Now let's be clear here, having a need to improve and actually going through the steps to do so are VERY different. Often times ADHDers are well aware of what it is they should do to make a change or get something done, but the act of DOING is quite difficult. Executive dysfunction plays a large part in why that is the case.
As you begin to make any movement towards your goals, it is important to build momentum to ensure that the change continues to happen. Here are a few ways to get started!
Lower the bar, seriously...
Ask yourself, have I ever had my time and day structured? Does that seem like something that by itself is going to take some getting used to?
At the most fundamental level, the answer is almost always, YES. Many people have only experienced structured time in school or at work. It is a whole different ball game to structure your own time. That is what Brili helps you do, it is a great tool for just that, when used properly.
Start by taking what you already do, video games, watching TV etc. even if it is the thing that you think is bad, and structure it with time. Just like it takes time to build habits, it takes time to get rid of them as well.
Learn to put value to your time...
Once you develop the knowledge of how much time you spend on an activity, you can begin to weigh it's value and change that habit.
"I know I play video games for two hours everyday, that needs to change!". Okay, well now, you can cut back and take the extra 30 or 45 mins you've gained by not playing video games to spend doing something else.
That extra time could be spent in-part by doing a simple value adding activity like cleaning your room, doing laundry or spending time on personal hygiene. Choosing one of those activities as well as another leisure activity to pair with it will, over time, show you just how valuable even 30 minutes can truly be.
View the 14 to 16 hours you spend awake as a special allowance you get everyday. You choose (most of the time) what you can spend it on, as you do this more and more, you will start to make smarter investments.
Feel the change...
Sometimes it is difficult to see the benefits of something until you fall out of it again and return to how life was before. Take care and visualize the change you experience in your mood, attitude and relationships as you begin to structure your time.
Brili has a built in way to view your past achievements, routines completed and we plan to build out this "visualizing success" feature, but that doesn't mean you can't do somethings for yourself to make your improvements easier to see!
Relating back to our accountability blog, go to that person you told Brili about and ask what improvements they've seen in you.
Take a few moments and think on it. Ideally, you could keep a journal, but that is a change that is pretty tricky to keep consistent. Just think on it and ask yourself, "do I feel even a little better than I did?". Do that at least once a week and you will begin to notice more of the smaller changes within yourself.
Look through the routines you've been getting done over that last day, week or month. Look at ALL the tasks you've completed...
ask yourself first, "would these have gotten done before?"...
and second "am I ready to add a few more things that I have always wanted to try?".
You could even add this as a routine in Brili, scheduled for once a week!
Accept imperfection...
As we get more and more things done regularly, we tend to think too much on the how we are getting those things done and can get ourselves into a trick situation, mentally, when we start to consider, is this even worth it? Am I even good at this? Am I even worth this?
The answer is yes, yes, yes and oh yeah YES, but that can get fogged over with thinking a little too critically and not allowing yourself space to fail or fumble. Obviously, there is no over night cure for putting yourself down, but the more acceptance you can build for the errors you might make, the closer you are to building more healthy habits.
In the great words of Hannah Montana, "nobody's perfect" and that is a fact.