Good Habits: The Key to Everything

Jump to:

As women with Attention Deficit Disorder, we have trouble getting things done.

And it isn’t just the things on our to do list, it’s everything.

People who do not have ADHD don’t understand that. They don’t understand why the simplest little things can trip us up. Why is it so hard to get into the shower in the morning? Or to remember to mail a bill? Or clean up that pile?

I guess the answer is that we have too much going on inside our heads. Everything is floating around in there, from “mail that bill” to “where did I leave my glasses” to “you have to be somewhere in TEN minutes”.

We have trouble prioritizing. It’s a part of our ADHD. In theory, deciding which is the most important thing to do is easy. In practice, not so much.

So what can we do to make our lives less crazy and more sane?

The answer lies in good habits.

It takes some work to make actions into habits. Well, good habits anyway. Bad habits seem to take hold on their own.

But the work is worth it in the end, because once you have a good habit in place, it’s really hard to break. A good habit means you do things that you need to do without thinking. And things that we can do without thinking are good things.

For instance, I rarely have to worry about my kitchen being dirty. I automatically unload the dishwasher first thing each morning and make sure everyone loads their dirty dishes throughout the day. Wiping down surfaces after dinner is a no brainer.

The biggest thing that you have to remember about developing good habits is that they take time and persistence. Patience.

To start, choose a good habit that you want to develop. Now choose a time to do it. Sometimes, the habit itself chooses the time for you, like my habit of unloading the dishwasher.

Now commit to doing it every day at around the same time for a month.

Yes, I said a month.

I can hear you now – “everybody says a good habit takes 21 days”.

Yes, but not everyone has ADHD. Just me and you and some other very special people.

So give yourself 30 days.

And just to put my money where my mouth is, I’m going to join you. You even get to watch.

Last night I bought a book called “31 Days to Build a Better Blog” by Darren Rowse.

My new habit is to follow the book’s lessons for the next 31 days, and part of that will be a new post every single day. Yes, even weekends and holidays.

So, what’s your new habit going to be?

Lacy Estelle

Lacy Estelle

Lacy Estelle is the writer of Lacyestelle.com and the Podcast host for An ADD Woman.

Read More
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest

2 Responses