Managing adult ADHD is much like trying to navigate down a busy street with a giant bull running upon you. You make want to perform a certain task or chore that you’ve set on your to-do list, but you become sidetracked and distracted by a million different ideas and thoughts. If you’re tired of living life this way, or you simply would like to add some coping techniques in addition to your ADHD-doctor prescribed medication, keep reading:

1. Work in chunks

The first mistake we make when we try to manage our ADHD is by thinking that all we need to do is focus intently on a task or project that we’ve set out to accomplish. How many times have we started something with good intentions, only to find ourselves watching YouTube videos or checking email for hours on end? The ADHD mind doesn’t deliberately set out to sabotage our efforts, but some days it may feel that way. Instead, we need to work in small windows of time in which we will dedicate our mental efforts to a certain area. This method, often referred to as a Pomodoro, was created in the late 80s as a means of tackling procrastination and laziness. The inventor — Francesco Cirillo — found that individuals were more productive when they set a tomato timer for a small period of time they intended on working. After this small session of twenty minutes was completed, they would immediately follow it with a short break where they could do anything they desired. Try this method out and see if it works for you!

2. Prioritize tasks by importance

In Brian Tracy’s book Eat That Frog, we discover that the ultimate key to lifelong success is forming a strategy that we can follow on a daily basis. With adults that suffer with ADHD, we have a tendency of putting hard tasks at the end of our to-do list. We often tell ourselves that we will get this task done but more times than not, we roll that task over to the following day. Instead we should follow Tracy’s method and perform the hardest task on our list at the beginning of every day. It makes sense: our spirits are highest in the morning, our brain is fresh and we’re able to work at a higher capacity!

3. Don’t beat yourself up

The last piece of advice that all ADHD patients need to hear is that it’s alright to fall off track every once and awhile; everyone does it. Instead of spiraling out of control and letting weeks and months slip by, acknowledge the misstep, refocus on your goal and get right back on that horse! When we can move back onto the road of productivity and success without having weeks and months of self pity, we make the chances of becoming a high-productive individual become more of a reality than a far-off pipe dream!