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My wallet, keys, and sunglasses now live permanently in a clear makeup bag that sits near my front door. When I’m leaving I just throw the whole thing in my purse and I know I have everything I need.
Looking for one thing that has a set place > looking for three things that could be anywhere.
Similar to this, I have a clear makeup bag in my work handbag that has meds, paracetamol, lip balm, a little multi-charger, a pen, plasters etc etc. They're all just designated to my handbag and I have others for home, the car etc.
If the makeup bag wasn't clear I wouldn't have an iota what was in there and would just forget about it all. Also stops things piling up at the end of the bag and rotting haha
Not a clear one in my case, but a pouch with everything in it. I re-stock it every weekend. I can throw it, the wallet, power-bank and keys in the bag or backpack and I’m good to go!
Mine’s a faux leather makeup bag. That, my wallet, and my phone are the three main things that move from my work backpack to my purse.
In my work backpack I also have my bone conduction headphones, my morning pills (whole week lives in a sorter), and a glasses case. Right before bed on “school nights” I make sure my glasses are in the case and everything is in there for the next day.
I eased in to it by air tagging my keys, badge, and bag. My watch, phone, or AirPods have a 1-in-3 odds of one being charged and near me. They all find each other and they all find my things. It got to be a hassle. I don’t know if anyone in this thread has read Mrs. Pigglewiggle stories, but some of us had to parent ourselves and used that as a guide. To avoid the hassle I put bowls where the items pinged. I affectionately call them my “drop zones”. I called an ex after a breakup and told him I was miserable mostly because I couldn’t find anything. He told me he used to meet me at the door and pick up the items I was discarding as I came in and we chatted. He would put them where I look for them when I’m panicking I’m late. I will always love him for explaining it, because I could SEE it then. Now I have fewer “drop zones” and dead air tag batteries. It took time and some serious intention to make it stop. I also remember a few attempts early on that involved a timer that I have to stop everything and gather my things. I can get a lot done on a countdown, but not a deadline.
This might be the most loving story I have heard about exes pretty much ever. Sorry the relationship didn't work out, but clearly there was real tenderness there and you both probably grew from knowing one another.
Similar to this I attached my keys to my wallet so I can’t lose them, and they have a carabiner so i can attach to my bags or my pant loops so I really can’t lose them.
Yep! My backpack lives next to my front door. Anything that comes out, goes back in. Keys are hung above. Also, extra prescription glasses from zenni or eyebuydirect are cheap enough to keep a pair in my car, backpack, and house.
Also, we keep all our condiments in the crisper drawer and keep fruits and veggies front and centre on the refrigerator shelves.
We’re more likely to eat the fresh stuff before it goes bad if we can see it. We don’t need to be able to see condiments; we can find them when we want them.
Can I just say, getting a new fridge helped us immensely with not having spoiled food.
Our new fridge is a counter depth fridge and a lot shallower and instead of being a side by side, it's the kind with the fridge in top and freeze drawer.
Because it is shallower, I can see everything and nothing gets buried in the back. I love it.
We have a fridge that’s freezer on top and honestly, a side by side sounds like a dream compared to this thing. The back 33% of this fridge is where things go to die. Because no one can see it ever. It also has this really dumb “quick access tray” right at the top that slides out but it’s not deep so you can put anything taller than 4 inches into it.
Freezer on top is such a bad design! Our fridge in our new house has a drawer type freezer on the bottom, just like my folks had in the 70s, and it's awesome
It’s the worst. I don’t know who thought it was a good idea. We are still renting so you know we just get what we get lol. I dream of a freezer drawer one day
I recently got the Samsung bespoke 4 door flex. I had the drawer freezer for years. I felt like it was so hard to find things. This one has all doors so you can actually see it all head on. My toddler can also grab things out of the freezer that she wants. I LOVE it
God I hate our side by side fridge. I try to keep everything up front but stuff still gets pushed back and gets hidden or falls down behind shelves. Storage is trash. The fridge shelves are technically adjustable but weirdly spaced. The freezer is too narrow AND the stupid thing is next to a wall for some troll reason so the freezer door can't be opened all the way 🤬 I swear half the leftover food waste we have is because it has to live in the fridge instead of being frozen. The other half is because fresh produce sometimes randomly freezes then thaws and gets gross. I simultaneously want it to die so I can replace it but dread it because a new one will require knocking down walls and moving lines lol.
/rant sorry 😐
My dream fridge is an extra wide counter depth French door with ACTUAL adjustable shelves and the flex drawer between fridge and freezer drawer.
Moving out of an apartment with a typical fridge on bottom to a house with a fridge on top (and snack drawer!) and freezer drawer made such a massive difference on how much food wasted.
We do put condiments and pickled things in the veggie drawers though since they don't expire as quickly.
I do a similar thing with my glass containers of meal prepped food! Even though it’s glass, if I can’t immediately see what’s in there, I’m like I have no food! So I now put sticky notes on them w sharpie before I put them in the fridge
True, but the contrast can be bad depending on food colour and how solid it is.
I found that for me at least, having a clear and light-coloured space behind the writing on labels is necessary for them to really work well for me.
The contrast helps for the writing to register quicker when I read them, instead of my brain going on screensaver for a brief moment while it sorts out background and foreground.
I use masking tape and write in vivid over the top, then stick it onto the containers with the date I made it :) the masking tape comes off really easily.
Ahh that’s fair enough. My mind was blown when my husband showed me this was possible. I had been smearing whiteboard marker all over my laminated worksheet 😅
We also have a very wide range of sharpie colour options
I honestly stopped buying aspirational produce for the most part 😅 I buy my leafy greens in a box so they can’t be hidden away (and if they liquefy they’re contained) or I buy bagged salads so the whole thing is consumed at once. The worst I usually have to clean up is onion skins from the drawer
Another lettuce pro tip is the “lettuce keeper” by progressive. I wash the leaves and fold them up in there and I swear they stay good for 3-4 weeks. It’s amazing.
I've also switched the condiments to the drawers which has helped immensely. Plus doing the meal plan and putting everything for each meal together in tubs in pantry/fridge/freezer with the list on the fridge. It's a team effort to organise at the start but everyones brain is better for it during the week. Oh, and if I only need 1 potato, I only get 1, etc etc. With 2 dinners of freezer junk incase we can't get to do the shop. So much less waste.
Adding onto tips for lowering the challenge the fridge, I got the fridge placements for the shelves, it is so much easier to take them out clean those than the actual shelves.
And in my case.... If I throw it out now, I'll have to take out the trash right away too, or it'll start to smell and attract fruit flies... Better wait till the trash bin is fuller.
Oh whoops, that celery's still in there? Too bad I just took the bags out! It'll be a week now at least!
I’m an out of sight out of mind person. And while I hate the idea of “do _____ as you go” as general advice, sometimes for me it can be the best thing. But I’m not going to give you general advice on “do ______ as you go” because I have specific examples that work well for me that might work for someone else!
1) After blending/food processing - quick squirt of dish soap and add about 1/3-1/2 way full of water. Blend one last time. Rinse. Blender/food processor is now clean.
2) When sitting on the toilet, tie off the bathroom trash bag and then take it with you when you leave to deposit in the big trash in the kitchen. Also works for replacing toilet paper if you leave the new rolls within reaching distance. (My trash is next to the toilet and my new TP is easily reachable under the sink.)
3) After shower cleaning spray that lives in the shower - spray when you get out.
4) Take the time as you wait for stuff to cook in between steps to do a few small tiding tasks in the kitchen (water needs to boil? Sweep the floor. Air fry for 10 minutes? Put dishes in dishwasher away. Stuff like that.)
5) Store the new trash liners in the bottom of the trash can. When you take out the trash it’s easier to replace the trash liner.
6) Organize your home/space by what you do in that space and not what it’s “supposed” to be for. Read in the kitchen? Put a bookshelf in the kitchen. Or store your currently reading books on the counter with some bookends. Only drink coffee in the office? Put your coffee pot in the office with your favorite mugs. No more forgetting the new cup of coffee in the kitchen because you got distracted by remembering to write an email.
7) I bought a clothes hanger rack - it is a small metal rack that you store clothes hangers on. Instead of folding - gather up empty hangers and put them on the rack. Bring them with you to the dryer. When the clothes come out of the dryer, they immediately go on the hanger. Bring clothes to closet. Bring empty rack. As you wear clothes the hangers get put on the rack. Repeat.
8) Notebook/sticky note and pen to write down those quick thoughts that interrupt my flow. Trying to work but suddenly you really need to know the price of bread in 1922 because you’re curios about inflation? Write it down. Look up everything on the sticky note after you’re finished with the task you’re trying to focus on.
I also do this when I teach kids with ADHD - mostly it’s when they want to make a statement about something when I’m trying to talk but they have a habit of interrupting and they don’t want to forget what they wanted to tell me. I have them write down the thought and then when the instruction part is out of the way I go check on them and we talk about what is on their paper.
I remembered another one that I’m still working on building but has been helpful already! Travel sized toiletries/makeup/items that I store in makeup bags and leave in places - car, work, backpack, etc. that have the thing I forgot to do in it. I need to come up with a clever name. But basically it’s like this - I wake up and leave the house but forgot to brush my teeth and put on deodorant. My kit has travel sized deodorant and a travel toothbrush with toothpaste. Or I’m running late and didn’t have time to put on makeup but I have a meeting and I wanted to wear makeup - I have a cushion compact foundation, lipstick, travel mascara and eye liner, and a cream stick eyeshadow. Super quick makeup in the car when I get there.
Other useful items include - otc meds, tide to go pens, travel sewing kit, body wipes, dry shampoo, gum/mints, safety pins, travel hairbrush, sunscreen, etc. So far I have one partial kit built at work, one in my bag, and a partial built kit in my car. As I realize what I forget I will then go buy the item that I need for each kit and add it. Travel size is super important! Otherwise I’m carting too much around and it takes up too much space. The more compact and small the better.
>Organize your home/space by what you do in that space and not what it’s “supposed” to be for. Read in the kitchen? Put a bookshelf in the kitchen. Or store your currently reading books on the counter with some bookends. Only drink coffee in the office? Put your coffee pot in the office with your favorite mugs. No more forgetting the new cup of coffee in the kitchen because you got distracted by remembering to write an email.
Wait, that's allowed?! 🤯
I know, right?! I studied architecture in college and one of the first things they had us do was stop calling a room by its name but rather identify it by its function. It’s not a bedroom - it’s a relaxation and sleeping space. It’s not a kitchen - it’s a communal eating, gathering, sharing, and connecting space. What is the intention in the space? Now design around that INTENTION and not the arbitrary societal rules we put in place. Didn’t know then that it would help me so much in my life but I am thankful for those lessons every day. (I did not become an architect.)
Love this, and I actually teach patients sleep hygiene like this. Bedrooms are for sleeping so we make them relaxing and cozy for sleep and then do other activities in the appropriate room in the house for them (eg watch tv in the den, eat in the kitchen)
Yes! It’s like what KC Davis said in her ADHD-friendly book, “How to Keep House While Drowning”…our living space is meant to serve US, not us to serve our living space. (She has a podcast, too.)
My house isn’t perfect, but, ironically, it’s cleaner and tidier than it’s ever been now that I’ve given up the notion that it needs to be showroom-ready at all times!
Post it’s near the door are essential to packing for me - if I can’t put my toothbrush in my bag the night before I put a post it on the door then before I leave if I haven’t packed it I grab the post it and bring it to the bathroom until my toothbrush is in my suitcase lol
7. I don't have a dryer, but I do hang several clothes wet out of the washing machine on a hanger, then hang the hangers on the side of my drying rack and when dry, they immediately move to my closet.
Ah yes. We call this ‘student ironing’. Most of us never stopped doing that. I have a hand steamer in case some stuff really needs to look better but haven’t ironed since.
Can you expand on number 7? I'm curious because just moved into a house with the bedroom being the farthest location from the washer/dryer so wondering how I can implement this? Do you have a link to what you're using? Thanks in advance!
Icedraktajino's sooo right, i love mine. Game changer.
Look up **rolling garment rack**. Lots of options, features, etc.
I picked one with a bottom/base shelf to store my dry-flat racks & rest my hamper during fold-from-dryer. And it's a wire shelf, so easier *for me* to keep clutter-free/dedicated to laundry!
I wish my laundry was on the same floor as my bedroom. I found so many great rolling garment racks and I almost bought one until I realized that I’d only be rolling it 10 feet to the bottom of the stairs 😂 Mine is like a small tabletop tower thing that stacks the hangers. Not nearly as awesome but still useful.
Ooh related to 7:
There’s no space in my rental for a full-on clothes hanger rack but I make it a point to deposit all my empty hangers immediately into a basket that sits in my wardrobe so I just carry that out to hang clothes on when laundry is done
I’m still trying to get my wife to adapt to using my system instead of hunting through the clothes for empty hangers every time we do the laundry 😅
My meds live on top of the coffee maker. My keys and wallet must go on my shoes by the door. Cleaning is attached to a playlist. New tasks are started when the songs change. Audio book chapters divide up dishes. Get as much as you can done before the chapter ends. Perfect is not a word to use. You started a task. Therefore, you succeeded.
Oh. And alarms to make me drink water!
That is genius! I forget to listen to podcasts or music while doing boring stuff and aftwerwards I think of it... But to use that as a timer system is next level: not only will I get stuff done because of the game aspect in it, I will also remember to listen and learn!
Yes! It turns it into a timed game for me. Especially with things like dishes, I HATE doing dishes. Therefore, it makes it much easier to clean them when screaming out curse words. Knowing that when the song is over, I can drop what I am doing comidicially like it's a competitive game show.
I have cleaning playlists too! I am usually find once the momentum gets going in ok, but task transition/initiation is really hard, so I had to make it fun. I am a big Disney fan to so made a playlist of mostly Disney songs and it always starts with a couple of their literal cleaning Princess songs. Once Giselle start telling me to “cheerfully clean out the shower drain” it makes it funny and I will just go into autopilot now and get started.
Yes! I have a few Playlists. Short (30 min power clean), medium (1-2 hours of deep clean) and RAGE (usually reserved for more angry lyrics and for when I need to power clean particularly nasty things)
All of them have specific tempos between 140-160 bpm, to keep my brain going. Depending on my mood I vary from edm or lyric free to millennial songs I can scream to, or lastly, NSFW by Psychostick.
I try to keep it songs that I know the words to, as singing keeps me breathing (and makes my throat dry, therefore making me drink something). Or songs that have a steady bass beat because it kicks my marching band habits into gear and makes me keep going for five more minutes. (One more last time!)
1. I keep a magic eraser and one of those dish sponges that has a handle for soap in the shower. I keep the sponge thing filled up with a Dawn and vinegar mix and keep a bottle of Dawn and vinegar under the sink for refills. On my everything shower days, I throw the magic eraser on the ground and use my foot to clean the bottom of the shower, use the sponge to clean the glass, then swap the sponge to the brush head to clean the tile while my conditioner does its thing.
2. I travel about once a month for work. I have a very generic list in Google keep of what I need to take on a trip so I don’t have to make a new list every time. I have doubles of a lot of things so that my toiletry bag can stay mostly packed and I can just throw it in my suitcase.
3. I have a hamper everywhere I tend to get undressed - next to my bed, in the bathroom, and in my closet. Yes the three rooms are connected, but that has basically eliminated the habit of throwing my clothes on the ground.
4. I split my medication between two bottles and keep one on my desk and one in the kitchen because on weekends walking upstairs to get my medicine doesn’t happen and on workdays, I need it sitting right in front of me so I remember to take it before I start hyper fixating on a task.
I have one I use for cleaning but I actually always forget to use it... keeping it in the shower is such a good idea. Actually, I am getting up now to find it and put it there, or I forget it 😁
In regards to #2, I made a template list of what I need to pack for every trip (glasses, contacts, charger, etc), made about 100 double-sided copies of that list and had it spiral bound st FedEx Office. Each trip gets a new page and I can add other necessary items based on the trip. It lives in my travel supply box.
I like Google keep because after I check them all off, there’s an option to uncheck all boxes so it’s fresh for the next one! I’d lose a bound copy…or not have anything to write in it…or when I need to change it because something in my routine changed feel the need to go spend money and get an entirely new book because that’s shiny and new and exciting! 🫠
I need to create systems. I live in a place that is very cold in winter so I need to plug in my car (engine block heater) when it’s not in use (or it won’t start). The problem is that it’s easy to drive away still plugged in, which can be costly (and embarrassing). I made a moveable post that the power cord runs through bringing it up off the ground and into my field of vision. I block my pathway with the raised cord and also wrap it around my mirror, from where it travels to the front of my car to plug into the blocker heater cord. So far so good!
Clever! I have like 7 different alarms in the morning. Each their own song. One for "done sitting on the couch waking up, get started already". One for preparing and eating breakfast, and then four others to remind me to GET MY ASS MOVING. Last one is a Rammstein marching song to remind me to get-out-of-the-house! 😂
My teen als benefits from it as we have the same moring routine. 😁
(does it help? well... a lot better than trusting myself to look at the clock).
Lmao! I responded to the post before I read answers and this was my response too! It's honestly such a game changer!! It's also WAY less stressful than setting multiple alarms imo
The litter robot is worth the investment! My cats and I are both happier.
I kept loosing my ring and earring but if I put things in jewelry box I never wear them again. So now I have this cute little dish by my bed. I can see everything in it in a glance.
I also safety pen my socks together before it goes in my hamper. They’re washed that way. So I don’t have to match them.
My medicine is also in my sock drawer so I remember to take it when I put on my socks.
I also keep a dopamine quick dinner on hand for if I come home with 0 executive function left to cook. It keeps me from takeout but it has to be like salty dopamine. Fries and chicken nuggets.
I’m the same way about jewelry, so I’ve started using these little clear organizer trays. It’s started as a way to pack my jewelry last time I moved but I actually prefer it now to the traditional wooden jewelry boxes. It’s a happy medium between hidden away and strewn about all about my dressing table. Today I just sorted them all so one tray is all silver, one is gold, rose gold, etc. We’ll see if it lasts lol. 🤷🏼♀️ 😅
Put everything on auto pay, set up a separate account for gifts that I put $100/month into so busy months are less painful and buying gifts is more fun, set up calendar reminders for birthdays and other events, when my doctor or dentist appointment is over I immediately book my next appointment and ask them to send me reminders, ask my manager and colleagues to put something in writing (or write it myself and send it to them) so I don’t forget about a task, meal prep.
A gifts account is such a wonderful idea! I'm always depressed around Christmas when I didn't plan ahead far enough and feel disappointed by my options
Now I need to make a gift account … and I do the appointment thing too! Last time I had a dental cleaning the whole computer system was down so they were like, “So sorry, it won’t be fixed until tomorrow so you’ll have to call to set up your next appointment.” I cheerfully said no worries and that was a year and a half ago. 😂
Gift account is a game changer! I also have one for “incidentals” which is relatively low since I rent, but I use it to pay for anything that’s necessary (I’m a little flexible on “necessary”) that I wouldn’t be able to comfortably pay for without making other adjustments. Like my laptop died and I had to replace it, I have to buy new winter boots this year, last year I treated myself to a professional deep clean of my apartment.
I have a litter genie, since a robot box is out of my budget currently (lol) and it’s so nice! I struggled to have to clean and take out a bag of trash everyday and it’s nice to just throw it in there and be done for the day!
Robot vacuum cleaner has been a game changer for me being able to keep my floors clean with minimal effort. I’m saving up for a new model that will mop as well as vacuum.
We have one but I’ve been afraid to use it yet… do you pick everything up off the floor every time it runs? I’m afraid that with cats and a toddler, a clear path for it to run every day is just not realistic.
I have one! We do pick up the floor every time it runs, but we also don't run it every day. Between the cats, kiddo, and myself, there are usually a bunch of cords, markers, whatever on the ground that it would eat, but a few times a week we get it all cleared up and let it loose (one room at a time usually).
Thank you, that’s very helpful! I hadn’t thought about using it on my own schedule, duh! I got stuck in the “set a program to run every day” part of the manual, walked away, and never looked back 🙃
For the most part we make sure the floor is clear, but the model we got is good at avoiding unexpected obstacles. The only thing I’ve seen it run right over is a cable.
I put my morning medicines on the counter below my kitchen light switch so that I see them when I enter or exit the kitchen. My evening medicine is in my closet on my dresser where I change clothes.
In my house I store my shoes in a different area than my clothes. I store socks by my shoes instead of with the rest of my clothes.
To open my fridge you open the right side door first. All my fresh food and leftovers go on the right so I always see them. Condiments and things like that go on the left.
It’s a longer explanation but I have a mail and package “station” in my garage where I come in the house. I don’t bring in any mail or boxes that I don’t absolutely need.
I have a biweekly cleaning service so that I keep on a tidy-up schedule.
I don’t fold anything I don’t have to— socks, pjs, underwear, etc.
All my underwear, pjs, bras are in my dresser. All my other clothes are hung or out on a shelf where I can see them. I have hooks to hold what I want to re-wear and the dirty clothes hamper is there too. Basically I get dressed and undressed in the same spot so my clothes don’t end up everywhere and it’s easy to store them whether they’re clean or can be re-worn.
I only store my current season clothes in my bedroom closet. I only want to see what I wear now. It helps me not buy things I already have and ensures I wear most of my clothes. Also, I’m pretty ruthless about getting rid of what I don’t wear so I don’t have a ton of clothes.
Generally, if I buy something new and don’t wear it within a week, I return it. If I haven’t worn it soon after I bought it, I didn’t want it that bad.
I have 2 checking accounts, one for my bills and one for spending money. I split my direct deposit among them. Everything possible is on auto-pay from the bills account.
For my cats I use disposable litter boxes. I fill and stack one month worth at a time. I have a trash can that fits the whole box. So when it’s time to change them I just throw out the old ones and set out new ones.
I put nearly everything in the dishwasher and run it every other day whether it’s full or not. I empty it in the morning when I’m drinking my coffee.
I use both pickup and delivery for most of my shopping to stop my impulse buying. For groceries I use my purchase history to quickly find what I need.
I need to eat more fruits and vegetables so I buy many of them ready to eat so I can “grab and go”.
Which water fountain do you have? I'm on my second fountain and I hate cleaning it as much as my cats love having moving water.
I got an automatic litter box and it's easily one of the best purchases I have ever made. Mine is the Pet Zone litter box because the reviews said plastic shopping bags could be used and because I wanted a non-enclosed one.
I use a dish brush to clean my tub. It's the type where the handle can be filled with soap and it makes giving my tub a quick scrub so much easier. Dish soap works great for cleaning a tub and doesn't make me worry about fumes and residue affecting my cats like other cleaners. It's so much easier to clean my tub while I shower than to try to remember or schedule regular cleanings.
I finally invested in a ceramic one. It’s much easier to clean. I just wipe it down like once a week. And it’s sooooo much quieter which is good because the other ones hurt my sensory issues.
I've had a ceramic one for a few years and actually hate it. The pump/filter has approximately 7 tiny parts to disassemble to clean, and it grows mold at least weekly.
Thank you for the tips!! I’ll look into Pet Zone.
I’ve purchased the Catit Pixi water fountain, which I believe is their newest model. It’s super silent, you can see the water level at the front and it comes with a stainless steel top. I’ve purchased two other tops separately from their website to easily swap it out and keep the part that’s being licked as clean as possible (I’ve had issues with that in the past as I’m not the best with this task…)
I just got the Catit fountain. It’s so easy to clean! I do rinse the filter 1X/week and the whole thing 1X/month. I takes 5 minutes tops for the monthly clean. Reminders on my phone for both cleanings. Got the idea from a shelter that has tons of cats.
Catit Flower Fountain with Triple... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0146QXOB0?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
I loooooove the Catit fountain. I clean it & replace the filter every Saturday (three cats, so the filter gets pretty gunky). Except that yesterday I forgot, so I'd better go do that now. :-)
I bought a cat water fountain that is plumbed into the sink. No filters to replace, no pumps to break, no power cords or batteries to think about. Just one "straw" to wipe down once a week or so.
Cat-controlled (RFID chip on a collar), timed kibble dispensers, one for each cat. Each one lasts 10-14 days between needing to be refilled, and the screen on the device as well as the app let me know when it's getting low.
Litter Robot is awesome. No regrets. When it's full, it needs to get emptied NOW or else there will be skid marks on the outside of the globe, which is a much bigger cleanup than simply emptying the drawer. That provides the urgency that my ADHD needs to get the task done ASAP.
Vacuum cleaner robots, one for each floor. They run on a schedule. They also eat things left on the floor, which helps force me to keep the floors picked up.
Tiles to find my keys. I'm pretty good about not losing my phone or keys, but when I need to get out the door, if I'm running late then that's the time I lose them. Tile helps me find them quicker.
The moment I take the trash bag out of the trash (or recycling), my feet are glued to the floor. Cannot move, not even one step, until I replace the bag. If I take the bag outside first, or step away to do this one thing, I will forget to put a new bag in.
When I'm using the stove or oven, I'm not allowed to leave the room. Similar to the trash, I will forget. I can only leave the room if I put someone else "on duty" and then they're responsible, not me.
Does you cat fountain just refill from the sink or does it also flush? I’m having a hard time picturing this as it seems it would need a drain as well. Can you link to what you use or describe in more detail?
First of all I want to express how impressed I am by these ingenius solutions. I know many of them were developed by years of trial and error and shame and pain, and I love you all for sharing!
One little thing I do to get to work on time is utilize my snooze button. I have my snooze set for 8 minutes. I tried setting multiple alarms but that just stressed me out and felt like an additional responsibility.
So when I wake up in the morning here's how I get ready:
Alarm goes off, I press snooze:
one snooze to snooze;
one snooze to lay awake in bed with eyes open;
one snooze to pee, brush teeth and wash face;
one snooze for hair and makeup;
one snooze for dressing (I put out two outfits the night before so I just gotta pick one);
one extra snooze for the inevitable delay somewhere/play with my cat.
I count backwards from the time I must leave the house and set my initial alarm so that after I press snooze 6 times I have 5 minutes to get to my car to be on time.
Why 8? 5 wasn't enough to accomplish my tasks, and 10 gave me too much time to fall off track. I tend to get distracted right around 7 minutes lol, so the 8 minute timers snap me back. Any time interval could work, though!
Since I've been doing this I'm late to work much less frequently, and it's actually helped me develop a routine for the first time in my life. I will say I have a very streamlined morning routine because simpler is better for me, and this might not work for everyone! but give it a shot!
that is GENIUS omg!! so easy for time to just blend all together in the mornings and suddenly i’m late even though i woke up in the morning. thank you!!!
For cat related chores like changing water and scooping litter, I do it every day without fail because I view it as like an act of service/love for him. When I’m so tired and just want to go to bed, I think ‘he deserves fresh water/clean litter’ and then I can get it done. Also regularly scooping litter means noticing changes in their habits in case they get sick.
The same tactic doesn’t seem to apply when it comes to things like brushing my own teeth on the other hand 🤪😭
Baskets! So many baskets! And little bowls and dishes and shelves everywhere! I forget about things if I can't see them, which means that I end up having "stuff" all over my very small apartment on every surface. But ironically I also hate and get overwhelmed by too much disorganized clutter.
Last year I did a big cleanup and reorganization of my apartment and something that worked so well for me was to identify all of the problem areas that were driving me crazy and centre my reorg around that.
So for example, I had piles of shoes and backpacks and hats and mittens and bike locks and reusable shopping bags etc next to my door that were always getting in the way and I could never find anything. So I got a comically large shoe rack with multiple shelves and compartments and some baskets, and now shoes are lined up in one area, reusable shopping bags in a basket, bike stuff in another basket, winter gear in another basket and so on.
I had tons of vitamins and small loose items like lip chap and sunglasses and sunscreen and advil and spare keys and laundry money cluttering up my kitchen island and my cat would go up there every day and just knock them one by one onto the floor. So I got a little two level table top shelf/spice rack thing with a lip around each shelf and a couple of tiny bowls and now all of the small loose items are neatly stored there in the middle of the island where they are still visible and accessible but take up less surface space and are safe from cat swipes.
I did this all over my apartment so each room now has various baskets and small shelves and dishes to hold all the items that I need and use on a regular basis so that they're always visible and accessible where I use them, but no longer just rolling around loose and messy and easy to knock over anymore. It makes things feel much more organized and tidy but with less work as all I need to do is throw each item back in its basket when I'm done with it.
I have a rolling kitchen cart for craft supplies that fits under the kitchen island overhang, adhesive shower caddy shelves in my shower and above each sink, baskets for all the squares in my Ikea shelf unit, a jewelry box that hangs on the wall beside my dresser with a door that opens to all of my earrings and rings, and a hanger below for necklaces and bracelets. I adopted the Marie Kondo method of folding clothes in my dresser so I can see each item when I open the drawers.
I hate going through the whole ordeal of digging my vacuum out of the closet and plugging it in and moving things around to vacuum so I only do a full vacuum once or twice month. But I also hate having cat litter and cat hair everywhere so I got a little portable pet hair vacuum that I keep recharging near the litter box and it's so easy to just grab it every couple days and run through the apartment sucking up all the visible hair and litter.
I take a lot of meds and supplements so I got one of those weekly pill organizers that has four separate compartments for each day and I fill it up each week. For the meds I take first thing in the morning, I take the pills out before bed each night and put them right on top of my clock radio alarm on my bedside table, and I also open my water bottle so that as soon as my alarm goes off I can just reach over, shove the pills in my mouth and take a swig of water without even sitting up.
When it's time to get ready for bed, I plug my phone in to charge and put it on airplane mode before I do my nighttime routine so that I'm not tempted to scroll in bed or in the bathroom. I have a Kindle that I read before bed instead so I can turn off the lights and lay down, and I usually start nodding off within a half an hour of starting to read. Then I just shove it under the pillow and I'm out. I also wear a blackout sleep mask and have a brown noise machine which helps a lot, as I'm a light sleeper!
I also try to shower as soon as I get up as I find if I start doing something else first it's easy to not shower at all. Sometimes I turn the shower on as soon as I walk into the bathroom to encourage myself not to dilly dally around reading my phone on the toilet or whatever. I also have a waterproof Bluetooth speaker that stays in my bathroom and I put on a podcast every time I shower which makes it so much less boring!
Podcasts help for everything else too. I listen to podcasts whenever I'm doing any boring or undesirable task - cleaning, cooking, organizing, running errands, etc!
If I think of something I need to do, I write it down or get up and do it immediately. I can’t trust the noggin to hold on to any information or much less actually be able to access it when I need to. Idk if that’s an adhd thing or not but my memory and ability to recall is almost nonexistent. I write a lot of things in my calendar (iPhone) as it’s something I typically look at many times throughout the day. If I make a list or note I’m likely not gonna remember to look at it. Ive done it this way for many years and didn’t know that I possibly even had adhd at all. It’s just the only way I can manage things and get them done.
If I have a timeline to complete something I will put it on repeat in my calendar daily or every other day (if it’s every day I can become immune to seeing it there lol). For example, I had to renew my passport recently so I put it on repeat in my calendar 3 months prior to the deadline and got it done about 1 month prior.
This! I've had my mom ask me to do something and when I immediately start doing it, she says "You don't have to do it right this second." I always tell her I'll forget about it if I don't. I have a reminder in my Google Calendar for putting the garage can on the curb each week. Also have them to remind myself to call clients.
Dude same!! Even if this thread has a lot of advice that might not pertain to you personally, I get so much hope and joy seeing how people are finding and doing what works for them and not being shameful about it
Best advice I’ve ever heard for ADHD is don’t set it down put it where it belongs.
Also for me I hate morning and stay in bed until the last possible minute. I keep my toothbrush in the kitchen so I can brush my teeth while I’m putting my lunch together and getting my stuff together for work.
I take my work badge off at work when I pack up for the day and put it in my bag. If not it will live on my pants forever.
Keys and wallet have AirTags because I’m always looking for them because at least once a week I forget to put my keys on the hook or I needed my wallet for something and I forgot to put it back.
Also, if I can’t see something it doesn’t exist, so until I can afford new furniture my clothes are stacked on top of my dresser so I actually know what I have.
something that goes with putting it down where it belongs: if you find yourself constantly putting something in a specific place, make that the place where it belongs. spaces should be organized by how we use them
So true!!! My keys live in my purse. My purse is super small and because I hate carrying it so it’s always open on the coat rack. Even if I don’t carry the purse I always know where my keys and wallet are if I toss them in when I get home. Also why my toothbrush lives in the kitchen!
I'm on reddit, putting off taking a shower. Totally forgot that I wanted to deep clean the littler box before taking my shower. Thank you for the reminder.
Google Calendar and Alexa devices save my sanity. I'm a hockey fan and I've missed most of the games in the finals because I forgot. So yesterday I told Alexa to remind me to turn on game 7 on Monday since the Stanley cup (the original 🤣) will be awarded after the game. One of the things that gives me a massive dopamine hit is watching people achieve their dreams. Be that winning the championship, an Olympic gold medal, going to space, or any other massive achievement.
Alexas are amazing. I have one in the living room, kitchen and bedroom and it’s so good to be able to just shout “Alexa, set an alarm for X” or “Alexa, remind me to Y” into the void and know it’s been taken care of.
Meds on the nightstand. I flip the bottle over after I take them so I remember I took them.
Whiteboard on the fridge for what we have for meals so nothing expires. We also keep a mini list of restaurants we want to try when we don’t feel like cooking; so they don’t fall off our radar.
It also has a little “shopping list” on it. I usually take a picture of it before I go to the store.
Whiteboard calendar in the kitchen. Husband and I both use the iPhone calendar (with a shared calendar for things together)— but sometimes seeing it visually helps us remember what’s coming up.
Recurring alarm for when we feed the dog at night. Helps keep us consistent on feeding times which is good for his puppy brain schedule!
It helps so much! I sometimes take a little snooze after my meds and hated doing the “wait… DID I take them?” game.
When I started looking at the bottle at the end of the month…. Turns out sometimes I didn’t actually take them.
I have songs that really make me excited, so I try to make a long playlist with them. And then. That helps me plan stuff 3 minutes or so at a time. When I was a kid I'd do this thing I called time traveling, where I'd listen to a song I REALLY liked, and I could work quick with, and I'd play it on repeat until done with the task. It would trick my mind into believing I was doing something quicker in hind sight which made me dread tasks of physically avoid them less. Not to be confused with fun weird dream stuff.
Lol. But to make myself feel like a chore was less detestable, I would put a song on in repeat. I think the last one I did was as n adult and was the Everything is Awesome song from the Lego movie.
That worked great until I started burning out my favorite work out type songs.
I travel fairly regularly. I made three packing lists that live in a note on my phone: one for vacations, one for eg visiting relatives, and one for festivals. It’s been a game changer for me, I rarely forget to bring something when I go away any more.
Oh oh! I love this thread! Here’s my latest genius:
My dresser drawers broke recently which isn’t a bad thing - I haven’t folded or put away laundry successfully in months. I’ve been living between a clean laundry bag and .. the floor.
I went and bought one of those cube shelves and the fabric cube boxes and now I have a box for different types of clothing (socks and underwear, shirts, shorts, pants, comfy pants, etc). I’ve never been able to fold and put away clothing, but I’m sure able to organize different types of clothes and throw them into boxes. Who folds stuff nowadays anyway? Already done several successful loads of laundry AND put it away!
I have a problem with forgetting important things when im leaving for work so I have a checklist by my door that I absolutely *make* myself stop and go through before I leave. It's saved me from leaving my wallet, glasses, work badge, lunch, etc a million times!
I should remember to make such a list... I had one for my daughter stuck to the door. "gloves, hat, scarf, keys, lunch... " But for myself i keep forgetting making one. And when i have one, I probably still forget it exists...
I managed to just do this now, but with putting clothes away (after putting it off for a month), I start with pulling out hangers from my closet. Not something super difficult and I like the little search for them. I put them on my bed and now I have to fill them. So I pull clothes out from my pile that have to be hung up and place them on my bed. The searching is still kind of fun. Now that clothes and hangers are together on the bed, I can put a couple of clothes on hangers. But I’m an all or nothing person so I gotta put them all on.
Now I can pull up pants from the pile and fold those up and place them on my bed. Pants don’t take many steps to fold and it’s a bit satisfying. Lastly there are tops that need to be folded. Arguably my least favourite things to put away. But there’s only a few left and the all or nothing mentality continues, and I manage to fold those too.
Now I have to put everything on my bed away so I can sleep on it again. I could push them to the floor to get to the bed quicker, but that would be frustrating and annoying so I put every single one away the best I can. Sometimes that means my folding isn’t the best or my drawers are kinda crammed, but at least things are where they need to be and I can see the bottom of my floor again.
This only works about 2x a month for me 💀
* I built a cute charging station next to my front door. I charge everything there: toothbrushes, phones, my speed pedelec batteries, rechargeable batteries, e-reader, bike lights...... it also reminds me and my teen to take charged items we need for the day, with us.
* next to my front door are also a few hanging baskets with items for 'the go'. Sunscreen and a fan for summer, gloves and hats for winter. an umbrella. If I need to remember to take something with me the next day, I go drop it there.
* I have a large keychain carrabiner and all my keys are on it. I also attached an old colourful felt coaster on it. My key chain is huge and everyone mocks me for it. But I always put it in the lock on the inside of my front door. And when in my purse, it is the first thing I see. I can click off the keys I need (bicycle, car ...) and click back on when done using it. I haven't lost a key since I have been using that system.
* admin: I have a little wooden cupboard with 2 A4 sized drawers. Top drawer = to do papers, bottom one = done. I cross my papers dramatically with a pen to indicate the task is done, the bill is paid,... then it goes in the done drawer. I keep it, even if it is silly to keep it. I don't sort anything. At the end of the year, when taxes are due, I take the drawer out and then I sort all my papers. Garbage, needed for taxes and important to keep.
* edit to add another (+spelling): I have drawers in my dressing room and I love Ikea dividers. I just toss clean underwear and socks in the desgnated space, no folding. My tank tops I fold quickly in the air, fold them in half and half, and then put them standing up in that drawer too (Marie Kondo style). Nothing that takes a big effort or I will postpone until the end of eternity.
Mine's small, but very necessary for me.
I have an electric toothbrush, and have its charger in a slim cupboard. It's always plugged in, in the *only* outlet in the room, that also is nowhere near the sink. It really is a very good place for it, especially since my toothbrush doesn't live on it for the sake of battery longevity anyway.
All groovy, but the problem comes when it does need charging. It will switch to a lower vibration rhythm while I brush, and also blink a small red light for ten seconds after. Unfortunately, the blinking has long stopped by the time I've rinsed and finished the rest of my routine. I *will* forget it needs charging. And will forget again after using it the next time while it's just limping along, and then it will be empty.
I came up with a very simple solution: I open the cupboard door where the charger lives the moment I realise the toothbrush is switching to low vibration. Immediately, while I brush.
The cupboard is at head height and the space so narrow that I can't walk out without noticing, because I'll hit my head. Have done that a few times, too, when my mind was elsewhere, but it just works, like magic. Haven't had my toothbrush without power once since then.
And I couldn't tell you how many times I've turned around and gone, oh yeah, totally would've forgotten if not for that door.
Multiples of things. Like Chapstick, hair ties, hand lotion, in every room. Umbrella in every car, closet, and one at work. Enough underwear and socks that I won’t run out before I get to the laundry.
Recurring reminders/alarms about daily, weekly, and monthly things. Timers for indoor, outdoor, and pet lights. Bills set to pay themselves.
1. I turn my toothbrush cup upside down when my toothbrush battery flashes low while brushing so I remember to put it on the charger after rinsing.
2. I have wear-again hooks next to my laundry basket where I undress.
3. My dressing area is organized from right to left. For eg, my makeup drawer is compartmentalized, and each section has the bit I need in the order I use them - before that, half the days I walked out without deo, or like, mascara on. The flow has become automatic now.
4. I listen to audiobooks, podcasts and YouTube tutorials while doing boring things like cleaning, or showering.
5. I like to prep ingredients, not meals. I cut up fresh fruit into a big glass containers. Same thing with fresh veg for the week, hams and cheeses. That way, meals are quick throwing whatever I feel like in that moment together, and snacking is a picking at whatever looks good.
6. I try keep multiples of cleaning products in the rooms I use them often. Like sterilizing-bathroom wipes, toilet cleaner, shower spray in every bathroom, etc.
7. I have a dustbin in every room of my house. Otherwise I collect piles of trash cos I’m busy and don’t want to get up.
I just got a Litter Robot and I love it! I have 4 cats (2 brothers 6 years old, a mama cat 11 months old, and her baby 2 months old) and 3 of them use it (one of the brother cats goes outside).
I also have the scoop free litterbox which I really like and is much cheaper lol. You do still have to scoop the poop out but only like every other week.
My keys are on one of those spiral coil keychains and immediately go on the door knob the second I get home.
Automatic bill pay is a lifesaver. I now have perfect credit.
Find My Phone app. There was only one time when l left my phone someplace couldn’t remember where, but I “lose” my phone at home at least once a week. That little app has saved me hours of turning my apartment upside down trying to find my phone.
No one wants to hear this, but it really helps to go bed at the same time every night and wake up at the same time every morning. Especially on weekends.
Alexa remind me to….
My most effective:
1. Keep my vitamins on my kitchen counter where I make my coffee/fill my water in the morning. I stop there every morning and I’ll already have a drink ready to take them with.
2. List on my bathroom mirror of everything I need to do for my routine so I don’t miss anything - Brush teeth, wash face, skin care, etc. (sounds like it should be obvious but I often forget one without the list)
3. Keep meds right by my beside - I set two alarms in the morning. The first one I wake up to take my meds and go back to sleep. The second is just in case my meds don’t wake me up naturally when they kick in.
4. The Apple system (aware it’s pricy one but it works) - I use all Apple products. Phone, AirPods, watch, MacBook. The “find devices” app saves me all the time because I’ll at least know where ONE of them is to help me find the others.
5. Phone/keys/wallet - Recite it every time I leave the house and if you’ve seen Broad City, you know.
6. Reminder apps on iPhone - I have a few just for brain dumps or things I know I’ll forget.
That’s just a few. I LIVE by systems.
A pillbox with individual, takeaway compartments that I restock every week. I keep it near the coffee maker and put one in my pocket before I make my coffee (supposed to take them after food but get distracted and forget). At some point after breakfast I inevitably notice something in my pocket and remember to take my meds and supplements!
I got a Catit automatic feeder for my cat. Another nice feature is that I can spread her daily food allowance over several meals in a day, not just 2 like we used to do. One less thing to forget!
I started doing something similar recently. I have two sets of food and water bowls for my cat now so I just switch them out and put the dirty ones in the sink so he can still eat/drink while i don’t wash the bowls, ha!
For those of us who don’t have a litter robot, one thing I do that’s helped me better about scooping litter is doing it right before I shower. It helps a ton with the sensory barrier of “ew dust and fecal material” because I just get it over with and the jump into the shower and meantime the air purifier runs so it’s a win win :)
I set up a new checking account and put all bills on autopay linked to that account. I set up my direct deposit at work to put enough into the new checking account every paycheck to pay my bills. All my bills are paid on time and I don’t have to do any math.
I have boxes in every space, for when I’m to overwhelmed to tidy. I will throw everything into the box and then sort through it when I’m in the mood. For example, my dressing table can get pretty cluttered, in the drawer I have a box in which I will put everything in and then sort out later on. A tidy room is a tidy mind. And keeping everything clear really helps me to focus. When my room is messy I feel messy inside my brain ahahaha.
I bought cheap bubble mailer envelopes to throw used paint towels in. Water based art paint and not solvents. I used to leave them out and it ruined desk surfaces and other works. The insides are water tight and I reuse them. I now use this for dirty dish Swedish cloths until towel laundry day. No more waste basket bags.
Get the pretty litter if you haven’t yet- it’s amazing. No pee to scoop, zero smell. Really reduces the litter cleaning situation.
I fully support duplicate items. Cleaning stuff in every room. Double laundry baskets so there’s an empty one waiting. Spare meds, drinks and clothing in the car. Many chargers, in all locations.
Learned this one from my brother. I use Siri to add meat expiration dates to my reminders as I put them in my refrigerator. That way if I don’t use it before then I can at least chuck it in the freezer.
I went to this post and thought I didn't have much but now reading the comments I realize we do a lot of the same stuff lol!!
* My makeup/skincare is always in a travel bag in a drawer, so I just grab it and throw it into luggage,
* hampers wherever I see clothes start piling on the floor,
* NO WOODEN KITCHEN UTENSILS, we bought fancy ones at first ofc, but you have to rinse them immediately and then hand wash afterwards - no go. I've been slowly replacing them with plastic ones that can go in the dishwasher, microplastics be damned,
* backpack by the door, always full of daily stuff (keys, disinfectant, wallet, etc) and ready to go wherever,
* OUT station. Anything that is not daily stuff but must leave the house (returning tupperware and such) is on a cupboard by the front door so it get SEEN and taken,
* microwaving breakfast is quick chore time - picking up from the floor, gathering cups from rooms, emptying dishwasher - the sound of the microwave lets me know when to stop and go eat,
* meds are always on the dining table so when I sit down for breakfast I see them and take them.
No pets at the moment, so I'm writing down everyone's comments about their pet hacks lmao
My re-wear pile!
If something is still clean(jeans leggings etc) I fold them quickly jn whatever form I take them off and have a neat little stack next to my shoes or right inside my closet on the floor. I already know I'm gonna thrown them, I'm not gonna turn them right side, so it's helping me keep from having just a pile of fuckin clothes everywhere.
I also keep my litter box in the bathroom and use safe litter for them, and for my plumbing. I clean out the piles once a day or right when I hear her do it, andnits a 1 foot span of space. Then when I do get forgetful or lazy days, I have a buffer of a day or two. (I use worlds best. No smell, corn cob litter - clay litters cause behavioral problems, uti, kidney, crystals, and respiratory problems)
I stopped carrying a purse or a handbag. I only lift my keys and phone when I’m leaving. Keys are needed to lock up and/or drive so I can’t leave without them. Phone is always in my hand usually or can be found with find my iPhone. I just use Apple Pay to pay for things. Now I don’t need to worry about losing my purse or leaving my card out of my purse, or losing my whole handbag, or carrying about random junk that accumulates in my handbag. It’s a lot simpler. Easiest if clothes have pockets but even if they don’t it’s one thing in each hand.
-multiple hampers for different colored clothes means not having to sort laundry
-taking off socks, panties, and bras in separate garment bags means less work when folding laundry and also less digging through piles if i don’t get around to folding
-airpods on keyring - i’ll never go back!
-all important things (keys, wallet, chapstick, hand sanitizer) live in a fanny pack and i transfer the whole fanny pack to other bags - no more losing things in the shuffle
- air fryer and sous vide: helping me so much with meal prep! esp the sous vide - so convenient bc i just buy chicken and put the chicken breasts in separate bags when i get home, and can cook them whenever i want with very little fuss, *even right out of the freezer.* the absolute BEST part, like it makes me SO HAPPY: this way i don’t have to wash any pots or mixing bowls!!!!! and when you have something like cooked chicken breast, it’s way easier to throw together a meal. pasta, sandwich, salad, even just chicken and maybe a side of veggies
edit: just thought of two more
- extra trash cans: in addition to a big one in the kitchen and one in the bathroom, i have mini ones for the bathroom counter and my desk bc i noticed there was always a lot of random detritus (skincare plastic bits, random flossers etc). another thing to have to remember to empty but it makes a huge difference in keeping mess from accumulating
-mini vacuum: SO good for low effort spot cleaning, i love mine so much
I’ve mentioned this before, but a couple of ‘wearable’ things I do that have really helped me out. I made the executive decision that all my pants/jeans will have pockets and belt loops. My phone is on a lanyard, in my right pocket and clipped to a belt loop. My keys are on a lanyard in my left pocket and clipped to a belt loop. I trimmed them down to house, car, and mailbox key to reduce weight. I haven’t lost my phone or keys in the couch or some random place since.
Secondly, I cut the neck strap off a travel wallet and pinned it inside my bra. In it I carry a second drivers license, a credit card, backup house/car key, and a couple of $20s. It’s a relief to know that as long as I’m dressed, I can’t be locked out of my house or car, and I always have ID and money. I live alone, so this peace of mind means a lot to me.
- pouches/modules for purses instead of individual loose items! Keeping all first aid/ibuprofen/tums/Dramamine/bandaids/chapsticks in a little zipper pouch to throw into whatever purse or bag you’re using that day. Same for portable charger battery packs, complete with all the charging cables you might need, and overnight travel
- general point of performance- keep things where you use them (seconding what someone else mentioned by keeping socks by your shoes instead of with your other clothes), lighters by the candles, cleaning supplies in every bathroom (on every floor too). I have 3 trash cans in my bedroom since there’s multiple distinct spots I produce trash and never want to get up. I cheat and put all 3 of the trash bags into a large garbage bag when I’m ready to take them out, so it feels like I’m only taking out 1 instead of juggling 3
- sticky notes on your home exit door or items you shouldn’t forget in a plastic bag hanging from the handle (sticky notes normally for refrigerated items), or put it in the front seat of your car
- grocery pick up via your grocery store app- prevents you from wandering the isles and buying things you didn’t intend to. Also if you do curbside pickup, obtaining groceries becomes a breeze with minimal decision making since you can see prior orders
- dirty dish bucket - for if you live upstairs and take cups/plates up to your room
Forgot to add-
- mini laundry baskets instead of normal size- they help me do laundry more frequently and I can do it all in one load. All my favorite comfy clothes are then available sooner to wear so I don’t have to drag out the clothes I’m not excited to wear while waiting for the basket to fill up
- running the dishwasher at half full- sure it doesn’t save on water, but it’s way more manageable to put away when it’s not stuffed. Helps everything be cleaner in the kitchen which means I’m more likely to put dirty dishes in the dishwasher immediately
I put my laundry soap in a squeeze bottle, it allows me to use less, and I don’t have to deal with the cap every time.
I’m more inclined to do my laundry when my supplies are easy to use.
Putting important things that I can't leave behind in or next to my shoes.
Car keys in the fridge next to my work lunch :)
Daily inhaler for asthma in the shower because you have to rinse afterward.
Phone charger on both sides of my bed!
12 pairs of the same exact socks.
Shoe organizer that hangs in the closet with a pocket for pain meds, stomach meds, first aid etc.
A lighter by every candle (in two different rooms, no bringing the lighter back and forth.)
Extra sheets and pillow cases so I can change it weekly but don't have to deal with laundry in order to remake the bed.
When studying I set half an hour timers to keep me on track. I find i get distracted very easily and when the timer goes off I’m normally doing something other than studying so it reminds me to get back to it. That five minute break can turn to hours of procrastination without this hack😂
Alexa to remind me to take my meds, order meds, and get my mail, etc. Robot vaccum. Putting tasks in my calendar set to every other week to remind me to change my sheets, do the laundry, and to clean certain rooms, which I have actually gotten so much in the habit of now that I can usually check it off before it pops up; but it's still a good reminder so I know when I last did it! It's not fool proof, but it helps.
Toothbrush lives in the shower. I always shower before work. I have a random coworker that I have selected as my brushing teeth accountability. Am I seeing x today? Yes, need to brush my teeth. She would laugh if she knew lol.
Beside my bed I have a Velcro strip on the wall above an outlet. The matching Velcro is on my tv remote, phone, headphone case and my vape. I was tired of never being able to find anything tangled up in my sheets and this helps immensely. Plus I can charge everything while it’s hanging up!
- My medication lives on my kitchen counter
- My keys are inside my wallet
- I write down my work to do list twice. Once as a brainstorm moment where I can cross things out and plan. The second is so I can actually read it and make it look nice.
- I have two monitors at work.
- widgets. I have a widget for google calendar on my phone Home Screen. It shows my upcoming meetings for that day and I am on my phone all the time so I couldn’t really miss them even if I tried.
- noise canceling headphones
- litter genie. Doesn’t help with the scooping, but I am much more motivated to scoop when I don’t have a to use a little baggie every single time.
- doing chores when I feel like it versus when I feel like u SHOULD be doing them. Usually I can do a small chore or two when I get home from work. But I can’t do the dishes unless it’s like 11:00 pm.
- my wallet and sunglasses live in my bag. I have built this habit into the very core of my being. I have never lost my wallet (sunglasses, yes a few times)
- grocery pick ups. I try not to do this often because they use way too many plastic bags, but if I cannot fathom the idea of entering a grocery store, I do the drive up thing. Amazing,
- have a bunch of phone calls you need to make? Do them all on the same day one after the other. Just get it all over with, because you and I know we won’t do it again tomorrow.
- writing down a list of my hobbies. When I forget what I like to do, I consult it.
As a veterinary nurse - I encourage people not to use litter robots because you can miss SO SO MANY health issues by not checking their litter (UTI, diarrhea, or fatal blocked cats). Please take the time to check your cats pees and poops.
We bought a litter robot and I 100% recommend it. I went from changing her litter box like once a week and feeling guilty all the time to happily knowing that she always had somewhere clean to use.
The only downside for us was that even after a year she never pooped in it and started pooping on the floor. So it's not always a shop-in.. we ended up having to go back to a litter box but if your cat ends up using it fine it's a godsend.
I just tell myself I only gotta start it. To shake the procrastination. Once I start I say one minute longer… so on and so forth. Once I actually start it’s not so bad especially past the first minute. It’s just sometimes I get overwhelmed with what’s seemingly the complexity or the or how tedious it may be when in all actuality it’s really not that bad… it’s just perception most of the time
I bought a laundry cart, like a sturdy commercial laundromat cart with big wheels.
It wheels right up to my dryer, I can wheel it to the couch and there is enough room to fold and stack everything back in the cart and wheel it back to the closet or wherever.
When I’m matching socks, there is plenty of edge to lay the socks out.
When it’s empty, I use it as a hamper for towels.
I added taking my meds to my already existing routines. I always have a drink of water after I wake up, so I take my morning meds then. I shower in the evenings, so I started taking my evening meds after I showered (and needed a drink anyway).
I have designated homes for most of my commonly used things, so if I need to find something there are only a few places to look. I also have specific pockets for things in my handbag. That way, when I need something, I can get it very quickly. Doesn’t stop me from misplacing things occasionally (usually my phone or earbuds), but it definitely makes things easier.
I have a broom in my bedroom, so I can sweep the dust into the corners if the floor gets too bad. I do also have a dustpan, but I usually don’t have the energy to do a proper clean, so it doesn’t get used often. Still very useful to have. I also have hand sanitiser and antiseptic wipes in my room, just in case.
I focus on keeping my most commonly used areas of my room clear, specifically my desk, bed, and walkway. There is so much mess everywhere else, but at least I can use the space, and that is the important part.
I have an exercise bike in my room, set up in front of a tv. The goal was to work out while playing games, but currently it is a dump pile, so I have to clean up before I can actually use it. But ideally, I could exercise without having to leave my room, and be able to play games as well, instead of just sitting down or lying down all day. Gotta remove the obstacles first though.
I bring a stuffed toy to doctors appointments, particularly ones I am nervous about (such as blood tests, dentists, or new doctors). Petting the soft helps a lot with my anxiety.
I just want to say the litter robot is a godsend. We had to switch litter to one that would clump but not stick to the lining (arm and hammer hardball if you’re wondering), but it is SO EASY to just swap the bag out of the drawer. I bought a refurbished one and saved $100. I don’t regret the switch, but I never tried out a cheaper brand so idk if you get the same result for cheaper.
I have started writing in dry erase marker on the fridge. I have sections for needs to be eaten, needs to be cooked, and what I have in the freezer i can pull out for when I absolutely can't be bothered to make food
I used to struggle with keeping a skincare routine, because all of my products were in this bin I have under my sink. There isn't much counter space which is why I'd use the storage cube, but after simplifying my routine I can put all of it in sight and have been much more consistent with it!!
A few things:
- automating all my bills and bill smoothing
- airfryer/pressure cooker/slow cooker for cooking
- vaccum robot
- sonic toothbrush and water flosser
- a bag for work and a bag for the weekend. I just transfer keys between them. All the bags get stored in a cabinet at the front of my house I only use for bags
- handing laundry on hangers when wet and drying them on the line like that.
- cleaning benchtops and toilets after I use them. I keep cleaning products in each area.
- commercial sweeping broom (that looks like a mop on the end). Takes 2 minutes to swiffer the hard floors in our house.
1. I keep my toothbrush and toothpaste in the shower so I see it and do it while my conditioner is sitting.
2. I have sensitive eyes and need sunglasses pretty much anytime I am outside. I got like 4 pairs for the price of 1 when a store was closing near me. So I have a pair in my car, work bag (for when I'm not traveling) , travel bag (I travel for 1 week each month), one attached to the dogs leash, and one by back door for when I do yard work.
3. I also did the changing crisper drawers to be used for condiments, and got fruit/veggie containers for the fridge door. Definite game changer for my snacking habits too.
4. I keep an extra set of meds in my lunch bag so that if I forget to take them at home, I can take them at work.
5. I have a phone case that also holds cards. I always have my phone with me, and use card for everything, so I never have to worry about forgetting my wallet. If I do have to bring a wallet for some reason, I have one with a wrist strap, and it doesn't come off my wrist until I am home again.
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My wallet, keys, and sunglasses now live permanently in a clear makeup bag that sits near my front door. When I’m leaving I just throw the whole thing in my purse and I know I have everything I need. Looking for one thing that has a set place > looking for three things that could be anywhere.
Similar to this, I have a clear makeup bag in my work handbag that has meds, paracetamol, lip balm, a little multi-charger, a pen, plasters etc etc. They're all just designated to my handbag and I have others for home, the car etc. If the makeup bag wasn't clear I wouldn't have an iota what was in there and would just forget about it all. Also stops things piling up at the end of the bag and rotting haha
Not a clear one in my case, but a pouch with everything in it. I re-stock it every weekend. I can throw it, the wallet, power-bank and keys in the bag or backpack and I’m good to go!
Mine’s a faux leather makeup bag. That, my wallet, and my phone are the three main things that move from my work backpack to my purse. In my work backpack I also have my bone conduction headphones, my morning pills (whole week lives in a sorter), and a glasses case. Right before bed on “school nights” I make sure my glasses are in the case and everything is in there for the next day.
This is a great idea! Thank you.
I eased in to it by air tagging my keys, badge, and bag. My watch, phone, or AirPods have a 1-in-3 odds of one being charged and near me. They all find each other and they all find my things. It got to be a hassle. I don’t know if anyone in this thread has read Mrs. Pigglewiggle stories, but some of us had to parent ourselves and used that as a guide. To avoid the hassle I put bowls where the items pinged. I affectionately call them my “drop zones”. I called an ex after a breakup and told him I was miserable mostly because I couldn’t find anything. He told me he used to meet me at the door and pick up the items I was discarding as I came in and we chatted. He would put them where I look for them when I’m panicking I’m late. I will always love him for explaining it, because I could SEE it then. Now I have fewer “drop zones” and dead air tag batteries. It took time and some serious intention to make it stop. I also remember a few attempts early on that involved a timer that I have to stop everything and gather my things. I can get a lot done on a countdown, but not a deadline.
This might be the most loving story I have heard about exes pretty much ever. Sorry the relationship didn't work out, but clearly there was real tenderness there and you both probably grew from knowing one another.
I have a magnetic clip on my fridge that I clip my sunnies and keys in!
Similar to this I attached my keys to my wallet so I can’t lose them, and they have a carabiner so i can attach to my bags or my pant loops so I really can’t lose them.
YES. omg carabiners on EVERYTHING.
My keys stay on my belt loop too!
Yep! My backpack lives next to my front door. Anything that comes out, goes back in. Keys are hung above. Also, extra prescription glasses from zenni or eyebuydirect are cheap enough to keep a pair in my car, backpack, and house.
I'm very late to this post and I had never before considered clear containers this is life changing thank you so much
Same my keys are attached to my wallet and I keep those, headphones and shades on a shelf by the door
Clear containers are such a gods send.
Also, we keep all our condiments in the crisper drawer and keep fruits and veggies front and centre on the refrigerator shelves. We’re more likely to eat the fresh stuff before it goes bad if we can see it. We don’t need to be able to see condiments; we can find them when we want them.
Can I just say, getting a new fridge helped us immensely with not having spoiled food. Our new fridge is a counter depth fridge and a lot shallower and instead of being a side by side, it's the kind with the fridge in top and freeze drawer. Because it is shallower, I can see everything and nothing gets buried in the back. I love it.
We have a fridge that’s freezer on top and honestly, a side by side sounds like a dream compared to this thing. The back 33% of this fridge is where things go to die. Because no one can see it ever. It also has this really dumb “quick access tray” right at the top that slides out but it’s not deep so you can put anything taller than 4 inches into it.
Freezer on top is such a bad design! Our fridge in our new house has a drawer type freezer on the bottom, just like my folks had in the 70s, and it's awesome
It’s the worst. I don’t know who thought it was a good idea. We are still renting so you know we just get what we get lol. I dream of a freezer drawer one day
What sucks is freezer on top is a good design for the mechanics of a fridge, but hell for real life. I dream of a 4ft wide side by side
I hate those side by side fridges
It’s a toss up for me because I hate the fridge part but I love having a freezer with shelves because otherwise shit is getting lost for years
But it's so narrow!
Ugh everyday practically tell my Husband we need a new fridge- loath my side by side 😣
I recently got the Samsung bespoke 4 door flex. I had the drawer freezer for years. I felt like it was so hard to find things. This one has all doors so you can actually see it all head on. My toddler can also grab things out of the freezer that she wants. I LOVE it
God I hate our side by side fridge. I try to keep everything up front but stuff still gets pushed back and gets hidden or falls down behind shelves. Storage is trash. The fridge shelves are technically adjustable but weirdly spaced. The freezer is too narrow AND the stupid thing is next to a wall for some troll reason so the freezer door can't be opened all the way 🤬 I swear half the leftover food waste we have is because it has to live in the fridge instead of being frozen. The other half is because fresh produce sometimes randomly freezes then thaws and gets gross. I simultaneously want it to die so I can replace it but dread it because a new one will require knocking down walls and moving lines lol. /rant sorry 😐 My dream fridge is an extra wide counter depth French door with ACTUAL adjustable shelves and the flex drawer between fridge and freezer drawer.
Moving out of an apartment with a typical fridge on bottom to a house with a fridge on top (and snack drawer!) and freezer drawer made such a massive difference on how much food wasted. We do put condiments and pickled things in the veggie drawers though since they don't expire as quickly.
I actually removed the crisper drawers from my fridge and now I just have an extra shelf and it's awesome.
I do a similar thing with my glass containers of meal prepped food! Even though it’s glass, if I can’t immediately see what’s in there, I’m like I have no food! So I now put sticky notes on them w sharpie before I put them in the fridge
As it is glass, you could use the sharpie directly to onto it and use isopropyl alcohol and a paper towel to wipe it off when you’re done.
True, but the contrast can be bad depending on food colour and how solid it is. I found that for me at least, having a clear and light-coloured space behind the writing on labels is necessary for them to really work well for me. The contrast helps for the writing to register quicker when I read them, instead of my brain going on screensaver for a brief moment while it sorts out background and foreground.
I use masking tape and write in vivid over the top, then stick it onto the containers with the date I made it :) the masking tape comes off really easily.
Ahh that’s fair enough. My mind was blown when my husband showed me this was possible. I had been smearing whiteboard marker all over my laminated worksheet 😅 We also have a very wide range of sharpie colour options
I am making this change this week! So excited
I honestly stopped buying aspirational produce for the most part 😅 I buy my leafy greens in a box so they can’t be hidden away (and if they liquefy they’re contained) or I buy bagged salads so the whole thing is consumed at once. The worst I usually have to clean up is onion skins from the drawer
Bagged salad gang 🤜🤛
Just as an fyi for those of us trying to eat more salad, I’ve found Sunny Crunch has the longest shelf life of any lettuce I’ve ever had.
Another lettuce pro tip is the “lettuce keeper” by progressive. I wash the leaves and fold them up in there and I swear they stay good for 3-4 weeks. It’s amazing.
I've also switched the condiments to the drawers which has helped immensely. Plus doing the meal plan and putting everything for each meal together in tubs in pantry/fridge/freezer with the list on the fridge. It's a team effort to organise at the start but everyones brain is better for it during the week. Oh, and if I only need 1 potato, I only get 1, etc etc. With 2 dinners of freezer junk incase we can't get to do the shop. So much less waste.
Can you share pictures of how you did the swap?
Adding onto tips for lowering the challenge the fridge, I got the fridge placements for the shelves, it is so much easier to take them out clean those than the actual shelves.
I’m going to try this!
Omg that’s brilliant!
Also you never have the doom drawer of weirdly liquefied spinach you don’t wanna touch.
I have some ancient celery I’m avoiding
Me too! I just might need it!
Mine has gone from a solid to a liquid … I don’t want to smell, look at, feel or touch it 😑
this is when i throw the whole fridge away🤣
I’ve been pushing for it for a multitude of reasons ( it’s a side by side out of sight out of mind)
And in my case.... If I throw it out now, I'll have to take out the trash right away too, or it'll start to smell and attract fruit flies... Better wait till the trash bin is fuller. Oh whoops, that celery's still in there? Too bad I just took the bags out! It'll be a week now at least!
Well it probably has some ancient wisdom to impart, can’t just toss it out now.
Or special powers 🤪
I’m an out of sight out of mind person. And while I hate the idea of “do _____ as you go” as general advice, sometimes for me it can be the best thing. But I’m not going to give you general advice on “do ______ as you go” because I have specific examples that work well for me that might work for someone else! 1) After blending/food processing - quick squirt of dish soap and add about 1/3-1/2 way full of water. Blend one last time. Rinse. Blender/food processor is now clean. 2) When sitting on the toilet, tie off the bathroom trash bag and then take it with you when you leave to deposit in the big trash in the kitchen. Also works for replacing toilet paper if you leave the new rolls within reaching distance. (My trash is next to the toilet and my new TP is easily reachable under the sink.) 3) After shower cleaning spray that lives in the shower - spray when you get out. 4) Take the time as you wait for stuff to cook in between steps to do a few small tiding tasks in the kitchen (water needs to boil? Sweep the floor. Air fry for 10 minutes? Put dishes in dishwasher away. Stuff like that.) 5) Store the new trash liners in the bottom of the trash can. When you take out the trash it’s easier to replace the trash liner. 6) Organize your home/space by what you do in that space and not what it’s “supposed” to be for. Read in the kitchen? Put a bookshelf in the kitchen. Or store your currently reading books on the counter with some bookends. Only drink coffee in the office? Put your coffee pot in the office with your favorite mugs. No more forgetting the new cup of coffee in the kitchen because you got distracted by remembering to write an email. 7) I bought a clothes hanger rack - it is a small metal rack that you store clothes hangers on. Instead of folding - gather up empty hangers and put them on the rack. Bring them with you to the dryer. When the clothes come out of the dryer, they immediately go on the hanger. Bring clothes to closet. Bring empty rack. As you wear clothes the hangers get put on the rack. Repeat. 8) Notebook/sticky note and pen to write down those quick thoughts that interrupt my flow. Trying to work but suddenly you really need to know the price of bread in 1922 because you’re curios about inflation? Write it down. Look up everything on the sticky note after you’re finished with the task you’re trying to focus on. I also do this when I teach kids with ADHD - mostly it’s when they want to make a statement about something when I’m trying to talk but they have a habit of interrupting and they don’t want to forget what they wanted to tell me. I have them write down the thought and then when the instruction part is out of the way I go check on them and we talk about what is on their paper.
I remembered another one that I’m still working on building but has been helpful already! Travel sized toiletries/makeup/items that I store in makeup bags and leave in places - car, work, backpack, etc. that have the thing I forgot to do in it. I need to come up with a clever name. But basically it’s like this - I wake up and leave the house but forgot to brush my teeth and put on deodorant. My kit has travel sized deodorant and a travel toothbrush with toothpaste. Or I’m running late and didn’t have time to put on makeup but I have a meeting and I wanted to wear makeup - I have a cushion compact foundation, lipstick, travel mascara and eye liner, and a cream stick eyeshadow. Super quick makeup in the car when I get there. Other useful items include - otc meds, tide to go pens, travel sewing kit, body wipes, dry shampoo, gum/mints, safety pins, travel hairbrush, sunscreen, etc. So far I have one partial kit built at work, one in my bag, and a partial built kit in my car. As I realize what I forget I will then go buy the item that I need for each kit and add it. Travel size is super important! Otherwise I’m carting too much around and it takes up too much space. The more compact and small the better.
Sounds like an “oh sh!t kit” to me… like “oh sh!t I forgot to brush my teeth!”
… I might need to make a few bags that say “oh sh!t kit” on them for … reasons. 🙃
“oh sh!t kit” has my vote! that’s gold right there!
I call it my “just in case” because it’s in a case
😂🤣😂
>Organize your home/space by what you do in that space and not what it’s “supposed” to be for. Read in the kitchen? Put a bookshelf in the kitchen. Or store your currently reading books on the counter with some bookends. Only drink coffee in the office? Put your coffee pot in the office with your favorite mugs. No more forgetting the new cup of coffee in the kitchen because you got distracted by remembering to write an email. Wait, that's allowed?! 🤯
I know, right?! I studied architecture in college and one of the first things they had us do was stop calling a room by its name but rather identify it by its function. It’s not a bedroom - it’s a relaxation and sleeping space. It’s not a kitchen - it’s a communal eating, gathering, sharing, and connecting space. What is the intention in the space? Now design around that INTENTION and not the arbitrary societal rules we put in place. Didn’t know then that it would help me so much in my life but I am thankful for those lessons every day. (I did not become an architect.)
Love this, and I actually teach patients sleep hygiene like this. Bedrooms are for sleeping so we make them relaxing and cozy for sleep and then do other activities in the appropriate room in the house for them (eg watch tv in the den, eat in the kitchen)
Reading this on my iPad in bed… and I know you’re right 🥲
This one revolutionized my life in SO many ways. I'm the only one that lives here! I can use each room in whatever way I want!!!
Yes! It’s like what KC Davis said in her ADHD-friendly book, “How to Keep House While Drowning”…our living space is meant to serve US, not us to serve our living space. (She has a podcast, too.) My house isn’t perfect, but, ironically, it’s cleaner and tidier than it’s ever been now that I’ve given up the notion that it needs to be showroom-ready at all times!
Until you put the bookshelf and fridge in the bathroom.
My mom used to keep a couple of books on the bathroom counter, so I wouldnt say that's too out of the ordinary....
Books are fine. Food is a hard no, we don't sh!t where we eat.
Eh- I definitely snack while in the bath and sometimes while showering, as long as it’s not constantly exposed food, why not?
Post it’s near the door are essential to packing for me - if I can’t put my toothbrush in my bag the night before I put a post it on the door then before I leave if I haven’t packed it I grab the post it and bring it to the bathroom until my toothbrush is in my suitcase lol
… I don’t think I’ve ever gotten an award before … 😲😊
You deserved it!!!
7. I don't have a dryer, but I do hang several clothes wet out of the washing machine on a hanger, then hang the hangers on the side of my drying rack and when dry, they immediately move to my closet.
Ah yes. We call this ‘student ironing’. Most of us never stopped doing that. I have a hand steamer in case some stuff really needs to look better but haven’t ironed since.
Can you expand on number 7? I'm curious because just moved into a house with the bedroom being the farthest location from the washer/dryer so wondering how I can implement this? Do you have a link to what you're using? Thanks in advance!
Icedraktajino's sooo right, i love mine. Game changer. Look up **rolling garment rack**. Lots of options, features, etc. I picked one with a bottom/base shelf to store my dry-flat racks & rest my hamper during fold-from-dryer. And it's a wire shelf, so easier *for me* to keep clutter-free/dedicated to laundry!
I wish my laundry was on the same floor as my bedroom. I found so many great rolling garment racks and I almost bought one until I realized that I’d only be rolling it 10 feet to the bottom of the stairs 😂 Mine is like a small tabletop tower thing that stacks the hangers. Not nearly as awesome but still useful.
That's soo good though! and way more useful/inclusive of people aware of other floors/lives lmao
Just put all your empty hangers in one spot in the closet. Grab them on the way to emptying the dryer.
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
Ooh related to 7: There’s no space in my rental for a full-on clothes hanger rack but I make it a point to deposit all my empty hangers immediately into a basket that sits in my wardrobe so I just carry that out to hang clothes on when laundry is done I’m still trying to get my wife to adapt to using my system instead of hunting through the clothes for empty hangers every time we do the laundry 😅
My meds live on top of the coffee maker. My keys and wallet must go on my shoes by the door. Cleaning is attached to a playlist. New tasks are started when the songs change. Audio book chapters divide up dishes. Get as much as you can done before the chapter ends. Perfect is not a word to use. You started a task. Therefore, you succeeded. Oh. And alarms to make me drink water!
That is genius! I forget to listen to podcasts or music while doing boring stuff and aftwerwards I think of it... But to use that as a timer system is next level: not only will I get stuff done because of the game aspect in it, I will also remember to listen and learn!
Yes! It turns it into a timed game for me. Especially with things like dishes, I HATE doing dishes. Therefore, it makes it much easier to clean them when screaming out curse words. Knowing that when the song is over, I can drop what I am doing comidicially like it's a competitive game show.
I have cleaning playlists too! I am usually find once the momentum gets going in ok, but task transition/initiation is really hard, so I had to make it fun. I am a big Disney fan to so made a playlist of mostly Disney songs and it always starts with a couple of their literal cleaning Princess songs. Once Giselle start telling me to “cheerfully clean out the shower drain” it makes it funny and I will just go into autopilot now and get started.
Can you talk more about the cleaning playlist
Yes! I have a few Playlists. Short (30 min power clean), medium (1-2 hours of deep clean) and RAGE (usually reserved for more angry lyrics and for when I need to power clean particularly nasty things) All of them have specific tempos between 140-160 bpm, to keep my brain going. Depending on my mood I vary from edm or lyric free to millennial songs I can scream to, or lastly, NSFW by Psychostick. I try to keep it songs that I know the words to, as singing keeps me breathing (and makes my throat dry, therefore making me drink something). Or songs that have a steady bass beat because it kicks my marching band habits into gear and makes me keep going for five more minutes. (One more last time!)
1. I keep a magic eraser and one of those dish sponges that has a handle for soap in the shower. I keep the sponge thing filled up with a Dawn and vinegar mix and keep a bottle of Dawn and vinegar under the sink for refills. On my everything shower days, I throw the magic eraser on the ground and use my foot to clean the bottom of the shower, use the sponge to clean the glass, then swap the sponge to the brush head to clean the tile while my conditioner does its thing. 2. I travel about once a month for work. I have a very generic list in Google keep of what I need to take on a trip so I don’t have to make a new list every time. I have doubles of a lot of things so that my toiletry bag can stay mostly packed and I can just throw it in my suitcase. 3. I have a hamper everywhere I tend to get undressed - next to my bed, in the bathroom, and in my closet. Yes the three rooms are connected, but that has basically eliminated the habit of throwing my clothes on the ground. 4. I split my medication between two bottles and keep one on my desk and one in the kitchen because on weekends walking upstairs to get my medicine doesn’t happen and on workdays, I need it sitting right in front of me so I remember to take it before I start hyper fixating on a task.
Off to buy a sponge with a handle to try and implement #1! Such a great idea.
I have one I use for cleaning but I actually always forget to use it... keeping it in the shower is such a good idea. Actually, I am getting up now to find it and put it there, or I forget it 😁
In regards to #2, I made a template list of what I need to pack for every trip (glasses, contacts, charger, etc), made about 100 double-sided copies of that list and had it spiral bound st FedEx Office. Each trip gets a new page and I can add other necessary items based on the trip. It lives in my travel supply box.
I like Google keep because after I check them all off, there’s an option to uncheck all boxes so it’s fresh for the next one! I’d lose a bound copy…or not have anything to write in it…or when I need to change it because something in my routine changed feel the need to go spend money and get an entirely new book because that’s shiny and new and exciting! 🫠
I need to create systems. I live in a place that is very cold in winter so I need to plug in my car (engine block heater) when it’s not in use (or it won’t start). The problem is that it’s easy to drive away still plugged in, which can be costly (and embarrassing). I made a moveable post that the power cord runs through bringing it up off the ground and into my field of vision. I block my pathway with the raised cord and also wrap it around my mirror, from where it travels to the front of my car to plug into the blocker heater cord. So far so good!
Brilliant!
I keep my snooze going after I wake up… keeps me from losing track of time during my routine…
Clever! I have like 7 different alarms in the morning. Each their own song. One for "done sitting on the couch waking up, get started already". One for preparing and eating breakfast, and then four others to remind me to GET MY ASS MOVING. Last one is a Rammstein marching song to remind me to get-out-of-the-house! 😂 My teen als benefits from it as we have the same moring routine. 😁 (does it help? well... a lot better than trusting myself to look at the clock).
oh and the alarms are on my phone so my phone also reminds me to not forget where it is every 10 minutes or so 😂
Rammstein you say….you are my people! 😁
Lmao! I responded to the post before I read answers and this was my response too! It's honestly such a game changer!! It's also WAY less stressful than setting multiple alarms imo
Me too! Each nine minute block is a different set of tasks!
The litter robot is worth the investment! My cats and I are both happier. I kept loosing my ring and earring but if I put things in jewelry box I never wear them again. So now I have this cute little dish by my bed. I can see everything in it in a glance. I also safety pen my socks together before it goes in my hamper. They’re washed that way. So I don’t have to match them. My medicine is also in my sock drawer so I remember to take it when I put on my socks. I also keep a dopamine quick dinner on hand for if I come home with 0 executive function left to cook. It keeps me from takeout but it has to be like salty dopamine. Fries and chicken nuggets.
I’m the same way about jewelry, so I’ve started using these little clear organizer trays. It’s started as a way to pack my jewelry last time I moved but I actually prefer it now to the traditional wooden jewelry boxes. It’s a happy medium between hidden away and strewn about all about my dressing table. Today I just sorted them all so one tray is all silver, one is gold, rose gold, etc. We’ll see if it lasts lol. 🤷🏼♀️ 😅
My cute little dish is next to my bathroom sink. Throw on my earrings in the morning, put them away after washing my face at night.
Put everything on auto pay, set up a separate account for gifts that I put $100/month into so busy months are less painful and buying gifts is more fun, set up calendar reminders for birthdays and other events, when my doctor or dentist appointment is over I immediately book my next appointment and ask them to send me reminders, ask my manager and colleagues to put something in writing (or write it myself and send it to them) so I don’t forget about a task, meal prep.
A gifts account is such a wonderful idea! I'm always depressed around Christmas when I didn't plan ahead far enough and feel disappointed by my options
Now I need to make a gift account … and I do the appointment thing too! Last time I had a dental cleaning the whole computer system was down so they were like, “So sorry, it won’t be fixed until tomorrow so you’ll have to call to set up your next appointment.” I cheerfully said no worries and that was a year and a half ago. 😂
Gift account is a game changer! I also have one for “incidentals” which is relatively low since I rent, but I use it to pay for anything that’s necessary (I’m a little flexible on “necessary”) that I wouldn’t be able to comfortably pay for without making other adjustments. Like my laptop died and I had to replace it, I have to buy new winter boots this year, last year I treated myself to a professional deep clean of my apartment.
I have a litter genie, since a robot box is out of my budget currently (lol) and it’s so nice! I struggled to have to clean and take out a bag of trash everyday and it’s nice to just throw it in there and be done for the day!
Robot vacuum cleaner has been a game changer for me being able to keep my floors clean with minimal effort. I’m saving up for a new model that will mop as well as vacuum.
We have one but I’ve been afraid to use it yet… do you pick everything up off the floor every time it runs? I’m afraid that with cats and a toddler, a clear path for it to run every day is just not realistic.
I have one! We do pick up the floor every time it runs, but we also don't run it every day. Between the cats, kiddo, and myself, there are usually a bunch of cords, markers, whatever on the ground that it would eat, but a few times a week we get it all cleared up and let it loose (one room at a time usually).
Thank you, that’s very helpful! I hadn’t thought about using it on my own schedule, duh! I got stuck in the “set a program to run every day” part of the manual, walked away, and never looked back 🙃
I get overwhelmed trying to pick up everything for mine so I’ve started picking up one room and locking it in there when I go to bed.
For the most part we make sure the floor is clear, but the model we got is good at avoiding unexpected obstacles. The only thing I’ve seen it run right over is a cable.
I put my morning medicines on the counter below my kitchen light switch so that I see them when I enter or exit the kitchen. My evening medicine is in my closet on my dresser where I change clothes. In my house I store my shoes in a different area than my clothes. I store socks by my shoes instead of with the rest of my clothes. To open my fridge you open the right side door first. All my fresh food and leftovers go on the right so I always see them. Condiments and things like that go on the left. It’s a longer explanation but I have a mail and package “station” in my garage where I come in the house. I don’t bring in any mail or boxes that I don’t absolutely need. I have a biweekly cleaning service so that I keep on a tidy-up schedule. I don’t fold anything I don’t have to— socks, pjs, underwear, etc. All my underwear, pjs, bras are in my dresser. All my other clothes are hung or out on a shelf where I can see them. I have hooks to hold what I want to re-wear and the dirty clothes hamper is there too. Basically I get dressed and undressed in the same spot so my clothes don’t end up everywhere and it’s easy to store them whether they’re clean or can be re-worn. I only store my current season clothes in my bedroom closet. I only want to see what I wear now. It helps me not buy things I already have and ensures I wear most of my clothes. Also, I’m pretty ruthless about getting rid of what I don’t wear so I don’t have a ton of clothes. Generally, if I buy something new and don’t wear it within a week, I return it. If I haven’t worn it soon after I bought it, I didn’t want it that bad. I have 2 checking accounts, one for my bills and one for spending money. I split my direct deposit among them. Everything possible is on auto-pay from the bills account. For my cats I use disposable litter boxes. I fill and stack one month worth at a time. I have a trash can that fits the whole box. So when it’s time to change them I just throw out the old ones and set out new ones. I put nearly everything in the dishwasher and run it every other day whether it’s full or not. I empty it in the morning when I’m drinking my coffee. I use both pickup and delivery for most of my shopping to stop my impulse buying. For groceries I use my purchase history to quickly find what I need. I need to eat more fruits and vegetables so I buy many of them ready to eat so I can “grab and go”.
Which water fountain do you have? I'm on my second fountain and I hate cleaning it as much as my cats love having moving water. I got an automatic litter box and it's easily one of the best purchases I have ever made. Mine is the Pet Zone litter box because the reviews said plastic shopping bags could be used and because I wanted a non-enclosed one. I use a dish brush to clean my tub. It's the type where the handle can be filled with soap and it makes giving my tub a quick scrub so much easier. Dish soap works great for cleaning a tub and doesn't make me worry about fumes and residue affecting my cats like other cleaners. It's so much easier to clean my tub while I shower than to try to remember or schedule regular cleanings.
I finally invested in a ceramic one. It’s much easier to clean. I just wipe it down like once a week. And it’s sooooo much quieter which is good because the other ones hurt my sensory issues.
I've had a ceramic one for a few years and actually hate it. The pump/filter has approximately 7 tiny parts to disassemble to clean, and it grows mold at least weekly.
Thank you for the tips!! I’ll look into Pet Zone. I’ve purchased the Catit Pixi water fountain, which I believe is their newest model. It’s super silent, you can see the water level at the front and it comes with a stainless steel top. I’ve purchased two other tops separately from their website to easily swap it out and keep the part that’s being licked as clean as possible (I’ve had issues with that in the past as I’m not the best with this task…)
I just got the Catit fountain. It’s so easy to clean! I do rinse the filter 1X/week and the whole thing 1X/month. I takes 5 minutes tops for the monthly clean. Reminders on my phone for both cleanings. Got the idea from a shelter that has tons of cats. Catit Flower Fountain with Triple... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0146QXOB0?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
I loooooove the Catit fountain. I clean it & replace the filter every Saturday (three cats, so the filter gets pretty gunky). Except that yesterday I forgot, so I'd better go do that now. :-)
I bought a cat water fountain that is plumbed into the sink. No filters to replace, no pumps to break, no power cords or batteries to think about. Just one "straw" to wipe down once a week or so. Cat-controlled (RFID chip on a collar), timed kibble dispensers, one for each cat. Each one lasts 10-14 days between needing to be refilled, and the screen on the device as well as the app let me know when it's getting low. Litter Robot is awesome. No regrets. When it's full, it needs to get emptied NOW or else there will be skid marks on the outside of the globe, which is a much bigger cleanup than simply emptying the drawer. That provides the urgency that my ADHD needs to get the task done ASAP. Vacuum cleaner robots, one for each floor. They run on a schedule. They also eat things left on the floor, which helps force me to keep the floors picked up. Tiles to find my keys. I'm pretty good about not losing my phone or keys, but when I need to get out the door, if I'm running late then that's the time I lose them. Tile helps me find them quicker. The moment I take the trash bag out of the trash (or recycling), my feet are glued to the floor. Cannot move, not even one step, until I replace the bag. If I take the bag outside first, or step away to do this one thing, I will forget to put a new bag in. When I'm using the stove or oven, I'm not allowed to leave the room. Similar to the trash, I will forget. I can only leave the room if I put someone else "on duty" and then they're responsible, not me.
Does you cat fountain just refill from the sink or does it also flush? I’m having a hard time picturing this as it seems it would need a drain as well. Can you link to what you use or describe in more detail?
Seconding! Would love a link to this cat fountain
First of all I want to express how impressed I am by these ingenius solutions. I know many of them were developed by years of trial and error and shame and pain, and I love you all for sharing! One little thing I do to get to work on time is utilize my snooze button. I have my snooze set for 8 minutes. I tried setting multiple alarms but that just stressed me out and felt like an additional responsibility. So when I wake up in the morning here's how I get ready: Alarm goes off, I press snooze: one snooze to snooze; one snooze to lay awake in bed with eyes open; one snooze to pee, brush teeth and wash face; one snooze for hair and makeup; one snooze for dressing (I put out two outfits the night before so I just gotta pick one); one extra snooze for the inevitable delay somewhere/play with my cat. I count backwards from the time I must leave the house and set my initial alarm so that after I press snooze 6 times I have 5 minutes to get to my car to be on time. Why 8? 5 wasn't enough to accomplish my tasks, and 10 gave me too much time to fall off track. I tend to get distracted right around 7 minutes lol, so the 8 minute timers snap me back. Any time interval could work, though! Since I've been doing this I'm late to work much less frequently, and it's actually helped me develop a routine for the first time in my life. I will say I have a very streamlined morning routine because simpler is better for me, and this might not work for everyone! but give it a shot!
that is GENIUS omg!! so easy for time to just blend all together in the mornings and suddenly i’m late even though i woke up in the morning. thank you!!!
For cat related chores like changing water and scooping litter, I do it every day without fail because I view it as like an act of service/love for him. When I’m so tired and just want to go to bed, I think ‘he deserves fresh water/clean litter’ and then I can get it done. Also regularly scooping litter means noticing changes in their habits in case they get sick. The same tactic doesn’t seem to apply when it comes to things like brushing my own teeth on the other hand 🤪😭
Baskets! So many baskets! And little bowls and dishes and shelves everywhere! I forget about things if I can't see them, which means that I end up having "stuff" all over my very small apartment on every surface. But ironically I also hate and get overwhelmed by too much disorganized clutter. Last year I did a big cleanup and reorganization of my apartment and something that worked so well for me was to identify all of the problem areas that were driving me crazy and centre my reorg around that. So for example, I had piles of shoes and backpacks and hats and mittens and bike locks and reusable shopping bags etc next to my door that were always getting in the way and I could never find anything. So I got a comically large shoe rack with multiple shelves and compartments and some baskets, and now shoes are lined up in one area, reusable shopping bags in a basket, bike stuff in another basket, winter gear in another basket and so on. I had tons of vitamins and small loose items like lip chap and sunglasses and sunscreen and advil and spare keys and laundry money cluttering up my kitchen island and my cat would go up there every day and just knock them one by one onto the floor. So I got a little two level table top shelf/spice rack thing with a lip around each shelf and a couple of tiny bowls and now all of the small loose items are neatly stored there in the middle of the island where they are still visible and accessible but take up less surface space and are safe from cat swipes. I did this all over my apartment so each room now has various baskets and small shelves and dishes to hold all the items that I need and use on a regular basis so that they're always visible and accessible where I use them, but no longer just rolling around loose and messy and easy to knock over anymore. It makes things feel much more organized and tidy but with less work as all I need to do is throw each item back in its basket when I'm done with it. I have a rolling kitchen cart for craft supplies that fits under the kitchen island overhang, adhesive shower caddy shelves in my shower and above each sink, baskets for all the squares in my Ikea shelf unit, a jewelry box that hangs on the wall beside my dresser with a door that opens to all of my earrings and rings, and a hanger below for necklaces and bracelets. I adopted the Marie Kondo method of folding clothes in my dresser so I can see each item when I open the drawers. I hate going through the whole ordeal of digging my vacuum out of the closet and plugging it in and moving things around to vacuum so I only do a full vacuum once or twice month. But I also hate having cat litter and cat hair everywhere so I got a little portable pet hair vacuum that I keep recharging near the litter box and it's so easy to just grab it every couple days and run through the apartment sucking up all the visible hair and litter. I take a lot of meds and supplements so I got one of those weekly pill organizers that has four separate compartments for each day and I fill it up each week. For the meds I take first thing in the morning, I take the pills out before bed each night and put them right on top of my clock radio alarm on my bedside table, and I also open my water bottle so that as soon as my alarm goes off I can just reach over, shove the pills in my mouth and take a swig of water without even sitting up. When it's time to get ready for bed, I plug my phone in to charge and put it on airplane mode before I do my nighttime routine so that I'm not tempted to scroll in bed or in the bathroom. I have a Kindle that I read before bed instead so I can turn off the lights and lay down, and I usually start nodding off within a half an hour of starting to read. Then I just shove it under the pillow and I'm out. I also wear a blackout sleep mask and have a brown noise machine which helps a lot, as I'm a light sleeper! I also try to shower as soon as I get up as I find if I start doing something else first it's easy to not shower at all. Sometimes I turn the shower on as soon as I walk into the bathroom to encourage myself not to dilly dally around reading my phone on the toilet or whatever. I also have a waterproof Bluetooth speaker that stays in my bathroom and I put on a podcast every time I shower which makes it so much less boring! Podcasts help for everything else too. I listen to podcasts whenever I'm doing any boring or undesirable task - cleaning, cooking, organizing, running errands, etc!
If I think of something I need to do, I write it down or get up and do it immediately. I can’t trust the noggin to hold on to any information or much less actually be able to access it when I need to. Idk if that’s an adhd thing or not but my memory and ability to recall is almost nonexistent. I write a lot of things in my calendar (iPhone) as it’s something I typically look at many times throughout the day. If I make a list or note I’m likely not gonna remember to look at it. Ive done it this way for many years and didn’t know that I possibly even had adhd at all. It’s just the only way I can manage things and get them done. If I have a timeline to complete something I will put it on repeat in my calendar daily or every other day (if it’s every day I can become immune to seeing it there lol). For example, I had to renew my passport recently so I put it on repeat in my calendar 3 months prior to the deadline and got it done about 1 month prior.
This! I've had my mom ask me to do something and when I immediately start doing it, she says "You don't have to do it right this second." I always tell her I'll forget about it if I don't. I have a reminder in my Google Calendar for putting the garage can on the curb each week. Also have them to remind myself to call clients.
I’m so happy I found this group!!!! ☺️
Dude same!! Even if this thread has a lot of advice that might not pertain to you personally, I get so much hope and joy seeing how people are finding and doing what works for them and not being shameful about it
It's like finding thousands of soulmates LOL
So VERY true!!!!
Best advice I’ve ever heard for ADHD is don’t set it down put it where it belongs. Also for me I hate morning and stay in bed until the last possible minute. I keep my toothbrush in the kitchen so I can brush my teeth while I’m putting my lunch together and getting my stuff together for work. I take my work badge off at work when I pack up for the day and put it in my bag. If not it will live on my pants forever. Keys and wallet have AirTags because I’m always looking for them because at least once a week I forget to put my keys on the hook or I needed my wallet for something and I forgot to put it back. Also, if I can’t see something it doesn’t exist, so until I can afford new furniture my clothes are stacked on top of my dresser so I actually know what I have.
something that goes with putting it down where it belongs: if you find yourself constantly putting something in a specific place, make that the place where it belongs. spaces should be organized by how we use them
So true!!! My keys live in my purse. My purse is super small and because I hate carrying it so it’s always open on the coat rack. Even if I don’t carry the purse I always know where my keys and wallet are if I toss them in when I get home. Also why my toothbrush lives in the kitchen!
I'm on reddit, putting off taking a shower. Totally forgot that I wanted to deep clean the littler box before taking my shower. Thank you for the reminder.
Google Calendar and Alexa devices save my sanity. I'm a hockey fan and I've missed most of the games in the finals because I forgot. So yesterday I told Alexa to remind me to turn on game 7 on Monday since the Stanley cup (the original 🤣) will be awarded after the game. One of the things that gives me a massive dopamine hit is watching people achieve their dreams. Be that winning the championship, an Olympic gold medal, going to space, or any other massive achievement.
Alexas are amazing. I have one in the living room, kitchen and bedroom and it’s so good to be able to just shout “Alexa, set an alarm for X” or “Alexa, remind me to Y” into the void and know it’s been taken care of.
Meds on the nightstand. I flip the bottle over after I take them so I remember I took them. Whiteboard on the fridge for what we have for meals so nothing expires. We also keep a mini list of restaurants we want to try when we don’t feel like cooking; so they don’t fall off our radar. It also has a little “shopping list” on it. I usually take a picture of it before I go to the store. Whiteboard calendar in the kitchen. Husband and I both use the iPhone calendar (with a shared calendar for things together)— but sometimes seeing it visually helps us remember what’s coming up. Recurring alarm for when we feed the dog at night. Helps keep us consistent on feeding times which is good for his puppy brain schedule!
Yay! I also flip my med bottles over when I have taken them! Best trick ever.
It helps so much! I sometimes take a little snooze after my meds and hated doing the “wait… DID I take them?” game. When I started looking at the bottle at the end of the month…. Turns out sometimes I didn’t actually take them.
I have songs that really make me excited, so I try to make a long playlist with them. And then. That helps me plan stuff 3 minutes or so at a time. When I was a kid I'd do this thing I called time traveling, where I'd listen to a song I REALLY liked, and I could work quick with, and I'd play it on repeat until done with the task. It would trick my mind into believing I was doing something quicker in hind sight which made me dread tasks of physically avoid them less. Not to be confused with fun weird dream stuff. Lol. But to make myself feel like a chore was less detestable, I would put a song on in repeat. I think the last one I did was as n adult and was the Everything is Awesome song from the Lego movie. That worked great until I started burning out my favorite work out type songs.
I travel fairly regularly. I made three packing lists that live in a note on my phone: one for vacations, one for eg visiting relatives, and one for festivals. It’s been a game changer for me, I rarely forget to bring something when I go away any more.
I finally learned to do this too. Plus I tell Siri to remind me on the last day of the vacation to update/revise the list
I have duplicates of everything except my Drivers license, laptop and passport. B The redundancy allows me to keep my travel bag packed and ready.
Oh oh! I love this thread! Here’s my latest genius: My dresser drawers broke recently which isn’t a bad thing - I haven’t folded or put away laundry successfully in months. I’ve been living between a clean laundry bag and .. the floor. I went and bought one of those cube shelves and the fabric cube boxes and now I have a box for different types of clothing (socks and underwear, shirts, shorts, pants, comfy pants, etc). I’ve never been able to fold and put away clothing, but I’m sure able to organize different types of clothes and throw them into boxes. Who folds stuff nowadays anyway? Already done several successful loads of laundry AND put it away!
I have a problem with forgetting important things when im leaving for work so I have a checklist by my door that I absolutely *make* myself stop and go through before I leave. It's saved me from leaving my wallet, glasses, work badge, lunch, etc a million times!
I should remember to make such a list... I had one for my daughter stuck to the door. "gloves, hat, scarf, keys, lunch... " But for myself i keep forgetting making one. And when i have one, I probably still forget it exists...
I managed to just do this now, but with putting clothes away (after putting it off for a month), I start with pulling out hangers from my closet. Not something super difficult and I like the little search for them. I put them on my bed and now I have to fill them. So I pull clothes out from my pile that have to be hung up and place them on my bed. The searching is still kind of fun. Now that clothes and hangers are together on the bed, I can put a couple of clothes on hangers. But I’m an all or nothing person so I gotta put them all on. Now I can pull up pants from the pile and fold those up and place them on my bed. Pants don’t take many steps to fold and it’s a bit satisfying. Lastly there are tops that need to be folded. Arguably my least favourite things to put away. But there’s only a few left and the all or nothing mentality continues, and I manage to fold those too. Now I have to put everything on my bed away so I can sleep on it again. I could push them to the floor to get to the bed quicker, but that would be frustrating and annoying so I put every single one away the best I can. Sometimes that means my folding isn’t the best or my drawers are kinda crammed, but at least things are where they need to be and I can see the bottom of my floor again. This only works about 2x a month for me 💀
* I built a cute charging station next to my front door. I charge everything there: toothbrushes, phones, my speed pedelec batteries, rechargeable batteries, e-reader, bike lights...... it also reminds me and my teen to take charged items we need for the day, with us. * next to my front door are also a few hanging baskets with items for 'the go'. Sunscreen and a fan for summer, gloves and hats for winter. an umbrella. If I need to remember to take something with me the next day, I go drop it there. * I have a large keychain carrabiner and all my keys are on it. I also attached an old colourful felt coaster on it. My key chain is huge and everyone mocks me for it. But I always put it in the lock on the inside of my front door. And when in my purse, it is the first thing I see. I can click off the keys I need (bicycle, car ...) and click back on when done using it. I haven't lost a key since I have been using that system. * admin: I have a little wooden cupboard with 2 A4 sized drawers. Top drawer = to do papers, bottom one = done. I cross my papers dramatically with a pen to indicate the task is done, the bill is paid,... then it goes in the done drawer. I keep it, even if it is silly to keep it. I don't sort anything. At the end of the year, when taxes are due, I take the drawer out and then I sort all my papers. Garbage, needed for taxes and important to keep. * edit to add another (+spelling): I have drawers in my dressing room and I love Ikea dividers. I just toss clean underwear and socks in the desgnated space, no folding. My tank tops I fold quickly in the air, fold them in half and half, and then put them standing up in that drawer too (Marie Kondo style). Nothing that takes a big effort or I will postpone until the end of eternity.
The litter robot is ludicrously expensive and the best purchase I have EVER made
Mine's small, but very necessary for me. I have an electric toothbrush, and have its charger in a slim cupboard. It's always plugged in, in the *only* outlet in the room, that also is nowhere near the sink. It really is a very good place for it, especially since my toothbrush doesn't live on it for the sake of battery longevity anyway. All groovy, but the problem comes when it does need charging. It will switch to a lower vibration rhythm while I brush, and also blink a small red light for ten seconds after. Unfortunately, the blinking has long stopped by the time I've rinsed and finished the rest of my routine. I *will* forget it needs charging. And will forget again after using it the next time while it's just limping along, and then it will be empty. I came up with a very simple solution: I open the cupboard door where the charger lives the moment I realise the toothbrush is switching to low vibration. Immediately, while I brush. The cupboard is at head height and the space so narrow that I can't walk out without noticing, because I'll hit my head. Have done that a few times, too, when my mind was elsewhere, but it just works, like magic. Haven't had my toothbrush without power once since then. And I couldn't tell you how many times I've turned around and gone, oh yeah, totally would've forgotten if not for that door.
Multiples of things. Like Chapstick, hair ties, hand lotion, in every room. Umbrella in every car, closet, and one at work. Enough underwear and socks that I won’t run out before I get to the laundry. Recurring reminders/alarms about daily, weekly, and monthly things. Timers for indoor, outdoor, and pet lights. Bills set to pay themselves.
1. I turn my toothbrush cup upside down when my toothbrush battery flashes low while brushing so I remember to put it on the charger after rinsing. 2. I have wear-again hooks next to my laundry basket where I undress. 3. My dressing area is organized from right to left. For eg, my makeup drawer is compartmentalized, and each section has the bit I need in the order I use them - before that, half the days I walked out without deo, or like, mascara on. The flow has become automatic now. 4. I listen to audiobooks, podcasts and YouTube tutorials while doing boring things like cleaning, or showering. 5. I like to prep ingredients, not meals. I cut up fresh fruit into a big glass containers. Same thing with fresh veg for the week, hams and cheeses. That way, meals are quick throwing whatever I feel like in that moment together, and snacking is a picking at whatever looks good. 6. I try keep multiples of cleaning products in the rooms I use them often. Like sterilizing-bathroom wipes, toilet cleaner, shower spray in every bathroom, etc. 7. I have a dustbin in every room of my house. Otherwise I collect piles of trash cos I’m busy and don’t want to get up.
I love prepping ingredients instead of meals too. If I can do it the night before it saves so much time the next day.
I just got a Litter Robot and I love it! I have 4 cats (2 brothers 6 years old, a mama cat 11 months old, and her baby 2 months old) and 3 of them use it (one of the brother cats goes outside). I also have the scoop free litterbox which I really like and is much cheaper lol. You do still have to scoop the poop out but only like every other week.
My keys are on one of those spiral coil keychains and immediately go on the door knob the second I get home. Automatic bill pay is a lifesaver. I now have perfect credit. Find My Phone app. There was only one time when l left my phone someplace couldn’t remember where, but I “lose” my phone at home at least once a week. That little app has saved me hours of turning my apartment upside down trying to find my phone. No one wants to hear this, but it really helps to go bed at the same time every night and wake up at the same time every morning. Especially on weekends. Alexa remind me to….
My most effective: 1. Keep my vitamins on my kitchen counter where I make my coffee/fill my water in the morning. I stop there every morning and I’ll already have a drink ready to take them with. 2. List on my bathroom mirror of everything I need to do for my routine so I don’t miss anything - Brush teeth, wash face, skin care, etc. (sounds like it should be obvious but I often forget one without the list) 3. Keep meds right by my beside - I set two alarms in the morning. The first one I wake up to take my meds and go back to sleep. The second is just in case my meds don’t wake me up naturally when they kick in. 4. The Apple system (aware it’s pricy one but it works) - I use all Apple products. Phone, AirPods, watch, MacBook. The “find devices” app saves me all the time because I’ll at least know where ONE of them is to help me find the others. 5. Phone/keys/wallet - Recite it every time I leave the house and if you’ve seen Broad City, you know. 6. Reminder apps on iPhone - I have a few just for brain dumps or things I know I’ll forget. That’s just a few. I LIVE by systems.
A pillbox with individual, takeaway compartments that I restock every week. I keep it near the coffee maker and put one in my pocket before I make my coffee (supposed to take them after food but get distracted and forget). At some point after breakfast I inevitably notice something in my pocket and remember to take my meds and supplements!
I got a Catit automatic feeder for my cat. Another nice feature is that I can spread her daily food allowance over several meals in a day, not just 2 like we used to do. One less thing to forget!
I started doing something similar recently. I have two sets of food and water bowls for my cat now so I just switch them out and put the dirty ones in the sink so he can still eat/drink while i don’t wash the bowls, ha!
Extra points for using stainless steel or glass/ceramic for the bowls! Plastic promotes bacterial slime colonies that are hard to get rid of.
For those of us who don’t have a litter robot, one thing I do that’s helped me better about scooping litter is doing it right before I shower. It helps a ton with the sensory barrier of “ew dust and fecal material” because I just get it over with and the jump into the shower and meantime the air purifier runs so it’s a win win :)
Could you provide links or the name of the fountains you use? I am so bad about that and it causes me so must shame.
litter robot changed my life. worth the $$$
I don’t always fold my t-shirts or underwear, they make it into the dresser drawer i consider that a win
Paper plates bc I have no dishwasher Everything in my phone calendar with reminders Small notebook to jot down quick thoughts or tasks
I set up a new checking account and put all bills on autopay linked to that account. I set up my direct deposit at work to put enough into the new checking account every paycheck to pay my bills. All my bills are paid on time and I don’t have to do any math.
I have boxes in every space, for when I’m to overwhelmed to tidy. I will throw everything into the box and then sort through it when I’m in the mood. For example, my dressing table can get pretty cluttered, in the drawer I have a box in which I will put everything in and then sort out later on. A tidy room is a tidy mind. And keeping everything clear really helps me to focus. When my room is messy I feel messy inside my brain ahahaha.
I bought cheap bubble mailer envelopes to throw used paint towels in. Water based art paint and not solvents. I used to leave them out and it ruined desk surfaces and other works. The insides are water tight and I reuse them. I now use this for dirty dish Swedish cloths until towel laundry day. No more waste basket bags.
Get the pretty litter if you haven’t yet- it’s amazing. No pee to scoop, zero smell. Really reduces the litter cleaning situation. I fully support duplicate items. Cleaning stuff in every room. Double laundry baskets so there’s an empty one waiting. Spare meds, drinks and clothing in the car. Many chargers, in all locations.
Learned this one from my brother. I use Siri to add meat expiration dates to my reminders as I put them in my refrigerator. That way if I don’t use it before then I can at least chuck it in the freezer.
I went to this post and thought I didn't have much but now reading the comments I realize we do a lot of the same stuff lol!! * My makeup/skincare is always in a travel bag in a drawer, so I just grab it and throw it into luggage, * hampers wherever I see clothes start piling on the floor, * NO WOODEN KITCHEN UTENSILS, we bought fancy ones at first ofc, but you have to rinse them immediately and then hand wash afterwards - no go. I've been slowly replacing them with plastic ones that can go in the dishwasher, microplastics be damned, * backpack by the door, always full of daily stuff (keys, disinfectant, wallet, etc) and ready to go wherever, * OUT station. Anything that is not daily stuff but must leave the house (returning tupperware and such) is on a cupboard by the front door so it get SEEN and taken, * microwaving breakfast is quick chore time - picking up from the floor, gathering cups from rooms, emptying dishwasher - the sound of the microwave lets me know when to stop and go eat, * meds are always on the dining table so when I sit down for breakfast I see them and take them. No pets at the moment, so I'm writing down everyone's comments about their pet hacks lmao
My re-wear pile! If something is still clean(jeans leggings etc) I fold them quickly jn whatever form I take them off and have a neat little stack next to my shoes or right inside my closet on the floor. I already know I'm gonna thrown them, I'm not gonna turn them right side, so it's helping me keep from having just a pile of fuckin clothes everywhere. I also keep my litter box in the bathroom and use safe litter for them, and for my plumbing. I clean out the piles once a day or right when I hear her do it, andnits a 1 foot span of space. Then when I do get forgetful or lazy days, I have a buffer of a day or two. (I use worlds best. No smell, corn cob litter - clay litters cause behavioral problems, uti, kidney, crystals, and respiratory problems)
Pop socket wallet. Can’t lose my wallet if it’s attached to my phone
I stopped carrying a purse or a handbag. I only lift my keys and phone when I’m leaving. Keys are needed to lock up and/or drive so I can’t leave without them. Phone is always in my hand usually or can be found with find my iPhone. I just use Apple Pay to pay for things. Now I don’t need to worry about losing my purse or leaving my card out of my purse, or losing my whole handbag, or carrying about random junk that accumulates in my handbag. It’s a lot simpler. Easiest if clothes have pockets but even if they don’t it’s one thing in each hand.
-multiple hampers for different colored clothes means not having to sort laundry -taking off socks, panties, and bras in separate garment bags means less work when folding laundry and also less digging through piles if i don’t get around to folding -airpods on keyring - i’ll never go back! -all important things (keys, wallet, chapstick, hand sanitizer) live in a fanny pack and i transfer the whole fanny pack to other bags - no more losing things in the shuffle - air fryer and sous vide: helping me so much with meal prep! esp the sous vide - so convenient bc i just buy chicken and put the chicken breasts in separate bags when i get home, and can cook them whenever i want with very little fuss, *even right out of the freezer.* the absolute BEST part, like it makes me SO HAPPY: this way i don’t have to wash any pots or mixing bowls!!!!! and when you have something like cooked chicken breast, it’s way easier to throw together a meal. pasta, sandwich, salad, even just chicken and maybe a side of veggies edit: just thought of two more - extra trash cans: in addition to a big one in the kitchen and one in the bathroom, i have mini ones for the bathroom counter and my desk bc i noticed there was always a lot of random detritus (skincare plastic bits, random flossers etc). another thing to have to remember to empty but it makes a huge difference in keeping mess from accumulating -mini vacuum: SO good for low effort spot cleaning, i love mine so much
I’ve mentioned this before, but a couple of ‘wearable’ things I do that have really helped me out. I made the executive decision that all my pants/jeans will have pockets and belt loops. My phone is on a lanyard, in my right pocket and clipped to a belt loop. My keys are on a lanyard in my left pocket and clipped to a belt loop. I trimmed them down to house, car, and mailbox key to reduce weight. I haven’t lost my phone or keys in the couch or some random place since. Secondly, I cut the neck strap off a travel wallet and pinned it inside my bra. In it I carry a second drivers license, a credit card, backup house/car key, and a couple of $20s. It’s a relief to know that as long as I’m dressed, I can’t be locked out of my house or car, and I always have ID and money. I live alone, so this peace of mind means a lot to me.
- pouches/modules for purses instead of individual loose items! Keeping all first aid/ibuprofen/tums/Dramamine/bandaids/chapsticks in a little zipper pouch to throw into whatever purse or bag you’re using that day. Same for portable charger battery packs, complete with all the charging cables you might need, and overnight travel - general point of performance- keep things where you use them (seconding what someone else mentioned by keeping socks by your shoes instead of with your other clothes), lighters by the candles, cleaning supplies in every bathroom (on every floor too). I have 3 trash cans in my bedroom since there’s multiple distinct spots I produce trash and never want to get up. I cheat and put all 3 of the trash bags into a large garbage bag when I’m ready to take them out, so it feels like I’m only taking out 1 instead of juggling 3 - sticky notes on your home exit door or items you shouldn’t forget in a plastic bag hanging from the handle (sticky notes normally for refrigerated items), or put it in the front seat of your car - grocery pick up via your grocery store app- prevents you from wandering the isles and buying things you didn’t intend to. Also if you do curbside pickup, obtaining groceries becomes a breeze with minimal decision making since you can see prior orders - dirty dish bucket - for if you live upstairs and take cups/plates up to your room Forgot to add- - mini laundry baskets instead of normal size- they help me do laundry more frequently and I can do it all in one load. All my favorite comfy clothes are then available sooner to wear so I don’t have to drag out the clothes I’m not excited to wear while waiting for the basket to fill up - running the dishwasher at half full- sure it doesn’t save on water, but it’s way more manageable to put away when it’s not stuffed. Helps everything be cleaner in the kitchen which means I’m more likely to put dirty dishes in the dishwasher immediately
I put my laundry soap in a squeeze bottle, it allows me to use less, and I don’t have to deal with the cap every time. I’m more inclined to do my laundry when my supplies are easy to use.
Putting important things that I can't leave behind in or next to my shoes. Car keys in the fridge next to my work lunch :) Daily inhaler for asthma in the shower because you have to rinse afterward. Phone charger on both sides of my bed! 12 pairs of the same exact socks. Shoe organizer that hangs in the closet with a pocket for pain meds, stomach meds, first aid etc. A lighter by every candle (in two different rooms, no bringing the lighter back and forth.) Extra sheets and pillow cases so I can change it weekly but don't have to deal with laundry in order to remake the bed.
When studying I set half an hour timers to keep me on track. I find i get distracted very easily and when the timer goes off I’m normally doing something other than studying so it reminds me to get back to it. That five minute break can turn to hours of procrastination without this hack😂
Alexa to remind me to take my meds, order meds, and get my mail, etc. Robot vaccum. Putting tasks in my calendar set to every other week to remind me to change my sheets, do the laundry, and to clean certain rooms, which I have actually gotten so much in the habit of now that I can usually check it off before it pops up; but it's still a good reminder so I know when I last did it! It's not fool proof, but it helps.
Toothbrush lives in the shower. I always shower before work. I have a random coworker that I have selected as my brushing teeth accountability. Am I seeing x today? Yes, need to brush my teeth. She would laugh if she knew lol.
Beside my bed I have a Velcro strip on the wall above an outlet. The matching Velcro is on my tv remote, phone, headphone case and my vape. I was tired of never being able to find anything tangled up in my sheets and this helps immensely. Plus I can charge everything while it’s hanging up!
- My medication lives on my kitchen counter - My keys are inside my wallet - I write down my work to do list twice. Once as a brainstorm moment where I can cross things out and plan. The second is so I can actually read it and make it look nice. - I have two monitors at work. - widgets. I have a widget for google calendar on my phone Home Screen. It shows my upcoming meetings for that day and I am on my phone all the time so I couldn’t really miss them even if I tried. - noise canceling headphones - litter genie. Doesn’t help with the scooping, but I am much more motivated to scoop when I don’t have a to use a little baggie every single time. - doing chores when I feel like it versus when I feel like u SHOULD be doing them. Usually I can do a small chore or two when I get home from work. But I can’t do the dishes unless it’s like 11:00 pm. - my wallet and sunglasses live in my bag. I have built this habit into the very core of my being. I have never lost my wallet (sunglasses, yes a few times) - grocery pick ups. I try not to do this often because they use way too many plastic bags, but if I cannot fathom the idea of entering a grocery store, I do the drive up thing. Amazing, - have a bunch of phone calls you need to make? Do them all on the same day one after the other. Just get it all over with, because you and I know we won’t do it again tomorrow. - writing down a list of my hobbies. When I forget what I like to do, I consult it.
As a veterinary nurse - I encourage people not to use litter robots because you can miss SO SO MANY health issues by not checking their litter (UTI, diarrhea, or fatal blocked cats). Please take the time to check your cats pees and poops.
We bought a litter robot and I 100% recommend it. I went from changing her litter box like once a week and feeling guilty all the time to happily knowing that she always had somewhere clean to use. The only downside for us was that even after a year she never pooped in it and started pooping on the floor. So it's not always a shop-in.. we ended up having to go back to a litter box but if your cat ends up using it fine it's a godsend.
I just tell myself I only gotta start it. To shake the procrastination. Once I start I say one minute longer… so on and so forth. Once I actually start it’s not so bad especially past the first minute. It’s just sometimes I get overwhelmed with what’s seemingly the complexity or the or how tedious it may be when in all actuality it’s really not that bad… it’s just perception most of the time
I bought a laundry cart, like a sturdy commercial laundromat cart with big wheels. It wheels right up to my dryer, I can wheel it to the couch and there is enough room to fold and stack everything back in the cart and wheel it back to the closet or wherever. When I’m matching socks, there is plenty of edge to lay the socks out. When it’s empty, I use it as a hamper for towels.
I added taking my meds to my already existing routines. I always have a drink of water after I wake up, so I take my morning meds then. I shower in the evenings, so I started taking my evening meds after I showered (and needed a drink anyway). I have designated homes for most of my commonly used things, so if I need to find something there are only a few places to look. I also have specific pockets for things in my handbag. That way, when I need something, I can get it very quickly. Doesn’t stop me from misplacing things occasionally (usually my phone or earbuds), but it definitely makes things easier. I have a broom in my bedroom, so I can sweep the dust into the corners if the floor gets too bad. I do also have a dustpan, but I usually don’t have the energy to do a proper clean, so it doesn’t get used often. Still very useful to have. I also have hand sanitiser and antiseptic wipes in my room, just in case. I focus on keeping my most commonly used areas of my room clear, specifically my desk, bed, and walkway. There is so much mess everywhere else, but at least I can use the space, and that is the important part. I have an exercise bike in my room, set up in front of a tv. The goal was to work out while playing games, but currently it is a dump pile, so I have to clean up before I can actually use it. But ideally, I could exercise without having to leave my room, and be able to play games as well, instead of just sitting down or lying down all day. Gotta remove the obstacles first though. I bring a stuffed toy to doctors appointments, particularly ones I am nervous about (such as blood tests, dentists, or new doctors). Petting the soft helps a lot with my anxiety.
I just want to say the litter robot is a godsend. We had to switch litter to one that would clump but not stick to the lining (arm and hammer hardball if you’re wondering), but it is SO EASY to just swap the bag out of the drawer. I bought a refurbished one and saved $100. I don’t regret the switch, but I never tried out a cheaper brand so idk if you get the same result for cheaper.
I have started writing in dry erase marker on the fridge. I have sections for needs to be eaten, needs to be cooked, and what I have in the freezer i can pull out for when I absolutely can't be bothered to make food
I used to struggle with keeping a skincare routine, because all of my products were in this bin I have under my sink. There isn't much counter space which is why I'd use the storage cube, but after simplifying my routine I can put all of it in sight and have been much more consistent with it!!
A few things: - automating all my bills and bill smoothing - airfryer/pressure cooker/slow cooker for cooking - vaccum robot - sonic toothbrush and water flosser - a bag for work and a bag for the weekend. I just transfer keys between them. All the bags get stored in a cabinet at the front of my house I only use for bags - handing laundry on hangers when wet and drying them on the line like that. - cleaning benchtops and toilets after I use them. I keep cleaning products in each area. - commercial sweeping broom (that looks like a mop on the end). Takes 2 minutes to swiffer the hard floors in our house.
1. I keep my toothbrush and toothpaste in the shower so I see it and do it while my conditioner is sitting. 2. I have sensitive eyes and need sunglasses pretty much anytime I am outside. I got like 4 pairs for the price of 1 when a store was closing near me. So I have a pair in my car, work bag (for when I'm not traveling) , travel bag (I travel for 1 week each month), one attached to the dogs leash, and one by back door for when I do yard work. 3. I also did the changing crisper drawers to be used for condiments, and got fruit/veggie containers for the fridge door. Definite game changer for my snacking habits too. 4. I keep an extra set of meds in my lunch bag so that if I forget to take them at home, I can take them at work. 5. I have a phone case that also holds cards. I always have my phone with me, and use card for everything, so I never have to worry about forgetting my wallet. If I do have to bring a wallet for some reason, I have one with a wrist strap, and it doesn't come off my wrist until I am home again.