Are you getting hit over the head by the 3 King Kongs of distraction? Probably. Think about it: In this digital economy, you have about 3,000 advertisements or marketing communications that are pummeling you every single day. That's 24,500 a week, that's about 1.24 million distractions, advertisements, and communications every single year... So how does someone with adult ADHD, or even ADHD symptoms, keep focused on a task in this kind of environment? It's no wonder you're distracted! Try one, two or even all three of these tricks today, and crush the 3 King Kongs of distraction! Adult ADHD Tip #1: Unplug your phone. For someone with adult ADHD symptoms, calls can be a big distraction. So unplug it, and turn your cell off, when you need to get something done. Don't take calls. You can answer them later, after you've gotten your work done! Also, when you are working on a task, don't look at your e-mail. E-mail can be simply deadly for someone with adult ADHD symptoms! You can even take it a step further: don't even have your e-mail up. Just look at your desktop; don't even pop up Eudora or Outlook. Adult ADHD Tip #2: Put a sign on your door. If you have adult ADHD and you have a home office, it can be absolutely destructive to be available to anyone who stops by. I have a regular office and a home office, and I have adult ADHD symptoms. So, I put a sign on my door, when I'm on calls, when I'm recording anything, when I'm really focused and trying to get something done and it says, "To all my friends, do not bother me between this time and this time. Come back later." Friends or associates leave a message on my voice mail (because my phone's unplugged!) and I get back to them later in the day. Maybe you can get away with having an open door policy if you don't have any ADHD symptoms, but for someone with acknowledged adult ADHD symptoms, forget it--you can't fool around with this! Adult ADHD Tip #3: Just say no. People with adult ADHD tend to say yes to everything that comes along, thinking they'll have time somehow. But you really can't do that, it just feeds right in to your ADHD symptoms. For example, if someone says, "I want you to read my book," I say, "No. I'm glad you sent me your book, I can't read it. I didn't ask for it. Thank you, it will go up on my bookshelf, thank you for signing it but I can't do it because it's not part of my reading." So just because someone sends me something doesn't mean I'm going to read it. Thinking I will is wishful thinking, and people with adult ADHD can't afford wishful thinking. --So there you have it! Three timesaving tricks for beating the King Kongs of distraction. These things work like a charm. It's like having a magic weapon, and for people with adult ADHD they're absolutely essential. Even if you don't have ADHD symptoms, these tips can be very helpful. But wait-- There is actually a 4th trick people with adult ADHD symptoms can use, it's called "Outsourcing." But you have to know how to do it right for it to work. I will be talking more about Outsourcing for adult ADHD, and also the "Timer Technique" in further articles all about mastering your ADHD symptoms, so stay tuned! |
