Taking Control: The Adhd Podcast

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast If you browse the ADHD circles on social media, it won’t take long to find an inspirational meme describing how one of the many superpowers of those with ADHD is that they are generally more creative than those without. The problem is, according to research, there’s no established connection between those who live with ADHD and higher than average creative impulses. It’s just not there. That’s because, as a spectrum disorder, ADHD impacts people differently depending on their individual characteristics. You might be more creative. You might not be creative at all.  But that’s not to say that exploring the tools of the arts won’t help to inspire you, relax you, or even stimulate you, even if you don’t find you have much natural talent! This week, we’re talking all about Pete’s favorite digital tools to make art, music, and video that anyone can do on the cheap (in most cases), and just might help you uncover your next gr

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast Impulsivity is a part of the ADHD experience that offers few upsides. It represents the source of distraction, social disruption, and lack of focus that can plague so many of us. We received an email this week from a listener working through email impulsivity at work and his story — and we hope our conversation around it — proves supportive for anyone listening who is living with impulsive behavior challenges.  Plus, follow up from another listener around the act of building habits, and giving ourselves permission to fail, recover, and move forward: “Getting organized (or establishing new habits) is like following your breath when learning to meditate. We are taught that, when you notice your mind wandering off and straying from the intention of following the breath, you simply notice having done so, without judgment, and return to following your breath. What if we could apply the same technique to habits, following rou

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast It starts with a goal, an objective that you’d like to accomplish something over a specific period of time. It ends with the goal accomplished. Somewhere in between, you’re going to have to build the system that will help you get it all done. This week on the show, we’re sharing three big mistakes that can prevent you from meeting your goals, plus some terrific feedback in praise of the Bullet Journal, along with some great guidance on thinking in terms of long-term behavior rather than finish lines when targeting change in your life! Links & Notes Using Bullet Journal to Support Mental Health — Buzzfeed.com Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits--to Sleep More, Quit Sugar, Procrastinate Less, and Generally Build a Happier Life by Gretchen Rubin Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast Want to get better at scheduling? Do it every day. Want to finish more things more frequently? Make a plan to work on one of them every day. Want to get fit? You guessed it … start just one thing you can do for your health, and do it every day. Such is the power of small habits in our health and productivity, and that’s what we’re talking about today. Whether you have your habits and goals right on track, or you slip frequently and struggle with the shame of the habit-stall, this week’s conversation is for you! Links & Notes Mini Habits: Smaller Habits, Bigger Results by Stephen Guise ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast We’ve got a couple of terrific listener recommendations for habit tracking apps to kick us off this week, with emails that inspired a habit follow-up conversation that centers on this big question: do you understand the factors that are causing you to fail to build new habits in your life? This week, we’re talking about the words in your head, persistence, and support, three things critical to your success in integrating new behaviors into your life every day.  Links & Notes What’s Stopping Your New Routine from Becoming a Habit? — Take Control ADHD Using Bullet Journal to Support Mental Health — Buzzfeed.com Habitica.com Coach.me Todoist ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast Learning is tricky. As much as we know about the brain, getting new stuff to stick in it is still mysterious. But new research gives us insight into the relationship between learning and our physiological health that can help us not only learn more, more quickly, but understand more clearly what is not functioning when we’re compromised. From sleep to diet to supplements, this week we’re talking all about tools that can help you live clear-headed, and keep on learning! Links & Notes Sleep Deprivation and Memory Loss Quizlet iStudiez Pro ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast Unbelievably, it’s back to school season. If it hasn’t hit your community yet, it’s coming, and that means it’s time to evaluate your strategies as a parent in helping your kids manage their ADHD in the classroom and beyond. To help us through this conversation, special guest Elaine Taylor-Klaus with ImpactADHD joins us to share strategies for approaching your kids in this transition period about scheduling, responsibility, self-advocacy, and technology! Elaine Taylor-Klaus is co-founder for ImpactADHD and is coach behind tools and resources dedicated to parents of kids with ADHD. She is parent to a child with ADHD, but like so many of us she was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult herself, and she’s an educator! So she brings with her the perfect perspective on life and living with ADHD that is critical to any discussion that targets practical tools to help parents help kids with ADHD while helping themselves to stay cool

Thank you for supporting The ADHD Podcast on Patreon! — https://patreon.com/theadhdpodcast Morning—if yours are a blessed cloud of peace, goodwill, and light, you can probably skip this episode. That’s right, today’s show is for those of you who have trouble, who live for the snooze, and who can’t quite get enough of the multi-tasking in the mornings. Not sure how to train your brain and condition your spirit to get ready for the day? Do you need a new alarm strategy to get you out of bed and out the door on time? Maybe you need to give yourself permission to think about your mornings in a new way, to shake things up and approach your schedule with a fresh start! If you’re looking for help in mastering your morning routine, join us and share your experience today! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

We’re back! After a brief summer vacation, we’re back to take on a subject that impacts us all: how to adapt to changing schedules, and the things to think about when considering a major addition to your commitments when it comes to your ADHD. Not only do you have to have an intimate understanding of your current schedule, but you need to approach new commitments with open eyes when it comes to the time baggage they bring with them! Plus, we’ve got a great listener question on when to consider medication for your kids. Thanks to everyone who has written in — it’s great to be back in the saddle! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

It’s SUMMERTIME! We’re officially gearing up for our own vacations here on The ADHD Podcast so we thought we’d take some time today to talk about more than just vacations. It’s about managing kids, and accomplishing goals, and making the best use of your time that you possibly can. We’re taking some time off ourselves this summer. This week’s episode is our last until August! So make sure you’re subscribed to the mailing list so we can let you know when we’re back in the saddle! Thanks, everybody! Have a great summer! Best friends forever! Links & Notes TCA Vacation Planning Checklist The ADHD Podcast 167: Overwhelmed Summer Schedule ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

We got a question some time ago asking about the merits of the Bullet Journal system for ADHD organizing. We’re of two minds on the subject so we thought it might be a good time to review the state of planners, planner systems, and organizing tools that span the range from shorthand scheduling to full-on works of personal art. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

This week we offer a follow-up to our conversation on making decisions with a twist: what about all those decisions that are even more challenging to face, with consequences beyond our daily organizing challenges? How do we condition ourselves to move through them and discover what lies on the other side? This week is dedicated to processing, researching, and making the decision to act, and discovering the tools you need to employ to condition yourself to take action! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Do you find yourself sitting at your computer waiting for that next call? How about standing in line waiting for the next teller? Wherever you are, if you have five minutes and one of your devices, you can work on your digital organization. This week on the show, a sampler of activities and resources for you to use in those small windows and tiny breaks to keep your digital life straight.  Plus, follow up and a listener question from our organizing show with another take on decision-making.  Links & Notes Alto’s Adventure Hazel File Juggler Lumosity Pencil by FiftyThree ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

It’s Q & A day! From hyperfocus to distraction, information clutter to productivity at work, we power through your queries with our thoughts, strategies, and recommendations. Thanks to everyone who wrote in with your organizing ADHD questions. This week we’re taking on: What's the best body double strategy? How do you decide where and how to house things? I don't have enough time to devote hours to organizing! How do I set up routines that endure in the long term? How do I nurture myself without going too far into hyperfocus? I stay home while the family is at work/school all day. How do I not resent their messes when they leave? Overwhelmed at work: how do I manage account management demands? Information overload! Should I stress about disorganized journals and digital clutter? How do I help my high school son remember and submit homework on time without organizing on his behalf? How do I help my preteen with organizing fundamentals and managing/estimating time? Links & Notes Personal Kanban: Mapp

If you share space with another person, then organizing is a team sport. From defining the purpose of shared spaces to keeping one another accountable, you can’t build new habits if you don’t have the support of those who spend their time in your proximity. This week on the show, we’re talking all about how to engage your family in supporting organizing efforts. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

We all go into our organizing projects with the best of intentions. Did you just open your closet to a pile of junk falling on your head? Did you turn on the light to your attic and finally register the disaster of boxes? Did you fall into the stacks of mail and bills on the floor of your living room? Wherever you are in your home, making the connection that you have a space to be organized, and then taking action to organize it, is a noble effort! But taking that first step without thinking through the consequences could make the organizing job worse for you. This week on the show, we’re talking about the three reasons your organizing efforts may be losing focus and offering you a way to think about your projects before you start that may just save you time and frustration in the long run! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

It’s true, if you’re struggling with getting organized and you’re living with ADHD, there’s likely a key challenge holding you back. It lurks there, in the back of your mind, an invisible standard to which you will never live up. We’re taking on this subconscious demon on the show today, kicking off a series on ADHD organizing principles that will help you get on track, stay on track, and recover when you fall down.  Links & Notes Avoid These Five Organizing Mistakes Plus 5 Organizing Worksheets ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

We all have repetition in our lives. But until you stop and think about all the things that repeat around you, you may not know what you’re missing. So, it’s through the lens of task lists that we’re going to talk about some of the options for using technology — the simple and the advanced — to build our checklists quickly and efficiently and ensure we’re not missing a single step in the otherwise invisible processes we take on each day. Links & Notes The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande Text — The TXT format on Wikipedia TaskPaper from Hog Bay Software Markdown: “Markdown is a text-to-HTML conversion tool for web writers. Markdown allows you to write using an easy-to-read, easy-to-write plain text format, then convert it to structurally valid XHTML (or HTML).” Markdown is practically a prereq for TaskPaper only because the philosophy of using certain indicators in a text file and allowing a client application to act on those characters in a specified fashion is the same in bo

We’ve had some great questions and feedback on our last few episodes around ideal schedules. This week, we’re taking this concept a bit further. How do you take a new strategy and implement it to turn it into a lifestyle? How do you handle less desirable tasks — gating and focusing even on the stuff you really don’t want to do? How do you decide what to work on first? These are deceptively simple questions with answers that we often make more complicated than we need. We’ll do our best to untangle them on the show this week! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Today on the show we’re digging into just one aspect of the book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg Mckeown: Priority. This is the act that puts constraints around our ADHD, allowing us to see the forest for the trees, but to exercise our focus on a tree, too. We talk about the power of focus and clarity, how living in accordance with a clear priority strategy can lead to greater productivity and balance, and how developing your ideal weekly schedule can help you truly visualize the hidden opportunities that exist in your own personal sea of time. Links & Notes Essentialism: The Disciplines Pursuit of Less by Greg Mckeown ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★