#tldr: put the pro back in procrastination

[bitter-sweet-coffee]

idk who needs to hear this but if you have adhd/think you have adhd or in any way relate, i have a bit of advice:

are you a procrastinator who can only do things when they're due? oh, i bet it's exhausting, right? well, if you manage to get accustomed to working ahead of time, lower your expectations. do it. lower them.

and you might be thinking "that's gonna make me not do anything!" well lower your productivity as much as you can while still doing something: more than the bare minimum you were doing before, and less than anything else.

"i want to finish tasks in advance of the due date because it'll be out of the way so i can relax instead of having to constantly work on stuff from when it's due to when i start" you won't relax or finish. okay, maybe you finish a task ahead of time, that's amazing progress! but it won't work that way if you've already cracked the code to working in advance.

not so fun fact: there is always going to be a future deadline that you can work ahead on, and worse cases where there are future deadlines you CANT work ahead on (like a test or scheduled social event)

if you get too used to working in advance you're going to fixate on every upcoming experience and get addicted to the "i was just productive" happy brain juice... which is not good either. it's actually very bad because there's nothing you can do to stop things from happening, because "things happening" and "stuff to do" is kinda integral to conscious existence and like... being alive and self aware and stuff!!!

what can you do about this? well, you can procrastinate a little, as a treat.

condition your productivity like a temporal render distance: let's say, 8 days forward? are there any outstanding deadlines besides the normal tasks you routinely do? okay, even if you're super busy there should only be a handful non-patterned deadlines (not process work, deadlines).

EXAMPLE: maybe you have an essay, a test, an extra work shift, and a coffee date with a friend you haven't seen in weeks over the next 8 days. cool, you only need to focus on the essay and ensure you do it before the extra work shift: maybe turn it into point-form outline and try typing it on your phone using comic sans and dark mode! a draft or outline is good enough, now carry on with your normal schedule and daily tasks (classes, work, chores, etc...). if the test is after your work shift, study for the test a little bit the night before and morning of— if you can and usually study anyways. i never study and i don't really do tests/exams that require studying if even do them so it's nbd if you don't do anything for the test! try and turn that essay outline/point form into full sentences now and if you have the energy, wait a couple hours/later that day and edit it! send it! bam, done. now you just have to go see your friend, and no matter where that is scheduled, ensure you aren't completing one of the tasks i mentioned within 24 hours before or after this social event! if you do it too close before, you'll be burnt out. if you do it too close after, you'll be thinking about it the whole time and not enjoy yourself. try not to think about the work shift and test since they suck and are out of your control, so treat yourself to a relaxing period or physical reward after each! now if you feel like it and have something due super far away, or suddenly get saddled with another task, you have a lot more wiggle room and relaxing time that can be replaced with work if needed/wanted WITHOUT breaking you.

^^^ don't think about the next week or future weeks or other shit that's coming up, just the 8 day render distance (or whatever distance you choose). once you near the end of this chunk, prep the next chunk in a similar way that doesn't force you to overload on work ASAP, but also not rush every single one and burn out! yeah you can also do an extra piece of a huge process-project like a final research paper or presentation that has deadlines throughout its completion duration, but it's not the priority. acceptable time will present itself when these things are meant to be worked on

TLDR: productivity is good until you fixate on it. be aware but not hyperaware! do stuff, but not too much stuff: less is better. be as unproductive as possible without it being a problem, and as you adjust to this, slowly increase the amount of productivity to manageable levels!

you can't suddenly whip yourself into working like people who don't default to executive disfunction, and it's actually more damaging to be very productive. you're gonna feel that "oh shit i gotta do work" sensation that you get while doing something last minute... all the time. it will destroy you and is NOT worth it! start small, not because you can't do more, but because you shouldn't just yet or maybe ever.

sincerely, someone who has been overworked and jacked up on the maximum legal concerta dosage for almost 2 months now that desperately needs a nap and some free time that doesn't involve crying and desperately trying to do fun things in vain because i'm too exhausted to enjoy hobbies :")

#bsc‼️ #long post #adhd things #semi vent #semi reliable advice #on: #executive disfunction #procrastination #toxic productivity #tldr: put the pro back in procrastination #do not work too much oh my god