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I'll bite! I've been trying to organize my closet. I still need to clean off the top shelf which has become a doom pile, hang up my shirts (I'm currently doing laundry!), and figure out what's going on with everything on the floor of it—I don't know what's on the floor, or the shelf for that matter, so I definitely need to go through that.
I need to do my closet too, I’ve been writing it on every weekly to do list for months lol. Maybe we could both do one load of laundry today or clear just one shelf? I’ll do it if you do it!
Let's do it! I've already finished my load of laundry (mostly, I opted for a nap instead of putting it away, but it's finished and folded!) so I guess it's time to tackle the shelf! I'm not going to commit to the whole shelf since it's pretty big, but I can absolutely do something.
I cleared the top shelf almost entirely! There's still a box I need to take downstairs and a swim suit on said shelf (I don't know where to put it yet!), but otherwise it's empty! And I even added a couple of organizational bins.
Not OP but here's a few key milestones you could choose from as success points:
1. Look at everything on the floor so you know what you're dealing with there
2. Sort the floor stuff into piles - things to wash, things to hang, things to put in drawers, things to get rid of
3. Hang the shirts you can see until you run out of hangers
4. Pull everything off the shelf, put the things you can easily resolve on your bed and put the hard stuff back on the shelf
Oooh! closet organizing is my unending task!
My suggestion is to gather up everything not a hanger into one big pile.
If you have energy after that, sort out tops, bottoms, dresses/1 pieces, and accessories.
You can stop after step 1 and get points, but if you continue, count every step as a points multiplier! The smaller and smaller you break down your piles, the more and more points you get!
Things were already in a couple semi-organized piles (the clean laundry basket and dresser) so I started hanging things up! I finished the laundry basket. Points for me! 🎉🎉
Put the post into chatgpt and ask it to offer suggestions to improve it based on your goals for the post. Should help up get unstuck regardless of the feedback
Oh, this is something I'm kinda good at!
So, don't worry about writing anything readable. Turn on your bullet points in your document, and start typing up just bits. Write as if you're telling someone else a summary of something you read, rather than something you'd read out loud to someone.
So, let's say a blog post was like, "How I prepared my lunch today." Skip all the flowery language and gorgeous formatting and write out something like,
* "gather some leftovers from yesterday"
* "Thawed bacon in a bowl of water for half an hour"
* "Boiled some eggs; used one of those egg steamer things so I didn't have to babysit the eggs"
* "Used the waiting time to play with my cat"
* "Dumped the eggs into some cold water (maybe make a joke about the sound the egg steamer makes. Egg screamer, amirite?)"
Just, word dump all over that document! Split off into a random paragraph tangent on ideas or worries you have. Maybe it a big messy word pile. And tomorrow, you can start to organize things, and elaborate the bullet points you want to highlight.
And hey -- good luck. Writing stuff can be hard. I'm only able to prep for my D&D campaign because of my weekly deadline!
I have taken a 2 room deal of interior designing website Havenly, and have been postponing sharing my requirements with them for almost 8 months now. I need to share my expectations, pics of rooms, dimensions, some ideas and pics of what I like and the fear of getting it wrong…phew!
Oh, this sounds so interesting!
Let's start with the easiest task: can you take photos of the rooms today? Another fun one is to make a pinterest board of ideas you like. but don't do it for more than 2 hours -- make sure you build in a break point so you're not up till 3am like I can be sometimes when it comes to interior decorating stuff!
Oh, this one is a toughie for sure. I think, let's break this down to just food. If you can eat 3 reasonable meals (for you) plus 2 snacks each day, you get 1800 points. For every cup of water you drink instead of soda (flavored water counts!) you get another 8 points.
Before you tackle eating 'healthy,' we should get you eating proper amounts. ADHD is tricky in that we will forget to eat and eat waaaay too much in one meal (wrecking our metabolism) or we eat way too little, or we eat a lot for the dopamines. Let's do 2 snacks (sugary snacks are okay to start out with) and 3 meals with at least 1 protein and 1 side. Drink lots of water, too; I find I crave sugar when I'm actually thirsty!
I need to change one of the cat litter boxes out. I’ve got two and I did one and now my brain considers the other a non priority. But it needs to be done!
Oh! Hey! get a purrmillion amount of points for having done that first box! For this second box, maybe you can make it a bonus level challenge? "I'm going to do this box in under 10 minutes!"
Heck, if this box *isn't* a priority (I know, it is, but let's work with your brain here) let's do just the first part -- taking out the dirty litter. Turn it upside down or leave it outside/in the garage/in the bathroom so you cat doesn't use an empty box. When you're ready, give the thing a scrub later on and fill it with the good sand. Then give your cat a treat -- that's for me, because I love cats and got two of my own, haha.
ohmigosh, do you know how refreshing that fresh coat of paint's going to be? I am so excited for you!
I spent the past couple of weeks redoing my office, just taking my time with little parts of it. First was to tidy my desks, then clear off my walking treadmill, then restyle many of my shelves. I installed a new pegboard on my second desk and it is so aesthetic. The dopamine my office gives me now!
That's gonna be you when your room is all done! It might take a long time but that's absolutely okay. Do what fits into your spoons that day. You don't even have to do something every day, but if you do, know that even a tiny thing is progress.
To get points, here's some ideas from me to try out:
* Make an action plan list. (I love a good list.) The way I make my lists is I first write the big stuff down, then I break those down into smaller tasks, than even smaller, than even smaller! then I'll do one of those small groups of tasks. for example, I have a Kallax from ikea (cube shelving) and rather than list off "reorganize my kallax," I had it so that each cube + the top were separate items. I would do one or two each day. I still have 2 I have to tackle.
* Don't worry about starting today if you gotta make the list. (If you do make it, let me know how many items are on it! times that by 10 and that's your point total for the list making!)
* If you got a list, and it's all broken down, start with the smallest thing, and that'll be a subcategory of your closet. I always start with gathering all my floor clothes and putting them in a pile. Then, I break that pile down into tops, bottoms, and accessories. THEN, I break the tops into loungewear, PJs, and outside clothes, do the same with bottoms, etc. Each one of these things is ONE BIG TASK -- yes, making piles is a task! -- so go at your own pace. Piles and the easiest to sort through!
I need to tidy up ahead of the cleaners, and fold three baskets of laundry and hang one up. Oh, and have dinner. Nearly 830pm here 😬 haven’t put it off for ages but it must be done tonight 😭
Oh, you're playing on hard mode!
Each laundry basket you do is a whole washing machine's worth of points. For tidying, you only have to start the task, so the cleaner knows what to do -- touch those counters, make those piles!
And good luck! You've got a challenge ahead of you, but you're going to conquer this boss and get SO many level ups for it!
Now, that's actually not something I can award points over, because it's not totally in your control.
I went through a few years of joblessness. Nearly lost it all. It was a very hard few years, and the scars remain; I am so, so sorry you're going through something like that too, whether it's been a week or a decade.
Let's start with something really small that I *can* give you points for: What kind of stuff do you want to do? Do you have certifications for it, or do you need them, or would they be a nice to have? Do you have interviews lined up, or is it resume season?
You are so sweet! Thank you so much for this reminder, I also just realized how tough I was on myself. ❤️❤️❤️ We can start small like, sending my resume for review to my university career center. 😊
Yes, yes, yes! That's a wonderful idea. Send that bad boy off to a review.
In the mean time, let's also get you thinking about your self-care. That went in the toilet for me when I was struggling to find work because I felt like I did not deserve it. Do me a favor and take some time today to just do something you enjoy. Maybe a video game, or a movie on stream, or binge a show. You deserve leisure and comfort. Job hunting is a job all on its own.
Once you get your review done and the fixes implemented, focus on applying for at least 3 jobs a day, even if it's not a job that fits perfectly with what you've studied (but IS a job that is interesting to you!) You'll have to write cover letters for each one, and many websites have annoying processes where you have to fill out all the information already on your resume, so 3 jobs per day is a good goal. Make sure to eat a lunch, and to step outside for some sunshine, and if you have it in you, search for companies that do things you're interested in and see if they have job openings that might align with your skill set.
Take lots of breaks. Drink water, stretch, and when you feel anxious about your future, write it out so that it's not circling your head. (I write out posts on reddit and then don't send them. It really helps me out when I'm anxious or sad.)
And remember: your struggle to find work is not a reflection on you, your skill, your worth, any of it. The job market is tough right now and with AI and a bunch of other stuff being implemented into the hiring process, it's hard to be recognized for all the amazing stuff we bring with us into new roles. Keep your chin up, and be proud of yourself because omg look at you! You're trying your best and it's amazing!
You get a whole career's worth of points while you do this! I'm rooting for you, and this might be weird but, do stay in touch -- once you get that job, I wanna know!
I'm 37, and I still don't have mine, haha!
But hey, let's start with studying! If you study for 30 minutes tomorrow, you'll earn a fast-and-furious amount of points!
My whole bedroom is a disaster, I need to get rid of 90% of my clothing, I can’t physically walk around my space or use the room in any functional way whatsoever. I want it clear and then I want it deep cleaned.
Ooooh, this chore is SO hard and yet so satisfying when it's all done.
When I was in my early 20s, the way I cleaned my room was by grabbing a broom and pushing everything on the floor into one pile. Then I'd sit by the pile with a trash bag, a hamper, and a couple of baskets (or bin lids) and I'd sort the pile. Garbage, clothing items, books, trinkets, etc. Then I'd tackle each pile as I had the time and spoons over the next few days.
These days I kinda just pick 1 thing to do and do it. So, that might be pick up all my clothes and put them in a pile to sort later (one day... lol). Sometimes that's grabbing all the papers I need to either store or shred and sorting them into said stacks.
Or sometimes I pick one corner of a space to tidy. Like in my office, it'll be, tidy the work desk. tidy the standing desk. clear off the treadmill. handle half the pile by the bookshelves.
So, that's what I'm going to recommend to you! Let's pick TWO Things for you to do for your room. The first one will be to pick up any loose clothing that isn't put away -- doesn't matter if it's clean, dirty, or for donation -- and put it in a hamper or in a big pile out of the way. The second task will be to pick out 1 thing in your room to tidy: maybe that's gathering up all the trash you can *easily see* in a 5 minute time frame. That's all; doesn't have to be all the trash, just the trash you can see, and just for 10 minutes.
If you can do this some time this week, you'll gain a whole closetful of points! And if you do this another week, you'll still get those points! But the sooner you're able to tackle this and your 10 minute challenge, the sooner you get the points, and it'll feel pretty good!
I DONATED THREE FULL GARBAGE BAGS OF CLOTHES TO THE OP SHOP TODAY!!!
Tomorrow I want to clean my bath/shower area and get my outfits ready for the weekend.
Holy cow! THREE BAGS? that's huge! omg!! you inspired me -- I was waffling on attending a work meeting that was after hours today, and despite not feeling well and wanting to rest, I stuck it out and gave myself some extra points. ALSO, I chopped up 3 sweet potatoes, a chore I usually ask my partner to do because those suckers are SO HARD TO CHOP!
Be proud of you; you did awesome today. You get 3 bags full of points! You can so totally tackle that shower tomorrow, and when you do, give yourself a mr. bubbles-worth amount of points! (Also, I love the idea of preparing clothes for the weekend?? Like, what a lifehack?? that way you don't gotta think about it when you're all groggy from waking up??? I do that sometimes when I have a big day ahead of me, but I've never considered doing it for a whole weekend!)
LPT for cutting sweet potatoes! Place the knife on top and gently press down, then *roll the potato back and forth underneath the knife*. So much easier!
I need to clean the downstairs. It's full of stuff I cleaned out of my brother's house, clothes that don't fit, and clean out ofy husband's office. It's a disaster.
Oof, that's a big one! Let's start with breaking down this giant task into a hundred little ones. The great thing about a hundred little tasks is that even if you only did 1 thing a day, you'd get everything reasonable before winter. Which is a huge accomplishment!
I'm not sure what you have downstairs, but if you break everything down into these little tasks -- maybe it's gather up all the books, for example -- things will feel a little more manageable, just not automatic.
On the books analogy: say you have books from your brother's house, books in your husband's office, and books of your own that don't live on a shelf. you can break this down into smaller tasks too:
* gather all the books into stacks/a pile. That's it, that's a whole task. You can just do that for a day.
* Sort the books: donate, toss, keep. that's all you gotta do that day! that's a big one, too; lots of little decisions, lots of touching dusty and dry things, etc. I'd be pooped after, personally!
* decide where the books you want to keep *can* live. not where they'll live, don't sort them that way yet. Just, what space can they occupy? Do some light prep for that, whatever you're comfortable with.
* Sort the books in the way you prefer. This might take a few days at about half an hour each; don't stress if you can't get through it all at once.
* Each shelf they go to live is its own task.
Obviously, books might not take a week to get through. Or they might take you a lot longer. It's okay either way! And you can take multiple tasks *if you are feeling okay to do it.* Now, this is just an analogy, you might not have any books to sort, but that principle is there.
A tip: it helps me a lot to write down the things I did that day, especially with a big project. It feels a little like adding my initials after getting on the scoreboard of a game I played, haha! And I get to look at the list of things I did, and know that even if I feel like I did nothing all week, I *at least gathered the books into a pile*. And it feels good!
The most important thing about this project is to just know that *showing up counts*. You don't need to complete anything that day, you just need to show up and do *one task*, and you only gotta do that on the days you *feel like you can*. It took me 2 weeks to clean up my office (and I still have 2 piles of stuff to sort) and I did not show up to do it every day, but I did do little tasks when I felt like I could do them. It helped me to think about it like a little game: if I could find a home for *these three things on the floor,* I could write that down and get my points!
Friend, you get a number of points equal to a 6 ft stack of books, just for thinking about the task! If you need help making a list to make this endeavor into a bunch of smaller tasks, I can write out how I do it. Good luck!
Oof, yeah, I know that feeling. Showering is easy for me *when I am in the shower*, but the getting into the shower is a real pain.
Start out in maintenance mode; if it's just washing your hair that's the struggle, maybe rinse your scalp real well. That's the important part, because you don't want to get any lumps and stuff.
I find when I'm having a hard time showering, if I set up the bathroom for a shower the night before (I shower in the morning), my brain sets it as a priority when I wake up.
Sometimes I buy a nice hair mask and I'll use it in the evening, then shower then and play video games in bed while my hair dries. I have to prepare myself for this a day or two in advance though, so I know to anticipate it.
Once you get your hair all clean, you get a head and shoulders worth of points! Then you don't have to worry about washing your hair again for a little while!
Oh, this is one of those tasks that's GREAT for a breakdown. So you have to
* clean your sink
* clean your counters
* wipe down the mirror
* organize your medicine cabinet
* clean out your brush
* clean the toilet
* clean the tub/shower
* by emptying it of stuff
* tossing the curtain in the wash
* sudsing everything up
* rinsing everything out
* putting all the stuff back
* hanging up the curtain
* take out the rugs
* sweep the floor
* mop the floor
* put all the rugs back
SO, with that list, I'd say pick out like, 2 things. maybe your sink and mirror? give yourself a timer of maybe 3 minutes! if you can get it done, you get a bottle-of-Mr-Bubbles-worth of points! and if you get it done in under 3 minutes, you get an XL bottle of points!
You did AMAZING yesterday! That was even more stuff then I thought to do. Also, cleaning the tub is no joke -- you gotta take stuff out, wipe it down, then be all hunched over for a while as you scrub, then you have to put it all back. That's loads of steps! And the towels would be a gather, wash, dry situation. You did a LOT yesterday. So, have a LOT of points!
Good luck today!
Renew my car tag at the DMV. My tag is from 2021. 🤪😬 I think the only way I get away with it is my tag is a veterans tag and I have a license plate frame.
Oh! Do you have to set up an appointment, or just drop in and wait?
Our local DMV is the weirdest place; it's bright orange inside, they have televisions going AND the radio, and everyone is laughing and joking. It's overstimulating but also quite fun; I'm so used to the boring and sad DMVs that I was taken aback, haha.
Idk. But I never hear of DMV appointments. I also don't know if I should register my car in Georgia or Florida. We're military. We live in Florida and my tag is from GA. I don't have a Georgia address. I'm confused
Oh! That is confusing.
How about this for your points-task: digging for info. Maybe there is a subreddit you can ask (a military subreddit maybe?) or a neighbor, or maybe you can check the DMV website. Any avenue you explore, you get a 10-miles-worth of points! It's okay if you don't get the answer. What's important is that you showed up and gave it a shot.
Pieces is the way to go. You're doing great! Rather than tackle the kitchen all at once, why not make a week of it? Monday is a deep clean of the cabinets, Tuesday is a deep clean of the fridge. Wednesday is a deep clean of the counters, and thursday is the toaster oven, the pressure cooker, etc. Friday is your stove top and Saturday is a sweep and mop. Oh, you don't have to do things in this order, this is just an example!
You'll notice I said nothing of the dishes. These are a sisyphean task. they are unending. Dishes can be your mini game -- do some dishes each day, doesn't have to be all of them, for bonus points.
You get a kitchen-in-pieces amount of points for your progress, and even more as you continue!
This is actually a good idea. Thank you.
Also my husband heard me talking about your idea and he got real quiet. That's how he's been cleaning the kitchen and now he wants to get tested (among other symptoms).
Please tell your husband that I wish him luck! I cried when I got my diagnosis, even though I was sure I had it beforehand. But knowing (as I'm sure you know too) is so good for us, because we can learn about it and plan for it and around it.
And tell him his kitchen participation doubles y'all's points!
feeding myself and my son he eats anything but nothing ever sounds appeasing and i end up not eating and then being really mean and irritable at bedtime. not the mom vibes im going for! recently diagnosed in the past year and pretty sure it's my medication suppressing my appetite
It's not the meds that do it to me, it's just plain ol' ADHD. I get the hangry too. Before I was diagnosed, my partner noticed a pattern and would start bringing snacks to my work desk (I WFH) whenever I started getting grouchy. I never noticed this as a thing for me till then!
Since you're not feeling hunger, or dopamine from eating, then we need to get you your dopamine another way. First, your food situation!
Breakfast used to be my main dopamine boost for the morning, but vyvanse undid that, and now breakfast is kinda hard. What I ended up doing is stocking my fridge, freezer, and pantry with grab and go minimeals and low/no effort food. I decided that it does not need to be healthy at this stage because what I'm trying to do is build an eating habit, and worrying about sodium/sugar/etc will make it harder to do this consistently. Small frozen pizzas, breakfast sandwiches, yogurts galore, and those grown up lunchable meals (with the nuts and berries and meats and crackers?) are good starts.
While you're making your son his meal, you can pop a frozen pizza in the toaster oven, or down a yogurt while standing in the kitchen, or make yourself some toast and jam. this won't replace proper meals, but it'll help to fuel you enough so that you've got the physical and mental resilience to be closer to the you that you wanna be around him. It's not for flavor and it's not to satiate hunger, it's to put fuel in your body! Fuel makes you go places! So even if you are meh about the idea of eating a yogurt while your son's chicken nuggets cook, you can eat the yogurt anyway, so that you can have the boost you need!
Once you get into these eating habits, you can expand into making yourself healthier options that you can pop in the fridge for later.
For every bite that you chew, get 10 points!
It's not the meds that do it to me, it's just plain ol' ADHD. I get the hangry too. Before I was diagnosed, my partner noticed a pattern and would start bringing snacks to my work desk (I WFH) whenever I started getting grouchy. I never noticed this as a thing for me till then!
Since you're not feeling hunger, or dopamine from eating, then we need to get you your dopamine another way. First, your food situation!
Breakfast used to be my main dopamine boost for the morning, but vyvanse undid that, and now breakfast is kinda hard. What I ended up doing is stocking my fridge, freezer, and pantry with grab and go minimeals and low/no effort food. I decided that it does not need to be healthy at this stage because what I'm trying to do is build an eating habit, and worrying about sodium/sugar/etc will make it harder to do this consistently. Small frozen pizzas, breakfast sandwiches, yogurts galore, and those grown up lunchable meals (with the nuts and berries and meats and crackers?) are good starts.
While you're making your son his meal, you can pop a frozen pizza in the toaster oven, or down a yogurt while standing in the kitchen, or make yourself some toast and jam. this won't replace proper meals, but it'll help to fuel you enough so that you've got the physical and mental resilience to be closer to the you that you wanna be around him. It's not for flavor and it's not to satiate hunger, it's to put fuel in your body! Fuel makes you go places! So even if you are meh about the idea of eating a yogurt while your son's chicken nuggets cook, you can eat the yogurt anyway, so that you can have the boost you need!
Once you get into these eating habits, you can expand into making yourself healthier options that you can pop in the fridge for later.
For every bite that you chew, get 10 points!
I need to read, answer, and act on a gazillion emails. I'm dreading it because they all give me negative emotions (having lot of issues at work).
They feel so painful to do, that I want to listen to podcasts while doing them, but that's too much stimulus.
I should be on the computer in ten min, but am still in bed, and haven't showered 🤷♀️
Yeah, I can't listen to podcasts while reading. that's too many voices I need to sort in my head. Heck, if I have to do a task that requires a lot of me thinking things through, I have to turn off my music sometimes!
Luckily, this is a task that is easy to break down into constructive goals.
First, you'll need a pad of paper. Create two columns; the first will be skinny and the other one wide. In column 1, you're going to log your 'email runs' and the date/time you did them. In the second column, you're going to write down any "action items" these emails need you to do that don't involve just replying to the email. (For example, an email might say "you need to log into this security software for work and read the paperwork.") You can reference what email it is in these notes so you can go back to it.
Now, the game: Pick 30 minutes some time today and make it a goal to sort through as many emails as you're able to in that 30 minutes. You can also do this in 2 fifteen minute chunks today. Unless there is a deadline attached to it, the action items you write down can wait till tomorrow (unless you feel pumped to do them today!) For now, you're focusing on just sorting through the emails, and *only* what you can manage in the time span you've allotted. (Again, if you feel you can do more, do it! But your obligation to yourself is just that time frame, everything else is bonus points.)
When you log your email runs, you're going to do a tick mark for every email you do. (You know, like the four tick marks with the fifth drawn over it to signify a group of five?) This, times 10, is going to be your point total whenever you do this task.
Also, you are brave! My email is a disaster. I try to go through it every few months to delete junk mail but I can never get on top of it. At work, my email is only a little bit better, but I beg others to just direct message me what they want to say because oof, email is *hard*.
My Finances (all kinds - from important payments to stopping and changing subscribtions. I have been avoiding for months and am so scared to open the letters and to let the realisation sink in on me how much money i could have saved by changing my phone-subsribtion for example years earlier. (also i made some bad financiel mistakes in the last 15 years that kinda traumatized me [😭](https://emojipedia.org/loudly-crying-face))
I don't think this is an easy mindset to adopt at all, but have you considered this: if you open some of those letters *now*, you'll be saving *future you* money!
Past you? She's doing the best she can with the spoons she has. Maybe that means she's paid a bit of ADHD tax on subscriptions she no longer uses. (I went a whole year paying for a Disney Plus subscription *twice a month* and didn't realize it! I can relate!) What's important isn't your inability to do something yesterday, it's your ability to do that thing today.
First, get a whole thank-you worth of points because you reminded me I have a subscription I keep forgetting to cancel that I never use and takes a small chunk out of my account every year. I really need to try to use it this year, and remember to cancel it!
Second, if you can log in to ONE service you are paying for but not using and cancel that service today, you get as many points as the money you will be saving next month, if that $$ was in pennies. (So $8 becomes 800 points!)
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I'll bite! I've been trying to organize my closet. I still need to clean off the top shelf which has become a doom pile, hang up my shirts (I'm currently doing laundry!), and figure out what's going on with everything on the floor of it—I don't know what's on the floor, or the shelf for that matter, so I definitely need to go through that.
I need to do my closet too, I’ve been writing it on every weekly to do list for months lol. Maybe we could both do one load of laundry today or clear just one shelf? I’ll do it if you do it!
Let's do it! I've already finished my load of laundry (mostly, I opted for a nap instead of putting it away, but it's finished and folded!) so I guess it's time to tackle the shelf! I'm not going to commit to the whole shelf since it's pretty big, but I can absolutely do something.
I cleared the top shelf almost entirely! There's still a box I need to take downstairs and a swim suit on said shelf (I don't know where to put it yet!), but otherwise it's empty! And I even added a couple of organizational bins.
Not OP but here's a few key milestones you could choose from as success points: 1. Look at everything on the floor so you know what you're dealing with there 2. Sort the floor stuff into piles - things to wash, things to hang, things to put in drawers, things to get rid of 3. Hang the shirts you can see until you run out of hangers 4. Pull everything off the shelf, put the things you can easily resolve on your bed and put the hard stuff back on the shelf
Oooh! closet organizing is my unending task! My suggestion is to gather up everything not a hanger into one big pile. If you have energy after that, sort out tops, bottoms, dresses/1 pieces, and accessories. You can stop after step 1 and get points, but if you continue, count every step as a points multiplier! The smaller and smaller you break down your piles, the more and more points you get!
Things were already in a couple semi-organized piles (the clean laundry basket and dresser) so I started hanging things up! I finished the laundry basket. Points for me! 🎉🎉
SO MANY POINTS FOR YOU! Seriously, be proud of your progress!
I need to finish a blog post. I should have posted it 2 weeks ago. I’ve written it but it’s still way too short and I hate what I have so far. 😬
Put the post into chatgpt and ask it to offer suggestions to improve it based on your goals for the post. Should help up get unstuck regardless of the feedback
Oh, this is something I'm kinda good at! So, don't worry about writing anything readable. Turn on your bullet points in your document, and start typing up just bits. Write as if you're telling someone else a summary of something you read, rather than something you'd read out loud to someone. So, let's say a blog post was like, "How I prepared my lunch today." Skip all the flowery language and gorgeous formatting and write out something like, * "gather some leftovers from yesterday" * "Thawed bacon in a bowl of water for half an hour" * "Boiled some eggs; used one of those egg steamer things so I didn't have to babysit the eggs" * "Used the waiting time to play with my cat" * "Dumped the eggs into some cold water (maybe make a joke about the sound the egg steamer makes. Egg screamer, amirite?)" Just, word dump all over that document! Split off into a random paragraph tangent on ideas or worries you have. Maybe it a big messy word pile. And tomorrow, you can start to organize things, and elaborate the bullet points you want to highlight. And hey -- good luck. Writing stuff can be hard. I'm only able to prep for my D&D campaign because of my weekly deadline!
I have taken a 2 room deal of interior designing website Havenly, and have been postponing sharing my requirements with them for almost 8 months now. I need to share my expectations, pics of rooms, dimensions, some ideas and pics of what I like and the fear of getting it wrong…phew!
Oh, this sounds so interesting! Let's start with the easiest task: can you take photos of the rooms today? Another fun one is to make a pinterest board of ideas you like. but don't do it for more than 2 hours -- make sure you build in a break point so you're not up till 3am like I can be sometimes when it comes to interior decorating stuff!
Oh just saw your message, it’s getting a bit dark now. Tomorrow! 🫣🙈
Whenever is best for you! Taking photos is hard when it’s dark, it’s true!
Life
Hey, you get an average lifespan (in days) worth of points. Thank you for showing up to life and just trying. You're doing a good job staying alive!
This is beautiful ❤️
word
You’re great :)
Thank you! YOU are great, too!
Weight loss.
Oh, this one is a toughie for sure. I think, let's break this down to just food. If you can eat 3 reasonable meals (for you) plus 2 snacks each day, you get 1800 points. For every cup of water you drink instead of soda (flavored water counts!) you get another 8 points. Before you tackle eating 'healthy,' we should get you eating proper amounts. ADHD is tricky in that we will forget to eat and eat waaaay too much in one meal (wrecking our metabolism) or we eat way too little, or we eat a lot for the dopamines. Let's do 2 snacks (sugary snacks are okay to start out with) and 3 meals with at least 1 protein and 1 side. Drink lots of water, too; I find I crave sugar when I'm actually thirsty!
I need to change one of the cat litter boxes out. I’ve got two and I did one and now my brain considers the other a non priority. But it needs to be done!
Oh! Hey! get a purrmillion amount of points for having done that first box! For this second box, maybe you can make it a bonus level challenge? "I'm going to do this box in under 10 minutes!" Heck, if this box *isn't* a priority (I know, it is, but let's work with your brain here) let's do just the first part -- taking out the dirty litter. Turn it upside down or leave it outside/in the garage/in the bathroom so you cat doesn't use an empty box. When you're ready, give the thing a scrub later on and fill it with the good sand. Then give your cat a treat -- that's for me, because I love cats and got two of my own, haha.
Organizing my closet l so I can move furniture around between it and my bedroom, so I can finally paint and decorate my bedroom.
ohmigosh, do you know how refreshing that fresh coat of paint's going to be? I am so excited for you! I spent the past couple of weeks redoing my office, just taking my time with little parts of it. First was to tidy my desks, then clear off my walking treadmill, then restyle many of my shelves. I installed a new pegboard on my second desk and it is so aesthetic. The dopamine my office gives me now! That's gonna be you when your room is all done! It might take a long time but that's absolutely okay. Do what fits into your spoons that day. You don't even have to do something every day, but if you do, know that even a tiny thing is progress. To get points, here's some ideas from me to try out: * Make an action plan list. (I love a good list.) The way I make my lists is I first write the big stuff down, then I break those down into smaller tasks, than even smaller, than even smaller! then I'll do one of those small groups of tasks. for example, I have a Kallax from ikea (cube shelving) and rather than list off "reorganize my kallax," I had it so that each cube + the top were separate items. I would do one or two each day. I still have 2 I have to tackle. * Don't worry about starting today if you gotta make the list. (If you do make it, let me know how many items are on it! times that by 10 and that's your point total for the list making!) * If you got a list, and it's all broken down, start with the smallest thing, and that'll be a subcategory of your closet. I always start with gathering all my floor clothes and putting them in a pile. Then, I break that pile down into tops, bottoms, and accessories. THEN, I break the tops into loungewear, PJs, and outside clothes, do the same with bottoms, etc. Each one of these things is ONE BIG TASK -- yes, making piles is a task! -- so go at your own pace. Piles and the easiest to sort through!
I need to tidy up ahead of the cleaners, and fold three baskets of laundry and hang one up. Oh, and have dinner. Nearly 830pm here 😬 haven’t put it off for ages but it must be done tonight 😭
Oh, you're playing on hard mode! Each laundry basket you do is a whole washing machine's worth of points. For tidying, you only have to start the task, so the cleaner knows what to do -- touch those counters, make those piles! And good luck! You've got a challenge ahead of you, but you're going to conquer this boss and get SO many level ups for it!
I need to land a job.
Now, that's actually not something I can award points over, because it's not totally in your control. I went through a few years of joblessness. Nearly lost it all. It was a very hard few years, and the scars remain; I am so, so sorry you're going through something like that too, whether it's been a week or a decade. Let's start with something really small that I *can* give you points for: What kind of stuff do you want to do? Do you have certifications for it, or do you need them, or would they be a nice to have? Do you have interviews lined up, or is it resume season?
You are so sweet! Thank you so much for this reminder, I also just realized how tough I was on myself. ❤️❤️❤️ We can start small like, sending my resume for review to my university career center. 😊
Yes, yes, yes! That's a wonderful idea. Send that bad boy off to a review. In the mean time, let's also get you thinking about your self-care. That went in the toilet for me when I was struggling to find work because I felt like I did not deserve it. Do me a favor and take some time today to just do something you enjoy. Maybe a video game, or a movie on stream, or binge a show. You deserve leisure and comfort. Job hunting is a job all on its own. Once you get your review done and the fixes implemented, focus on applying for at least 3 jobs a day, even if it's not a job that fits perfectly with what you've studied (but IS a job that is interesting to you!) You'll have to write cover letters for each one, and many websites have annoying processes where you have to fill out all the information already on your resume, so 3 jobs per day is a good goal. Make sure to eat a lunch, and to step outside for some sunshine, and if you have it in you, search for companies that do things you're interested in and see if they have job openings that might align with your skill set. Take lots of breaks. Drink water, stretch, and when you feel anxious about your future, write it out so that it's not circling your head. (I write out posts on reddit and then don't send them. It really helps me out when I'm anxious or sad.) And remember: your struggle to find work is not a reflection on you, your skill, your worth, any of it. The job market is tough right now and with AI and a bunch of other stuff being implemented into the hiring process, it's hard to be recognized for all the amazing stuff we bring with us into new roles. Keep your chin up, and be proud of yourself because omg look at you! You're trying your best and it's amazing! You get a whole career's worth of points while you do this! I'm rooting for you, and this might be weird but, do stay in touch -- once you get that job, I wanna know!
You are so sweet oh my goodness. I’m saving this and reminding myself of it every day. Thank you so much, I will certainly keep in touch. 🥺❤️
Get a drivers licence.
I'm 37, and I still don't have mine, haha! But hey, let's start with studying! If you study for 30 minutes tomorrow, you'll earn a fast-and-furious amount of points!
My whole bedroom is a disaster, I need to get rid of 90% of my clothing, I can’t physically walk around my space or use the room in any functional way whatsoever. I want it clear and then I want it deep cleaned.
Ooooh, this chore is SO hard and yet so satisfying when it's all done. When I was in my early 20s, the way I cleaned my room was by grabbing a broom and pushing everything on the floor into one pile. Then I'd sit by the pile with a trash bag, a hamper, and a couple of baskets (or bin lids) and I'd sort the pile. Garbage, clothing items, books, trinkets, etc. Then I'd tackle each pile as I had the time and spoons over the next few days. These days I kinda just pick 1 thing to do and do it. So, that might be pick up all my clothes and put them in a pile to sort later (one day... lol). Sometimes that's grabbing all the papers I need to either store or shred and sorting them into said stacks. Or sometimes I pick one corner of a space to tidy. Like in my office, it'll be, tidy the work desk. tidy the standing desk. clear off the treadmill. handle half the pile by the bookshelves. So, that's what I'm going to recommend to you! Let's pick TWO Things for you to do for your room. The first one will be to pick up any loose clothing that isn't put away -- doesn't matter if it's clean, dirty, or for donation -- and put it in a hamper or in a big pile out of the way. The second task will be to pick out 1 thing in your room to tidy: maybe that's gathering up all the trash you can *easily see* in a 5 minute time frame. That's all; doesn't have to be all the trash, just the trash you can see, and just for 10 minutes. If you can do this some time this week, you'll gain a whole closetful of points! And if you do this another week, you'll still get those points! But the sooner you're able to tackle this and your 10 minute challenge, the sooner you get the points, and it'll feel pretty good!
I DONATED THREE FULL GARBAGE BAGS OF CLOTHES TO THE OP SHOP TODAY!!! Tomorrow I want to clean my bath/shower area and get my outfits ready for the weekend.
Holy cow! THREE BAGS? that's huge! omg!! you inspired me -- I was waffling on attending a work meeting that was after hours today, and despite not feeling well and wanting to rest, I stuck it out and gave myself some extra points. ALSO, I chopped up 3 sweet potatoes, a chore I usually ask my partner to do because those suckers are SO HARD TO CHOP! Be proud of you; you did awesome today. You get 3 bags full of points! You can so totally tackle that shower tomorrow, and when you do, give yourself a mr. bubbles-worth amount of points! (Also, I love the idea of preparing clothes for the weekend?? Like, what a lifehack?? that way you don't gotta think about it when you're all groggy from waking up??? I do that sometimes when I have a big day ahead of me, but I've never considered doing it for a whole weekend!)
LPT for cutting sweet potatoes! Place the knife on top and gently press down, then *roll the potato back and forth underneath the knife*. So much easier!
Oh my goodness, thank you. I’ll try this next time!
I need to clean the downstairs. It's full of stuff I cleaned out of my brother's house, clothes that don't fit, and clean out ofy husband's office. It's a disaster.
Oof, that's a big one! Let's start with breaking down this giant task into a hundred little ones. The great thing about a hundred little tasks is that even if you only did 1 thing a day, you'd get everything reasonable before winter. Which is a huge accomplishment! I'm not sure what you have downstairs, but if you break everything down into these little tasks -- maybe it's gather up all the books, for example -- things will feel a little more manageable, just not automatic. On the books analogy: say you have books from your brother's house, books in your husband's office, and books of your own that don't live on a shelf. you can break this down into smaller tasks too: * gather all the books into stacks/a pile. That's it, that's a whole task. You can just do that for a day. * Sort the books: donate, toss, keep. that's all you gotta do that day! that's a big one, too; lots of little decisions, lots of touching dusty and dry things, etc. I'd be pooped after, personally! * decide where the books you want to keep *can* live. not where they'll live, don't sort them that way yet. Just, what space can they occupy? Do some light prep for that, whatever you're comfortable with. * Sort the books in the way you prefer. This might take a few days at about half an hour each; don't stress if you can't get through it all at once. * Each shelf they go to live is its own task. Obviously, books might not take a week to get through. Or they might take you a lot longer. It's okay either way! And you can take multiple tasks *if you are feeling okay to do it.* Now, this is just an analogy, you might not have any books to sort, but that principle is there. A tip: it helps me a lot to write down the things I did that day, especially with a big project. It feels a little like adding my initials after getting on the scoreboard of a game I played, haha! And I get to look at the list of things I did, and know that even if I feel like I did nothing all week, I *at least gathered the books into a pile*. And it feels good! The most important thing about this project is to just know that *showing up counts*. You don't need to complete anything that day, you just need to show up and do *one task*, and you only gotta do that on the days you *feel like you can*. It took me 2 weeks to clean up my office (and I still have 2 piles of stuff to sort) and I did not show up to do it every day, but I did do little tasks when I felt like I could do them. It helped me to think about it like a little game: if I could find a home for *these three things on the floor,* I could write that down and get my points! Friend, you get a number of points equal to a 6 ft stack of books, just for thinking about the task! If you need help making a list to make this endeavor into a bunch of smaller tasks, I can write out how I do it. Good luck!
This week, it’s been washing my hair.
Oof, yeah, I know that feeling. Showering is easy for me *when I am in the shower*, but the getting into the shower is a real pain. Start out in maintenance mode; if it's just washing your hair that's the struggle, maybe rinse your scalp real well. That's the important part, because you don't want to get any lumps and stuff. I find when I'm having a hard time showering, if I set up the bathroom for a shower the night before (I shower in the morning), my brain sets it as a priority when I wake up. Sometimes I buy a nice hair mask and I'll use it in the evening, then shower then and play video games in bed while my hair dries. I have to prepare myself for this a day or two in advance though, so I know to anticipate it. Once you get your hair all clean, you get a head and shoulders worth of points! Then you don't have to worry about washing your hair again for a little while!
I need to clean my bathroom. Been putting it off for ages.
Oh, this is one of those tasks that's GREAT for a breakdown. So you have to * clean your sink * clean your counters * wipe down the mirror * organize your medicine cabinet * clean out your brush * clean the toilet * clean the tub/shower * by emptying it of stuff * tossing the curtain in the wash * sudsing everything up * rinsing everything out * putting all the stuff back * hanging up the curtain * take out the rugs * sweep the floor * mop the floor * put all the rugs back SO, with that list, I'd say pick out like, 2 things. maybe your sink and mirror? give yourself a timer of maybe 3 minutes! if you can get it done, you get a bottle-of-Mr-Bubbles-worth of points! and if you get it done in under 3 minutes, you get an XL bottle of points!
Cleaned the tub, washed the towels and washed all my kid’s clothes that were on the floor. Thank you for the motivation. Round 2 tomorrow!
You did AMAZING yesterday! That was even more stuff then I thought to do. Also, cleaning the tub is no joke -- you gotta take stuff out, wipe it down, then be all hunched over for a while as you scrub, then you have to put it all back. That's loads of steps! And the towels would be a gather, wash, dry situation. You did a LOT yesterday. So, have a LOT of points! Good luck today!
Renew my car tag at the DMV. My tag is from 2021. 🤪😬 I think the only way I get away with it is my tag is a veterans tag and I have a license plate frame.
Oh! Do you have to set up an appointment, or just drop in and wait? Our local DMV is the weirdest place; it's bright orange inside, they have televisions going AND the radio, and everyone is laughing and joking. It's overstimulating but also quite fun; I'm so used to the boring and sad DMVs that I was taken aback, haha.
Idk. But I never hear of DMV appointments. I also don't know if I should register my car in Georgia or Florida. We're military. We live in Florida and my tag is from GA. I don't have a Georgia address. I'm confused
Oh! That is confusing. How about this for your points-task: digging for info. Maybe there is a subreddit you can ask (a military subreddit maybe?) or a neighbor, or maybe you can check the DMV website. Any avenue you explore, you get a 10-miles-worth of points! It's okay if you don't get the answer. What's important is that you showed up and gave it a shot.
Cleaning my kitchen. I've manged to do pieces of it but I want to do the whole thing
Pieces is the way to go. You're doing great! Rather than tackle the kitchen all at once, why not make a week of it? Monday is a deep clean of the cabinets, Tuesday is a deep clean of the fridge. Wednesday is a deep clean of the counters, and thursday is the toaster oven, the pressure cooker, etc. Friday is your stove top and Saturday is a sweep and mop. Oh, you don't have to do things in this order, this is just an example! You'll notice I said nothing of the dishes. These are a sisyphean task. they are unending. Dishes can be your mini game -- do some dishes each day, doesn't have to be all of them, for bonus points. You get a kitchen-in-pieces amount of points for your progress, and even more as you continue!
This is actually a good idea. Thank you. Also my husband heard me talking about your idea and he got real quiet. That's how he's been cleaning the kitchen and now he wants to get tested (among other symptoms).
Please tell your husband that I wish him luck! I cried when I got my diagnosis, even though I was sure I had it beforehand. But knowing (as I'm sure you know too) is so good for us, because we can learn about it and plan for it and around it. And tell him his kitchen participation doubles y'all's points!
Thank you so much! I shall pass that on. Hugs to you. Getting diagnosed is so validating!
feeding myself and my son he eats anything but nothing ever sounds appeasing and i end up not eating and then being really mean and irritable at bedtime. not the mom vibes im going for! recently diagnosed in the past year and pretty sure it's my medication suppressing my appetite
It's not the meds that do it to me, it's just plain ol' ADHD. I get the hangry too. Before I was diagnosed, my partner noticed a pattern and would start bringing snacks to my work desk (I WFH) whenever I started getting grouchy. I never noticed this as a thing for me till then! Since you're not feeling hunger, or dopamine from eating, then we need to get you your dopamine another way. First, your food situation! Breakfast used to be my main dopamine boost for the morning, but vyvanse undid that, and now breakfast is kinda hard. What I ended up doing is stocking my fridge, freezer, and pantry with grab and go minimeals and low/no effort food. I decided that it does not need to be healthy at this stage because what I'm trying to do is build an eating habit, and worrying about sodium/sugar/etc will make it harder to do this consistently. Small frozen pizzas, breakfast sandwiches, yogurts galore, and those grown up lunchable meals (with the nuts and berries and meats and crackers?) are good starts. While you're making your son his meal, you can pop a frozen pizza in the toaster oven, or down a yogurt while standing in the kitchen, or make yourself some toast and jam. this won't replace proper meals, but it'll help to fuel you enough so that you've got the physical and mental resilience to be closer to the you that you wanna be around him. It's not for flavor and it's not to satiate hunger, it's to put fuel in your body! Fuel makes you go places! So even if you are meh about the idea of eating a yogurt while your son's chicken nuggets cook, you can eat the yogurt anyway, so that you can have the boost you need! Once you get into these eating habits, you can expand into making yourself healthier options that you can pop in the fridge for later. For every bite that you chew, get 10 points!
It's not the meds that do it to me, it's just plain ol' ADHD. I get the hangry too. Before I was diagnosed, my partner noticed a pattern and would start bringing snacks to my work desk (I WFH) whenever I started getting grouchy. I never noticed this as a thing for me till then! Since you're not feeling hunger, or dopamine from eating, then we need to get you your dopamine another way. First, your food situation! Breakfast used to be my main dopamine boost for the morning, but vyvanse undid that, and now breakfast is kinda hard. What I ended up doing is stocking my fridge, freezer, and pantry with grab and go minimeals and low/no effort food. I decided that it does not need to be healthy at this stage because what I'm trying to do is build an eating habit, and worrying about sodium/sugar/etc will make it harder to do this consistently. Small frozen pizzas, breakfast sandwiches, yogurts galore, and those grown up lunchable meals (with the nuts and berries and meats and crackers?) are good starts. While you're making your son his meal, you can pop a frozen pizza in the toaster oven, or down a yogurt while standing in the kitchen, or make yourself some toast and jam. this won't replace proper meals, but it'll help to fuel you enough so that you've got the physical and mental resilience to be closer to the you that you wanna be around him. It's not for flavor and it's not to satiate hunger, it's to put fuel in your body! Fuel makes you go places! So even if you are meh about the idea of eating a yogurt while your son's chicken nuggets cook, you can eat the yogurt anyway, so that you can have the boost you need! Once you get into these eating habits, you can expand into making yourself healthier options that you can pop in the fridge for later. For every bite that you chew, get 10 points!
I need to read, answer, and act on a gazillion emails. I'm dreading it because they all give me negative emotions (having lot of issues at work). They feel so painful to do, that I want to listen to podcasts while doing them, but that's too much stimulus. I should be on the computer in ten min, but am still in bed, and haven't showered 🤷♀️
Yeah, I can't listen to podcasts while reading. that's too many voices I need to sort in my head. Heck, if I have to do a task that requires a lot of me thinking things through, I have to turn off my music sometimes! Luckily, this is a task that is easy to break down into constructive goals. First, you'll need a pad of paper. Create two columns; the first will be skinny and the other one wide. In column 1, you're going to log your 'email runs' and the date/time you did them. In the second column, you're going to write down any "action items" these emails need you to do that don't involve just replying to the email. (For example, an email might say "you need to log into this security software for work and read the paperwork.") You can reference what email it is in these notes so you can go back to it. Now, the game: Pick 30 minutes some time today and make it a goal to sort through as many emails as you're able to in that 30 minutes. You can also do this in 2 fifteen minute chunks today. Unless there is a deadline attached to it, the action items you write down can wait till tomorrow (unless you feel pumped to do them today!) For now, you're focusing on just sorting through the emails, and *only* what you can manage in the time span you've allotted. (Again, if you feel you can do more, do it! But your obligation to yourself is just that time frame, everything else is bonus points.) When you log your email runs, you're going to do a tick mark for every email you do. (You know, like the four tick marks with the fifth drawn over it to signify a group of five?) This, times 10, is going to be your point total whenever you do this task. Also, you are brave! My email is a disaster. I try to go through it every few months to delete junk mail but I can never get on top of it. At work, my email is only a little bit better, but I beg others to just direct message me what they want to say because oof, email is *hard*.
My Finances (all kinds - from important payments to stopping and changing subscribtions. I have been avoiding for months and am so scared to open the letters and to let the realisation sink in on me how much money i could have saved by changing my phone-subsribtion for example years earlier. (also i made some bad financiel mistakes in the last 15 years that kinda traumatized me [😭](https://emojipedia.org/loudly-crying-face))
I don't think this is an easy mindset to adopt at all, but have you considered this: if you open some of those letters *now*, you'll be saving *future you* money! Past you? She's doing the best she can with the spoons she has. Maybe that means she's paid a bit of ADHD tax on subscriptions she no longer uses. (I went a whole year paying for a Disney Plus subscription *twice a month* and didn't realize it! I can relate!) What's important isn't your inability to do something yesterday, it's your ability to do that thing today. First, get a whole thank-you worth of points because you reminded me I have a subscription I keep forgetting to cancel that I never use and takes a small chunk out of my account every year. I really need to try to use it this year, and remember to cancel it! Second, if you can log in to ONE service you are paying for but not using and cancel that service today, you get as many points as the money you will be saving next month, if that $$ was in pennies. (So $8 becomes 800 points!)