to find a way to make something functional. But, once you have succeeded in doing that, then comes the next challenge, can you do it again? And, can you refine the process to do it consistently? Then, comes the challenge to improve on your design.
Note that progression ...
Can you create it reliably?
Can you improve on the process?
This is the process that SpaceX is using while building StarShip. And, they used it previously to build their Falcon launchers. Tesla used it to build their cars. It's called Agile.
I've talked about problem solving, body doubles, inspiration, eureka moments, being impulsive, but now we need to talk about a process of actually building something that works. Next we will talk about building something that someone else has built before, and you need to follow their instructions.
In every project there are .. Goals, Tasks, and Sub Tasks. Every project management book starts with write down the goal, then break it down into smaller and smaller steps. Here's the problem with this process, both from an ADHDrs perspective as well as a creative persons perspective. You've just told yourself what you have to do to reach the goal. Every single step MUST BE COMPLETED to reach the goal!
While this works great for NTs it's a hideous model for us ADHDrs. ADHDr's hate being told what to do. Even from themselves. If you don't like being told what to do, then stop telling yourself what to do and just do it!
Instead, it's better to do best practices. You can make notes about what you are about to do, what you want to accomplish, what you did, what worked and what didn't. These are different from doing what you're told. Which, in effect is what I'm writing here. My Best Practices to Finishing Projects. What's worked. What hasn't. And, why.
There's a new concept out concerning time travel. When you travel back into your past, you will affect a significant moment in your life that will change the course of your life. Thus creating the grandfather paradox. But, if you can insure that that significant moment happens, then the rest will work itself out the way it was supposed to. This holds true with organizing your work.
If you just state what the intended goal is and what you hope to achieve, and give yourself some guidance on what the process should look like, the rest will work itself out.
Questions, Problems, and other Issues arise in projects all the time. Project Management even has a who sub section dedicated to finding them, classifying them, and building resolutions (remediations) for them. It's called ... Risk Management! ...
You have a great idea and you want to execute it, but you've run into the first stumbling block .. how to get started. What do you do, research solutions to the problem. Welcome to risk management.
When you get stuck on your project, look at the following topics:
Normally, NTs don't need to look at feelings when they get stuck, but ADHDrs have event driven emotions, so we need to examine if they are blocking us.
Risks .. are those things that could go wrong if not addressed. You can assign a weight to each risk from 0 to 10 .. 10 being a this will cause my project to fail if I don't take care of this right now, and 0 being no risk what so ever. I can have a tasty treat. =)
Dependencies .. does this portion of the project depend on other projects and / or feed other projects. This can be a huge emotional stressor for ADHDrs as we may feel we have to get it right. Imposter Syndrome can spike here.
Issues .. maybe there are unresolved issues with this part of the project that could delay you. Not necessarily risks, but things lingering out there that could interfere. Best to keep them on your radar and monitor them.
Unknowns .. these are things that you have questions about, but don't have answers for. Identifying these helps you avoid a pitfall that could derail you into a pit of despare and negative self talk. "I should have known better!!!"
Feelings .. and as we described above, feelings drive an ADHDr. If you like what you're doing, you'll keep doing it. If you don't like what you're doing, you'll stop and find something else to do, instead. So, always check in to see how you are feeling while working through your project. I draw smiley faces, it's the fastest way to view my progress over time. Was I happy or sad most of the time.
If you find that you are sad / upset with a particular part of a project, see if you can make it a challenge. The question being ... is there another way to do this, or do I need to turn this drudgery and toil of life into a Kings Quest Challenge!!!
Down Time & Transition Time
You need down time. That's the long and short of it.
You can only hyper focus for so long. So, accept the fact that you're going to crash and prepare for it. Tired eyes and sleep are indicators that your body has reached some physical limit. Something is depleted ... a neural transmitter, food, or something else has been exhausted. If you get frustrated when you have to stop due sleep, you will unconsciously generate a negative association with your project. Don't do that.
Figure out how to incorporate unexpected down time and transition time into your life. It will help you stay positive when you expect to be tired, just not knowing when.
The same holds true with transition time. Before and after a nap, especially, I need time to wake up and fall asleep. I find that this happens with other activities. I need time to build up the energy or my body needs time to acclimate to the shift, before I can actually do the next thing.
My Personal Trainer has noticed this lethargy, and tells me to come in early to warm up. Then we hit the HIIT work as hard as I can with stand it. 50 minutes of core, legs, back and chest work. OY!
In every project that I've worked on, whether on my own or in a group, it is important to have easy wins lined up. This builds momentum. And, it doesn't matter if you're an ADHDr or an NT. An easy win still feels good.
I find that I can take on the world if I wake up happy. I don't know what triggers this yet. So I will have to monitor it more and see. But what I do know, is that I spend the day just tackling one ToDo after another, until I'm exhausted. Laundry doesn't stand a chance.
When I code .. aka program .. and things are going really really well, I get into a grove. Everything relaxes, and I start to tingle. I also get into a can do attitude where I see that I could do X Y and Z easily, and actually implement them.
The last step in the process of completing a project that requires repetitive operations, is to build a list of things that need to be done. Your best practices distilled into a easy to ready .. do this, and this, and this list. 1 line per ToDo.
At the top of the list is the name, date, or some other indicator of what stage in the repetition you are at. You may also want another list to track how many times you have to do this repetitive task. That way you can cross off a line on that list when you complete the other list.
Lists are nice, in that they allow you to forget what needs to be done until you need to do it again. I use this process when I have a tenant move out or move in. There are a bunch of tasks that have to be done to make the transition smooth. But, these aren't things that I have to remember to do.
The other thing I do with these lists, esp if they are one sided sheets of paper, use the back side for notes. Best Practices are improved when you do the work. So, put notes on the back that inform you later that could have been done more easily, or where the list needs to be adjusted to accommodate changes in the routine.
Know where you want to go.
Allow your creativity to come out unexpectedly through impulsive moments.
Describe where you want to go, but not how to get there. The Journey is more fun that way. =)
Pay attention to your emojis. Keep it fun and happy.
Turn boring tasks into challenges. Slay those Dragons.
Let yourself have some down time.
When you get in the flow .. use it all up! =)
Chat with someone about your project while you're working on it.
