Written by Rachel Perez, on behalf of HomeAdvisor
Living with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, can be challenging, especially when it comes to organizing your time. In the workplace, staying organized can make or break your job performance.
This might sound intimidating, but don’t worry—with any challenge you have, there’s ways to overcome it. If your job has you juggling a variety of time-bound tasks, or you’re struggling to get through the workday, here are five tips to help you stay productive and manage your time effectively.
1. Make a Schedule and Stick to It
Scheduling out your tasks for each day on a calendar or planner not only makes clear what you have to get done, it also gives you a strategy for how to approach your work and use your time. It’s much easier to keep track of events, appointments, and other obligations when they’re right in front of you, rather than having to rely on your memory. It’s also easier to see what’s time-sensitive and what you have to prioritize.
2. Start Small
When writing your to-do list or schedule, you might find that the tasks you have to do involve a number of different steps. Breaking down your tasks into subtasks can help make projects more manageable. Taking your work step by step makes it seem less overwhelming, ensures you don’t miss any crucial steps, and gives you the incentive of being able to cross things off your list more frequently. This also helps with procrastination.
3. Stay Accountable
Though it’s important to be able to work on your own, sometimes having to work independently makes it more difficult to keep yourself on task. Checking in with a trusted coworker or manager—whether it’s to collaborate on a project, or just to ask them to be your accountability buddy—can give you some of the external connection you need to stay on track. Sometimes just having a “Body Double” in the room while you each work on independent tasks and projects can be a helpful way to more productive.