My biggest difficulty with time management is ADHD. LOL Both the lack of working memory part where I forget that I was going to do something, which I mostly battle with a barrage of reminders on my phone, and overcoming the executive dysfunction.
After that, my biggest struggle has always been estimating how long something will take. I think take 10 minutes, it will take half an hour. If I think something will take an hour, it will take half the day. If I realize that I always underestimate and block out three times as much space, it will take twice that.
I'm not sure if that was part of what you meant by the lack of progress option which was really the only one of your four options that I struggle with
ADHD makes task management a completely different beast, for sure! I worked for 10 years in a disabilities services department at a large university and without a doubt, the most frustrated students I worked with were the ADHD ones. They were frustrated because they tried ALL of the popular productivity advice out there and "failed." I put that word in quotes b/c they did not fail; the system failed them. As my post says: blame the systems!!!!
Time blindness is a very real thing, and experience tells me that it is just not something you can overcome — it's like asking a fish to walk. Of course you need multiple reminders and have no idea how long things take to accomplish! That is perfectly normal for someone with ADHD.
So the best advice I have is to outsource it. Previously, that meant having trusted friends/colleagues to go to and ask "how long does this take?" However this is 2023 and there is, literally, an app for that: https://goblin.tools. It has both a way to break down tasks into steps so you can see what needs to be done, and it has a time estimator which can tell you approximately how long tasks take. Bookmark it and make it a part of your life! I don't have ADHD and honestly I use it a lot.
As for reminders and things, remember that you work in a world of "immediacy." That means:
Common advice: set your alarm early so you have plenty of time!
ADHD advice: set your alarm to the closest possible moment and give yourself NO time to react! Panic is your friend! (I mean, panic isn't fun, but the adrenaline spike is a great way for ADHD people to focus; it's why you work so well on a tight deadline.)
I love Elizabeth Filips on YouTube, she has ADHD and talks a lot about these issues. Check her out if you haven't already! https://www.youtube.com/@elizabethfilips
My biggest difficulty with time management is ADHD. LOL Both the lack of working memory part where I forget that I was going to do something, which I mostly battle with a barrage of reminders on my phone, and overcoming the executive dysfunction.
After that, my biggest struggle has always been estimating how long something will take. I think take 10 minutes, it will take half an hour. If I think something will take an hour, it will take half the day. If I realize that I always underestimate and block out three times as much space, it will take twice that.
I'm not sure if that was part of what you meant by the lack of progress option which was really the only one of your four options that I struggle with
ADHD makes task management a completely different beast, for sure! I worked for 10 years in a disabilities services department at a large university and without a doubt, the most frustrated students I worked with were the ADHD ones. They were frustrated because they tried ALL of the popular productivity advice out there and "failed." I put that word in quotes b/c they did not fail; the system failed them. As my post says: blame the systems!!!!
Time blindness is a very real thing, and experience tells me that it is just not something you can overcome — it's like asking a fish to walk. Of course you need multiple reminders and have no idea how long things take to accomplish! That is perfectly normal for someone with ADHD.
So the best advice I have is to outsource it. Previously, that meant having trusted friends/colleagues to go to and ask "how long does this take?" However this is 2023 and there is, literally, an app for that: https://goblin.tools. It has both a way to break down tasks into steps so you can see what needs to be done, and it has a time estimator which can tell you approximately how long tasks take. Bookmark it and make it a part of your life! I don't have ADHD and honestly I use it a lot.
As for reminders and things, remember that you work in a world of "immediacy." That means:
Common advice: set your alarm early so you have plenty of time!
ADHD advice: set your alarm to the closest possible moment and give yourself NO time to react! Panic is your friend! (I mean, panic isn't fun, but the adrenaline spike is a great way for ADHD people to focus; it's why you work so well on a tight deadline.)
I love Elizabeth Filips on YouTube, she has ADHD and talks a lot about these issues. Check her out if you haven't already! https://www.youtube.com/@elizabethfilips
I hadn't even considered that being unable to estimate how long things take was related to ADHD. That is for the resources!