5 quick tips for getting organized as a business owner with ADHD

Getting organized and knowing your priorities are crucial when running a business. However for someone with ADHD, if you're trying to get organized using recommendations that are meant for neurotypical people, you may start to doubt your own abilities. At the very least you might feel frustrated at all the extra work that getting organized appears to require.

Recognizing your innate abilities as a person with ADHD will help you to tackle the project with confidence and hope for the anticipated results. Once the organizing is completed, your company will run more efficiently saving you time in the long run. This is probably why you want to take on this project to start with.

A few years ago I worked with a small psychotherapy practice. During the time that I worked for them, I implemented more efficient billing procedures, created systems for addressing the needs of the clients and larger payers, and made sure that important reporting was always turned in on time. At one point one of the owners said "I don't know how you remember all of these things." I walked away from that conversation with imposter syndrome. What is didn't tell him is that I have ADHD and I thought "the only way I remember stuff is because it is written down." But it wasn't just written down, I had taken the time to create a system of spreadsheets to stay on top of my daily tasks based on what needed to be done at various times of the month or year. I knew I would forget to get an important task completed on time if I didn't have a system that pointed me to what needed to be done each day. All I had to remember was to look at the master spreadsheet.

If you want to have this kind of organization and are struggling to get started, remember that the biggest enemy you have preventing you from getting this done is inevitable sense of overwhelm. It is a common companion for those of us with ADHD. You may recognize that getting the business to where you want it to be will involve touching on a lot of if not most of the aspects of your business. That can feel overwhelming to anyone, but especially to the ADHD mind that knows full well all the details that are involved, even if you can't remember them one at a time to get to them.

Let's look at some ways that the ADHD brain can be used to make the process easier and have some fun in the process!!

Getting started right...

My husbands most hated phrase is "you can do this." At the risk of offending him, you really CAN do this. I can tell you have it in you. I know because you have read this article to this point. If you really want it, you can accomplish structuring your business in a pleasing and efficient way. Have a clear picture in your mind of the end results and how great you will feel when you get there, then try to keep that feeling while you are in the middle of the process.

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Tip #1: Recognize what motivates you.

Take a few minutes and write down all the tasks that you enjoy. What do you look forward to doing? What parts of your work day seem to fly by? What are you doing when you are feeling "in the zone"? Think about what motivated you to get into business in the first place.

It is important to know what activities are going to be motivating for you to do. List out as many of them as you can think of. When your list is complete, see if you can come up with a few more. The items on this list should be things that give you energy and make you excited about your business.

As a person with ADHD it's important to have some of these activities imbedded into your organizing plan, but it is also important to recognize that these activities can take over and prevent you from getting to the things that are not as much fun. There are going to be mundane parts of this process. Don't let them all pile up for the very end. This is how projects get left undone. Make sure to plan on a good mix of the fun and boring tasks for each step of the way.

Tip #2: Pinpoint one area at a time to work on.

There are lots of aspects of your business that could benefit from more organization. Be careful not to expect yourself to tackle all of them at the same time. Pick a specific area of your business, preferably the area that is bothering you the most right now, and give it a name. It can be a nonsense name. It can be a descriptive name. Get creative if you feel like it, but get really clear on what you are tackling specifically.

Create an outline of all the things that need to be done in order to feel really good about your final results. Then continue to breakdown each of those parts until you have it in small manageable tasks.

Next, decide what you can delegate to someone else and what you have to do yourself. Delegate what you need to first so you know what you must do. Then schedule time to work on each of the tasks. The best results will come if you have a realistic yet slightly challenging deadline. When scheduling your smaller tasks, or milestones, put them into your calendar with the deadline in mind. Be realistic and hold yourself accountable. They are not mutually exclusive. Once you have scheduled what will get done on which date, it's time to get started.

Tip #3: Set a timer

Before each scheduled session, decide how much time you can and would like to and think that this task should take. Projects can expand to the amount of time you allow for it. Don't let it take over, and set yourself up for another incomplete task. Set a timer for yourself.

My ADHD mind can take way too much time to do small tasks if I let it. When facing indecision about where to put something or what to name a file I can get distracted and not actually finish the task. You already have the process broken into manageable tasks, to help yourself stay on task, set a timer and be aware that when the time goes off, you will stop and move onto something else, even if you're not finished. Often if you are stuck on decision making and not able to complete the task, walking away will allow your brain to clear the chatter and start fresh during the next session you have scheduled to work on the thing you had to walk away from.

If there are any tasks that are more intricate and require creativity or extra energy, plan the extra time and put it during a time of day when you traditionally have more energy and are most likely to fall into a hyper focus mode. This is a time that you may want to set aside a larger block of time for.

Tip #4: Make a punch list

One of the struggles for people with ADHD is completing projects. In construction, when the project is almost done, and there are small details that need to be completed, those details can make a big difference in how others see the quality of the job. If you're anything like me, you will think of those details during random times of the day, not when you are in the middle of working the project. Make a quick list on your phone, on a pad of paper that is easy to reach, or anywhere else that is easy to get to. It can often be easier to make the punch list than it is to try to complete one thing on the list and hope you remember the other things that you want to do. Or you remember them as your working something else and leave the first thing undone to do the next thing. Putting them on a punch list should help to eliminate some of this.

Sometimes the items on a construction punch list are the "pretty" things. Your completed project should also be attractive so that you will find joy in keeping it organized. According to James Clear in his book Atomic Habits, rule number two for developing good habits, is that you have to "make it attractive." Consider all the possibilities you have when planning out your organization project. Even if your just organizing files on your computer desktop, you can change file colors or add graphics to your organization key or list. If your project doesn't call for change in aesthetics, you can always refer to rule number one, "Make it obvious."

Tip #5: Celebrate a job well done

Maybe you don't need a party to feel good about yourself. Looking at a beautifully organized space or simply knowing you have completed a large task may be reward enough. Take a few minutes to really recognize what you have accomplished. Maybe take yourself out to lunch. Buy a piece of art you've been wanting for the space. Take an extra long afternoon break and do something you love. It's your business. It's your reward. Make it meaningful to you.

Now that you have a plan, it is time to get to work. It will be work to get organized, but it will save you lots of daily business headaches once it is complete. With a little planning you will be pleased with your results and so grateful to yourself for tackling the job.