Productivity is Hard with ADHD – How to Make It Easier

I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Dr. Ari Tuckman for many years, and I’m always grateful for the clarity, practicality, and empathy he brings to conversations about ADHD. A renowned psychologist, author, and international speaker, Ari is someone I turn to often- for his insights, his research-backed wisdom, and his ability to make even the most complex ADHD challenges feel more manageable.

When I invited Ari to write a guest post for PTS Coaching, I knew he’d bring something truly valuable to the table. In this piece, he explores a topic that comes up constantly in my coaching work with parents, educators, and adults with ADHD: why productivity is so hard for people with ADHD – and how we can make it easier.

His perspective is thoughtful, nuanced, and deeply encouraging, especially for anyone who has ever felt stuck, overwhelmed, or frustrated by the struggle to stay focused and follow through.

Whether you’re supporting a child with ADHD, teaching students who struggle with executive function, or managing your own ADHD, you’ll find this post both helpful and validating.

If you’d like to explore Ari’s work further, check out his newest book, The ADHD Productivity Manual, which offers practical, research-based strategies to help people with ADHD get things done more effectively.

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Productivity is Hard with ADHD – How to Make It Easier

by Ari Tuckman, PsyD, MBA

Let’s start with the obvious question. Why is productivity so much harder for people with ADHD?

First of all, productivity (doing the right thing at the right time) can be hard for everyone at times. People aren’t robots. But some people have an easier time getting those gears turning even when they’re dragging or aren’t inspired. ADHD makes it harder to reliably chug through tasks.

Some of this is the core symptoms of ADHD, such as procrastinating, getting distracted away from the main task, forgetting important aspects of the job, or losing track of time and missing the next meeting. Nobody is perfect, but folks with ADHD will have more of these moments which can really pile up and leave too many tasks unfinished. Then it becomes overwhelming.

But there is also the psychological side of this which is the mindset that someone has about getting things done. If you’ve spent most of your life undiagnosed or just generally struggling to figure out how to be more effective, it’s easy to doubt yourself on the next challenge. It’s tempting to slide over to other tasks or distractions that feel easier or less uncomfortable. Unfortunately, this then creates another situation that didn’t work out and that the person then later feels badly about.

And finally, there is also the social part of this, that if you’re known to not be as consistent about getting things done, then others may over-function by doing things for you—either the task itself or giving reminders and guidance. While this may feel like a relief, it can also feel demoralizing because it sends the signal that they don’t think you can do it yourself. The other person may also feel frustrated about the unfairness of it, that they need to work harder, so they may also be passively or overtly critical about needing to step in.

Yes indeed, productivity does get complicated! So how do we make it a little easier and more reliable?

The first thing to remind yourself of is that there are potentially a lot of things that can affect your productivity, so don’t beat yourself up if you try one or two things and they don’t work as well as you would hope. Keep doing those things, but also look for other things that might be contributing.

For example, if you get rid of distractions while you’re trying to focus in on a work project but you’re still not making enough progress, what else could be affecting it? One option might be that you’re not really sure what it is that you’re supposed to be doing and you’re hesitant to ask your boss because that might reveal that you weren’t paying attention in the meeting. Or maybe the project feels too complicated and you don’t know where to start. Or maybe you stayed up late last night and you’re running on fumes. Or maybe you’re running out of time because you forgot about this project or procrastinated and now you’re panicking.

I have a favorite saying that a problem well defined is a problem half-solved.

So, before you jump into trying solutions, take a few moments to think about what is getting in your way. Is it something about your work environment that’s pulling you off track? Are you up for doing what needs to be done, cognitively or emotionally, to tackle this task? Is there something about the task that is confusing, overwhelming, frustrating, or discouraging? Do you feel some social pressure to do the task but you’re not sure if you really want to do it? After twenty-five years of full-time psychology practice, I know that there is a lot that can affect your ability to get something done, so take the time to figure that out, then pick some strategies that address the specific places that you’re getting stuck.

So hopefully the person is able to get the wheels turning. But what if they just can’t? What if they’re feeling stuck and either don’t know why or, even if they do, they still can’t make themselves do it?

This is definitely going to happen sometimes! And not just for people with ADHD. The hope is that overall, you will be more consistent in being able to get things done, that you will generally be on top of the things that you need to be. This gives you a bit of freedom at times to admit that this is one of those times when it just isn’t coming together. Maybe there’s some other task you can work on instead. Or maybe you just need to take a break. Either way, it’s probably a better use of time than banging your head against the wall and still not getting anything done. Not only does that make you feel worse, but it may even waste more time because you’re burning a lot of mental and emotional energy being stuck. Sometimes wisdom means knowing when to say when.

Then come back around when your head is back in the game. 

Ari Tuckman, PsyD, MBA is a psychologist, international presenter, ADHD thought leader and author of five books on ADHD, including his latest, The ADHD Productivity Manual.

 

 

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