The Essentails Series #3 - The Productivity Hack You’re Missing: Mastering Daily Reviews
Why Read This?
People with ADHD need a calendar and task list to manage their ideas and dates, along with a regular routine to review them to avoid the "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" phenomenon.
What will you get from reading this?
Suggestions and ideas for how to develop your own successful habit for reviewing your calendar and your todo list.
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While having a reliable calendar and to-do list can be incredibly helpful for the ADHD Brain, the real challenge lies in developing a consistent routine to review these tools. Without regular check-ins, important dates may slip through the cracks, appointments may be missed, and tasks can pile up. So, how can you create a successful habit of reviewing your calendar and to-do list? This article will guide you through practical strategies, drawing on insights from clients who have found success.
You’ve hopefully already read Parts One (On Calendars) and Two (on ToDo Lists) of this series and have set up your calendar and to-do list. However, it’s crucial not to stop there. The final piece of the puzzle is to establish a routine for reviewing these tools regularly. Without this, “out of sight, out of mind” can creep in and you risk returning to the same cycle of missed appointments and uncompleted tasks.
Most of my clients find it essential to have some kind of regular daily review either the day before or the morning of, so as to have the most effective day possible. This review of the day to come allows you to mentally prepare for the day, create realistic expectations for the day and identify areas of focus.
Clients who integrate this habit into their lives comment on feeling more clear, focused and in control of their days.
Building a Routine for a Daily Review
As for how or when you do this regular review, there is no steadfast rule of thumb for the best time to do this review. Some clients like to do it as they are ending their workday, others like to do it at home after everyone has gone to bed, other clients enjoy starting their day with a cup of coffee and a review. One client would do it in their car, parked in their garage, after work, but before they entered the house. What is important is that you are able to build it into your day in a reliable way. Some ways my clients create this habit are:
Habit Stacking - The idea here is to build this review around an activity you already do on a regular basis. Look for something you already do regularly and see if you can add this review to that already established habit.
Alarms - If alarms work for you, setting an alarm to remind you to do your daily review is an easy solution.
Physical reminders - This can be a post-it on your computer to remind you to do your daily review first thing in the morning or putting your day planner in front of your computer screen to remind you to look at it first.
Accountability Buddies - Some people do best via community and find a quick zoom call with an accountability buddy, a fast pow-wow with a coworker or a short focusmate session does the job.
I’m Ready for My Daily Review.
Now What?
Look At Your Calendar
Your daily review is a time to look at your calendar. This is an opportunity to get a feel for your day. Is it crammed with meetings or do you have chunks of time to get some desk work done? Knowing this can help you start framing your personal expectations for your day. You can’t expect to create your entire power point presentation the same day you are booked with back to back appointments. This is also a great time to catch the double-bookings before they happen, notice if you haven’t left enough time between appointments and catch any other “problems” with your schedule before they become problems.
Look At Your ToDo List
This is also the time to look at your task list. What tasks must be done today? When will you do them? Is it helpful for you to timeblock those tasks into your calendar? Is your list of tasks realistic to the amount of time you have available? Can you get ahead on some work for a long term project today?
For some people this is a quick review of both calendar and task list, but for most of my clients they need a little bit more. Some clients need to clean up hiccups they suddenly notice in their day (double-bookings, perhaps or not allowing enough time to get from the office to the doctors appointment), some clients will want to transfer their tasks into their calendar so everything is in one place they will use that one screen to guide the rest of their day. Some clients will transfer their day from their electronic screen onto a pad of paper or notebook that will travel with them for the rest of the day. I have one client who uses “The Round Method”, which displays the day in a circular fashion.
Things to Conside
As you develop your routine, ask yourself:
- “What is the best time of day for me to review my calendar and task list?” Identify when you feel most focused and least distracted.
- “What do I want to know when I review my calendar and task list?” You are doing a daily review so you can plan your day. Consider the key information you need to help you stay organized and on track.
-”How much of my Todo List do I really want to look at Daily?” If your todo list includes everything including your trip next year to the Bahamas, do you really want or need to look at that on a daily basis? Some clients create filtering systems so they can only see the tasks that need a regular review while planning other times for larger list reviews (i.e. monthly, quarterly & annual reviews).
- “Am I experiencing hiccups?” If you encounter obstacles during your reviews, ask yourself: what’s the easiest action I can take to begin to resolve this issue? Whether it’s simplifying your calendar or breaking down tasks, keep experimenting with solutions until you find one that work for you.
You may already know exactly which of the systems described above match your needs or you may need to experiment with your daily review system like you experimented with picking a calendar system or task management system. That’s fine.
The goal is to find something that allows you to feel prepared for the day.
(and once you do, please share it with me!)