How to Finally Overcome Procrastination and Get Things Done

If "just do it" worked, we would have already done it. But we haven't. Because with ADHD, we know what we need to do but not how to get it done. Cue problems with procrastination, lack of motivation, disorganization, sticking to routines, and other challenges with getting things done.

During the ADDitude webinar, "New Year, New Playbook: Game Plans That Work for Your ADHD Brain" with Tracy Otsuka, JD, LLM, AACC, we asked about 1,800 live attendees, "Reflecting on the past year, what was your primary productivity challenge?" Here are their answers:

• Overcoming procrastination: 31.94%
• Distractions and maintaining focus: 15.97%
• Sticking to routines or schedules: 15.26%
• Regulating emotions and self-talk: 9.06%
• Prioritizing tasks effectively: 8.34%
• Time management: 7.75%
• Organization: 7.27%
• Seeking and accepting support from others: 3.34%
• Other: 1.07%

You're a Mac in a PC world. ADHD-related challenges require ADHD-tailored solutions. Read on to learn more about how to work with your brain to overcome procrastination, reduce overwhelm, maintain motivation, stay organized, stick to routines, and more.

"I procrastinate mostly because of perfectionism. How do I get past the idea that everything has to be perfect?"

"How do you deal for the anxiety that comes from procrastination?"

"How do you avoid thinking that the problem is for Future Me, not Present Me?"

"How do I encourage myself on the days when I want to give up?"

"When I get assigned something, I can't even look at it until right before the deadline. How do I address this?"

Tracy's advice: ADHD procrastination is caused by dopamine deficiency and negative emotions around a task. Manage overwhelm by regulating your nervous system, setting intentions and connecting to your identity, and making the task more interesting. Remember that perfection doesn't exist.

Stop Procrastinating: More Strategies

• Read: 9 Ways to Halt Avoidance Procrastination
• Read: What Stops Me From Starting?
• Read: How to Set Intentions to Crush Procrastination
• Read: What Causes Procrastination? And What Causes It to Stop?

"How do you make something interesting that isn’t, like chores or even brushing teeth?"

"How do we get interested in something that does not interest us at all? I'm supposed to deal with my finances, but I 100% hate numbers."

"I know that I will be happier if I go out in nature, or that I will work better in the library, but most days I just CAN'T put myself together, dress, and get out. How can I overcome this initial blockage?"

Tracy's advice: Make the task more fun, challenging, and/or social to maintain motivation and interest. Always try to spark your interest-motivated brain.

Maintaining Motivation: Next Steps

• Read: 5 Perfectly Awful Ways to Motivate an ADHD Brain
• Read: What’s My Motivation? (No, Seriously, I Need to Get Started.)
• Read: Why ADHD Minds Struggle to Meet Goals with Action

"I have all the items I need to organize, but WHERE DO THEY GO??"

"I don't even know when I'm putting something down. My mind is elsewhere. Later, I remember I had it, but I have no memory of what happened to it."

"I have a terrible track record with housework. I try to remember and get it done, but as soon as I get distracted or busy at work... whoosh, no housework."

Tracy's advice: Set your identity as someone who is organized to increase follow-through. Say, "I am the kind of person who puts things back in their place." Think of how you've successfully organized yourself in the past and how you can bring those strategies to the present.

How to Stay Organized: Next Steps

• Free Download: Clean Up and Get Organized in One Weekend
• Read: 33 ADHD-Friendly Ways to Get Organized
• Read: Organize Your Mind… and the Rest Will Follow

"I just can't seem to find a routine that sticks for any meaningful period of time."

"How do I build in resiliency into to my planning so I don't give up once I've missed a day or two of my routine?"

"Why can't I get laundry and kitchen clean up done consistently and in a timely manner?"

"I have a LOT of trouble sticking with a new system, habit, planner, etc. What can help make this year's plan 'stickier?'"

Tracy's advice: Think WIFM (or, what's in it for me?). How can you spin the benefits of keeping a routine to your interests? What will keeping a routine allow you to accomplish and feel?

Stick to Routines: Next Steps

• Read: 5 Reasons Routines Fizzle – and How to Rekindle Healthy Habits
• Read: How Can I Develop Routines to Keep My Life from Falling Apart?
• Read: What Is Your Most Reliable, Helpful Daily Routine?

"How do I relinquish the need to do two tasks at once? I often feel like I can't do this because I should be doing that other thing."

"How do I prioritize my many tasks and projects?"

"How do I get through the landslide? 'I need to do this...but I can't until I do this...and this...and this...and I'm not doing any of it. It's too much."

Tracy's advice: Select just one task — any task — and use a Time Cube to give yourself just 25 uninterrupted minutes to work. Move on to the next task when time is up.

How to Prioritize: Next Steps

• Free Download: The Eisenhower Matrix for ADHD Decision-Making
• Read: How Do I Prioritize Tasks and Chores on My To-Do List?
• Read: Why the ADHD Brain Chooses the Less Important Task

To learn more about ADHD-friendly tips and tools for getting things done and accomplishing more, listen to the ADDitude Expert Webinar, "New Year, New Playbook: Game Plans That Work for Your ADHD Brain" with Tracy Otsuka, JD, LLM, AACC,  which was broadcast on January 4, 2024.

• Free New Year Calendar: Set Goals. Celebrate Growth
• Download: The ADHD Healthy Habits Handbook
• Read: 8 Illuminating Insights Into ADHD
• Read: 4 Ways to Make New Behaviors Stick
• Read: The ADD Life Hacks That Work for ADDitude Readers

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