Optimize Your Workflow: Mid-Year Review and Planning with ClickUp

How to conduct your own Mid-year review

If you’re feeling like you’re either way ahead or way behind on your goals, now is the perfect time to do a mid-year goals check-in.

A lot has probably changed since the beginning of the year, and this is your chance to reflect on what’s working, adjust what isn’t, and make sure you’re focusing on the important things to achieve the results you want.

I am aiming to write this guide to tell you exactly how to do a mid-year goals check-in, update and how you can do this in ClickUp so you can stay on track.

Why Should You Review Your Goals?

So why should you review your goals? Well, how do you know where you are going if you don’t know where you are headed? Things change, and goals that you may have had at the beginning of the year, or even a few weeks ago may It helps you see how much progress you’ve made, spot any problems, and adjust your plans so you can still achieve what you set out to do.

By checking in halfway through the year, you can make sure you’re on the right track and make any needed changes to keep moving forward.

As a multi-passionate person, I tend to have different ideas come up mid-quarter or week and find myself distracted by the idea and trying to fit it into my already packed week despite my knowing better. My mid-year checking really help refine the things that I’m doing, that they align with my life and direction.

What is a Mid-Year Goals Check-In?

So what is a mid-year goal check-in exactly? It’s a time to stop and look at how you’re doing with the goals you set at the beginning of the year or at any time you sat down to set goals.

Like a progress report, it’s a chance to look at what has worked, what challenges you have faced, what has changed and what you may need to update to align with your values and your life.

This, and a few touch-bases with your goals will help you stay focused and motivated for the rest of the year.

How Do I Do a Mid-Year Goals Check-In?

Alright, so let’s get down to the actionable parts of your Mid-year goal check in. Look at the steps below, grab a piece of paper, and start hashing out the key points of these steps by using the right questions to narrow down your focus.

Preparation for your Mid-year review

Set aside time:

The first thing you need to do is set aside time, preferably an afternoon or a couple of hours to do a mid-year review.

Maybe a Sunday afternoon when there’s not a lot going on, or a Friday.

You can use a Google Doc, or Notion, or even just a pen and paper journal to write out your answers to the questions below.

(I personally use ClickUp for this, see how here)

👉🏼 Grab my Mid-year goals ClickUp Doc template

Gather Your Data:

Collect all the info you need about your progress. This could include notes, project updates, and feedback from others.

Most of this should be in your project management or data management tool. If not, make sure you gather and/or have the software open that would contain the information you will need to measure your progress on these goals.

Get comfortable and set yourself up for success

Sometimes I tend to be super-distracted when trying to focus on a difficult subject. There are always so many things going on that it’s hard to get in that focus state I need. To counteract this, I go into my office, shut the door, and turn on ambient or some sort of music that won’t distract me from the task at hand.

Remember WHY you set your goals.

First, think back to why you set your goals in the first place. This helps you see if they’re still important to you.

Your goals at the beginning of the year, after the holiday rush and the end of 2023 were probably pretty lofty and motivated. I know they were for me. I had seen a dip in my revenue and knew that upping my social media and emails were on the agenda.

I didn’t know however the events that were to transpire at the beginning of 2023, or the opportunities that would present themselves.

So I needed to remember WHY I had those goals in the first place? How did they support my values? How achievable were they really in my life?

So take out that notebook or notewriting software and answer the questions below.

Why did I choose this goal?
What do I want to achieve?
Does this goal still fit with what I want for the future?

If necessary, think about the values that are important to you. (Check out this blog for more on values). The things that you are focusing on should not only align with those values, but bring you closer to what those values have brought to your life. For example, I have nature and family as two of my main values. Having time to go camping with them and spend time outdoors is a large reason why I do what I do.

Having a crystal clear understanding of your big WHY can keep you motivated. Picture your life in 5 or 10 years from now and think about how your goals fit into that vision.

Visualizing your ideal future can anchor your dreams and keep you focused on what matters.

Reflecting on your year’s goals so far

Next, look at the goals you set at the start of the year.

I bet you life (and your business) looks a bit different now than it did at the beginning of the year.

View the goals through the lens of the person you are now (not the one you were 6 months ago) and not only understand why you set those goals in the first place, but what you would change about those goals now, knowing what you know.

Time to do the work. Answer the questions below. Take as long as you need to really dig in and figure out if what you envisioned at the beginning of the year is really working, or needs to be changed.

Are these goals still important to me?
Have my priorities changed?
Do any of these goals no longer make sense for me?

Understanding how far you’ve come and where you’ve stalled helps unlock what is and isn’t working.

Once you have done this. Make sure to celebrate your small and big wins. If you have reached any of those goals, or if you have pivoted to a place where those goals are no longer relevant, celebrations are a great way to motivate yourself for future goals.. Celebrate the work you did do!

Reflect on What is and Isn’t Working

As an ADHD woman, I am extremely sensitive to things that aren’t working in my life. (Self-critical much?) Sometimes however, I am not able to see the forest through the trees.

Taking the time to reflect on my goals and really figure out and give myself meaningful feedback as to what is or isn’t working is key to knowing whether I am going the right direction.

The questions below have been extremely helpful to really figure out what is working in what I have been doing, and what isn’t.

Answer these key questions for yourself to figure out the obstacles that you may need to overcome.

Which strategies have been effective?
What obstacles have I encountered?
What can I do differently to overcome these challenges?

Think about areas where you may need to focus more or streamline your efforts. Are you working on too many things at once? How can you simplify and create a repeatable process? Look at how you spend your time and make sure your strategy aligns with your goals.

Let’s Reset.

Okay, so now you have looked at your past goals, reflected on what you did, or did not accomplish, and figure out what is and what is not working, it’s time to adjust those bad boys to be achievable and aligned with who you are what is actually going on in your life.

Because life happens, and that’s okay.

Based on your reflections, think how you need to adjust your goals, strategies and action items for the next 6 months.

Do you need to set new milestones for your goals? Like creating consistency with your blog posts (who me?)

Do you need to modify or scrap an existing goal to make room for another?

Has something happened that requires completely setting new goals?

Is there something that needs to be added to get you to that next level?

Ask yourself these questions and adjust those goals to match, being realistic about how achievable they are in the time provided.

For more on setting SMART goals, check out this blog post

Once you have set these, then it is time to really look at the projects you need to complete to help achieve them.

Here are some tips for getting your goals back on track if you have fallen off the path and still want to achieve them.

Tips for Getting Back on Track

Break Down Goals: Make big goals into smaller, manageable tasks.
Set Clear Milestones: Create clear, easy-to-reach milestones to help you see your progress.
Create a Support System: Surround yourself with supportive people.
Stay Accountable: Use ClickUp (or another Project Management tool) to set deadlines and reminders to keep you on track.

Sharing My Own Goal Review

I recently did my own mid-year goal review using ClickUp, and it was very helpful.

I set my goals by Year and Quarter to make sure they are achievable in the amount of time provided.

First, I reminded myself why I set my goals. This helped me see that my goals are still important.

When I looked at my progress, I saw that I had done well in some areas but needed to improve in others. By thinking about what worked and what didn’t, I was able to reset my goals and make a clear plan for the next six months. Using ClickUp made the whole process easier and more organized.

Remember, a mid-year review isn’t just about checking your progress. It’s also about learning and making changes. By taking the time to reflect and adjust, you set yourself up for success for the rest of the year.

Using ClickUp for planning out the rest of your year.

You can use almost any tool, down to a paper and notebook to do your planning. But if you read my blog, or my emails, you will know that I can’t really mention something business -related without talking about how to do it digitally.

I have shown you how to add your goals to Airtable in a previous blog.

— Check out Goals in Airtable here —

Now it’s time to do it in ClickUp. I use to do my goals in Airtable, but have recently tried to do it in ClickUp since that is where all the projects I create actually live. It is better to keep your goals in a place where you can see them and remind yourself.

Check out my video below.

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Looking to learn more?

Check out these blogs:

Simple Task and Project Management 👈

Planning your Week and Calendar Scheduling 👈

How to focus on the right things 👈

Optimize Your Workflow: Mid-Year Review and Planning with ClickUp Read More »

Favorite tools for digital organization with ADHD

Uncategorized / Ana Natkins

My favorite tools for ADHD organization

John J Ratey, the author of “Driven to Distraction” an awesome book about ADHD by someone with ADHD, said

“The modern world, with its speed and constant barrage of stimuli, can overwhelm anyone. For those with ADD, it can be especially difficult to filter out the noise and stay focused.”

Just look around you at all of the sources of noise, music, social media. All of the noises, bings, bongs and clicks specifically designed to get your attention and pull you in 50 different directions. Throw in some kids and all of their sports, music and social activities, let alone home maintenance and… gasp taking care of YOURSELF. (Speaking as someone who still hasn’t showered today and it’s almost 8PM).

The first thing I try to do is cut OUT all of the extra noise if I’m feeling especially overwhelmed and chaotic… but we have to realize that technology is part of our life, and it within itself is not a bad thing. In fact, there are many ways technology can actually help those of us who struggle with focus and organization.

This blog is meant to help you use technology as a tool and not a distraction for your adult adhd. I am sharing with you tech tools I personally use to organize my life and settle my nerves. The tools that I haven’t yet used have come to me highly recommended by people I know and trust and also are neuro-spicy… so I don’t come to this list lightly or without thought.

What Are the Best Tools for ADHD Organization?

Struggling with ADHD organization? Try these top tools: Google Sheets for task lists, ClickUp for project management, and Google Calendar for scheduling. They are user-friendly, flexible, and work across devices, making it easier to stay organized and focused.

What to look for when choosing tools to help with ADHD

First thing to cover is a general list of things I look for when deciding or considering trying an app or tech for any reason.

Although Attention Deficite Hyperactivity Disorder (or ADHD) has Hyperactivity in the label, it is not necessarily a problem with activity levels of the body, moreso the brain. This is why I have come up with the following list specifically for those looking for organizational tools to work with this specific challenge.

It must be easy to use. I don’t have time to figure out complicated tech, and I’m techy! It should be clean, user-friendly and well organized that doesn’t make navigation a chore
It must be somewhat flexible with options that allow me to cater it to the way that I work. If I have to work too hard to fit it into my life or create a habit using it, it won’t work, period.
It should be able to work seamlessly across different operating systems and types of devices… think Desktop, Mobile phone or voice-activated smart-device
It should allow other people to be able to “see” what you are doing, especially in terms of to-do lists, projects or calendar events that they may have a stake in, whether it’s your family or your work-colleagues and clients.
Along with flexibility, it should be somewhat customizable in terms of setup, colors, tones, volume in order for it to work with the way your brain works, or in our case, doesn’t work sometimes.

With these guidelines in mind, let’s dive into different parts of our live that technology can help with.

A brief note to those with ADHD

All neuro-spicy people have executive function struggles. Some of us “hyper-focus” on these and find ways to alleviate the stress it causes (Ahem, ME!) and some of us just figured we will never get our shit together (um, also me some days).

Thats why the first and probably most important list of adhd organizational tools list are to HOW to get and stay organized with all of the “things” that we must do as adults in our lives.

Caveat, there is no one tool that will take away or solve all of our problems. The effectiveness of the tool is 20% how it’s used an 80% your motivation and/or commitment to use it. Learning organizational skills outside of the technical is as important as the tech skills themselves. The tools I go into below have specific things that are helpful for those that are ND, but everyone is different, so somethings that may be helpful for 1 person may be overwhelming for another.

Getting Organized with your “To-Do’s”

Tool 1. Google Sheets

https://www.google.com/sheets/about/

It is free if you purchase the google suite, and it’s tried and true column and row format is great for listing out everything in your head and then categorizing it. You can make a quick notes about each thing and even put in a column for notes. Before I discovered the many tools created for project management out there, I used Google sheets to keep everything straight, from my daily tasks and projects to my school notes and papers.

Tool 2. – ClickUp

www.clickup.com (affiliate link, thank you for clicking! 🙂 )

Of all the Project management-specific tools out there, I have to suggest this one. Time and time again I’ve worked with different tools that always come up short in one department or another, whether they don’t have the ability to view tasks in different ways or keep track of the time spent on each one.

Some individuals feel as though ClickUp is too complicated for their brain, and I get it, it does need some setup. But I also feel that there is NO Project Management tool out there made for “your” brain specifically, and being able to “create” one with a little practice and know-how will allow you to move beyond the initial learning curve and manage your workflow with expertise.

I have a few other articles, talking about why ClickUp is a great tool for small businesses, but in short, it’s because you can see everything you need in one place, you have access to note-taking tools such as the under-rated ClickUp Docs, and it can integrate with other platforms (ie Airtable) so that you never have to leave it to get work done.

Tool 3. Google Tasks

Google Tasks

When I first started working in my and other people’s businesses, I discovered this little side-tool known as “Google Tasks” that is part of the Google suite.

I love it because it can be opened up at the same time as most other google programs, allowing tasks to be added without actually leaving the program or looking somewhere else. It is simple (which us ND people need) and you can still categorize tasks for different parts of your lives.

I have since moved onto other tools

Honorable Mentions or other tools that other smart ADHD people use:

Notion

www.notion.com

I’d be remiss to not mention this little tool that so many of my friends and colleagues have used. The reasons why it doesn’t make the top of my list for ND folks is because it’s main purpose is NOT to be a task management tool, though it has some functionality, but because it’s more of a note-taking tool.

Monday.com

www.monday.com

Also a solid project management tool, it’s graphic nature is easy on the eyes and just “feels” good to use which is important to a lot of ADHD individuals, where aesthetic may be important enough to encourage actually logging into the tool. It also has some decent automations and dashboards that help with organization and collaboration. If you need help to complete tasks, Monday is worth checking out.

Managing your Time

Time management, time blindness, and losing oneself in various projects are common adhd symptoms. We are familiar with missing meetings accidentally and not turning in assignments on time due to procrastination or just not REALIZING something was due. It’s not lack of knowledge, it’s lack of the ability to be aware of upcoming deadlines without it right in front of us or someone telling us.

This is why using tools to help manage your time in multiple ways can be so important for us. Especially those who are managing multiple schedules of kids, clients and team members.

These are my favorite tools to manage that time as well as some non-digital tips and tricks.

Tool 1. Google Calendar

You probably knew there would be a section in here about electronic calendars. I don’t use Apple Calendar or the Microsoft version, though I know that there are similarities with them so I won’t talk about them in this post, but I do want to at least state that they are an option.

The reason I use Google, versus the others, is that it is available on ALL devices, even devices that aren’t my own, which makes it much easier to share with others that aren’t Apple-faithful or don’t purchase Microsoft Suite. It really is on a platform that can be used by all.

Even though I understand the draw of a paper calendar, and I too use a paper calendar in our kitchen to keep our weekly schedule straight, I also use Google Calendar because I can integrate it with all of my work tasks.

It also has the ability to have multiple calendars (personal, business, client, family) in different colors and to be able to turn them on and off when needed.

Because it integrates with so many other tools, you can embed it or integrate it with any type of management tool you use. I talk about how I use it here.

https://www.anasimplesolutions.com/create-a-digital-calendar-organization-system-that-works-for-you/

Tool 2. Amazon Echo

Yes… Alexa, the name that shall not be used 😉 .. (I do prefer it over the Google version).

I know some people do not like the voice-activated virtual assistants, and though I understand the concerns, I have to admit that “she” (it) has been instrumental in keeping my meetings in check.

Did you know that you can actually hook up your Alexa to your calendar and HAVE HER REMIND YOU OF MEETINGS 10 minutes or so before they happen?

As someone who needs to avoid the constant stimuli of pop-ups on my computer but needs the important stuff to come through so I don’t miss anything, this way of getting clear reminders is game-changing.

To Connect your Alexa to your Google Calendar, just go onto the Alexa app, go to Settings and then “Calendar”. You can add one from Google, Microsoft or Apple.

To have your app actually ANNOUNCE from a specific calendar, navigate to Alexa Reminders you will need to set a reminder in your actual calendar app.

In google, you can set multiple reminders for the same event (it defaults to 1 reminder 10 minutes before the event) and when that time comes, the Alexa device you associated with the calendar will remind you.

Tool 3. Motion

https://www.usemotion.com/

Now, I am mentioning this tool because I have used it, and it is helpful, however I do not use it anymore because the price was too high for something that I do myself every day. I like to have a little more control of my priorities than Motion gives me, but let’s discuss what it is first.

Motion is a calendar and time-management tool that caters to ADHD people. Their slogan, “Use AI to play your work automatically”, sounds like it’s the ultimate digital adhd planner. And it is… almost.

The strategy is to put all of your tasks in this tool, estimate how much time it takes and it will automatically find time on your calendar to get things done.

For some, this can be such a relief to not have to constantly think about what to do next, but as I already have a morning planning session every day to figure out priorities and I use ClickUp as my PM tool, I didn’t see the point in adding another $19 (the price of the lowest version) to my monthly bill if it was just a another tool.

If you use it, I’d love to know your experience!

Staying Motivated

Staying motivated is a common struggle for us who need the dopamine fix or classically have low motivation. Even if it’s something we KNOW we need to do to get to our ultimate goal, if it doesn’t interest us, it is SO difficult to make it happen. This is where systemizing our motivation and habits comes into play.

Creating games out of typical “mundane” tasks or just taking the time to take care of yourself can be the difference between getting shit done, or not. The next few apps aim to making habit formation FUN (which is a key piece of Atomic Habits teachings).

Tool 1. Finch

https://finchcare.com/

A mobile phone app that aims to make self-care fun by keeping a “pet” (called Finch) and helping it grow through habit creation. It’s cute, simple, and helps you feel good every time you do something big… or small… or anywhere in between.

I started off using it, and I like it, but I’m more internally motivated and experienced and doing some of the self-care motivation, so I found myself a bit bored with it after a few weeks, but really noticed how it could be helpful for someone who’s self-control isn’t as well-honed as this 46 year old mama.

Though it does have a monthly charge, I could see using it to start good self-habits like a) getting enough sleep b) getting out of bed in time to have a few minutes of peace before the kids get up or c) drinking enough water.

Tool 2. Habitica

https://habitica.com/

I have to be honest, I haven’t tried this one yet… but oooohh boy I want to! I LOVE the 8-bit graphics, takes me back to my first days in MMORPG games (Everquest anyone?). 🙂 Specifically for those of us who like halflings and dragons. To be honest, this is very much like Finch, but aimed for a different type of crowd.

You add in the things or tasks that you want to do or get better at, and you complete them to purchase items for your inventory or for specific parts of quests to “level up” in the game. (I’m already wondering what the epic quest would be….. would I have to run 5 miles every day???)

If you put tasks in and you DONT complete them… then you lose Hit Points or you take “damage” if you are battling a monster. (you KNOW you are geeking out with me right now). I may do this with my boys to see if it helps their habits get better too.

You can play it on desktop (my preferred) or on mobile which makes it acccessible from anywhere.

While you can sign up for this for free, there are optional subscription packages for $4.99 per month, $14.99 per three months, $29.99 per six months, and $47.99 per year.

Tool 3. Streaks

(streaksapp.com)

For those who like to “keep it simple”, but still need the motivation to keep up with good habits (you know, like brushing your teeth and walking the dog), I really like this app.

The point of this is to focus on the important things and don’t pack your task and/or habit list with so many items that you will become easily overwhelmed and give it up.

You are only able to schedule 24 things to “track” at a time, and can even schedule the days that they should be done to help encourage consistency.

Health-related activities (walking, exercise, sleep) can even be related within your health app on your phone if that is something that you measure.

It is also affordable at $5.99 (at the time of this writing) though it is only for your phone, so if you are more of a “desktop” user, this may not be for you.

Remembering all the things

If there’s one thing I struggle with when it comes to my own Neuro-Diversity, it’s remembering all the things. Especially as a busy mom who not only manages my own schedule, but the schedule of my kids and our family. If it’s not written down, it probably won’t happen.

Even when it comes to physical objects, if I don’t have a “place” for it (or 2 places, we have an upstairs and downstairs in our house, so I need to designate two places for important items) I won’t be able to find it. It’s maddening some days.

The same goes for my digital life. In fact, most of my work NEEDS to be organized or I will spend way too much time looking for it and probably lose interest and go do something else.

The next apps that I recommend are super-important to keeping my life in order and functioning within my job at a high level.

Tool 1: Google Keep/Google Drive

https://keep.google.com/u/0/
https://www.google.com/drive/

Google Keep is great for capturing ideas on the run. Especially because it can transcribe your voice. I have used it many times to jot down ideas when I’m out walking the dog or listening to a particularly good podcast but not at my desk. In short, Google Keep (part of the google suite) is a free note-taking app that allows users to create and organize their notes, lists, images and audios.

I am not an advanced Keep user, like I said I mostly just use it to collect my thoughts when out and about, but it is possible to create organization within it using color coding, labeling and pinning. If anyone out there is an expect Google Keep users, I’d love to know your experience

Google Driveis where I put ALL of my files. Much like a library, every “type” of file has a place it belongs. I spend an hour or so every month organizing the files and/or trashing the ones that don’t matter, because being able to FIND them is the whole reason for having them. Being able to store different kinds of files, from images to PDF’s and even Word Documents is also a draw as I get many kinds of documents from many kinds of people.

However, even if I organize well, it still can be difficult to find specific files, especially if I don’t remember exactly what I named them (which is why naming convention is important), but also having a place for Quick Links” or “Table of Contents” is also important… which is where my next Tool recommendation comes from

Tool 2: Airtable

www.airtable.com (this is an affiliate link, thank you for clicking! 🙂 )

I would be remiss to not mention one of my favorite tools out there. This one is an easy one to miss or not understand because it is mostly thought of as a “fancy Excel document”, but like many business owners have realized, it is SO much more.

Airtable is the Swiss army knife of tools. It is so flexible, that you could run everything out of it, from project management to your CRM, but what it really excels at is organizing your information. That is to say, all of the data and information you have in your business, from your products and services to Customer Details and Content creation and management.

It allows you to link your information (like Clients to the products they purchase), send out emails automatically (through automation) to those clients, add comments about a client’s wants/needs and display it in multiple different ways (kanban, calendar, list).

Find out more about it on my Blog Article HERE: https://www.anasimplesolutions.com/airtable-for-adhd/

Tool 3: Lastpass

https://www.lastpass.com/

I didn’t know if I should include this in this category, because remembering passwords is a subject all on it’s own, but in interest in keeping this article SOMEWHAT manageable, I lumped it in with the “remembering” portion. Because let’s face it, passwords can be the bane of our existence.

There are a bunch of password programs out there, and though I have tried them all, Lastpass seems to be the one that I stick with the most, mostly because it is easily accessible on my chrome browser and my iPhone and does exactly what I need it to do.

The whole point of password tools is to keep passwords safe and accessible for those that need it. You are able to share passwords “secretly” with other individuals on your team or to consultants that you work with and then easily adjust the access when they are off the project. They also remind you when you have a security risk, or if you have too many passwords that are the same (Ask me how I know!)

You can also save other information, such as Credit Card info or Bank info within Lastpass if needed. Just make sure you save the Lastpass LOGIN username and password somewhere safe (preferably not on your computer.

Honorable Mention:

ClickUp Documents / OneNote

I need to mention note-taking apps within this section as well, because they are vital to how we work.

A lot of notes I actually do write down physically during a meeting. In fact, it’s a great way to make sure the information stays in my head, however I typically transfer that information into a ClickUp Document (you can also use Microsoft OneNote) and organized in a way that makes sense for you.

Client notes I keep as a tab in the Client List. Proposals are added to my Proposal folder and linked to the CRM (that I have in Airtable). They are also great for meeting notes and/or sharing information from Client projects with them as documents are able to be shared outside the organization without “permission”.

Reducing Distractions

Sometimes we just need to “get the thing done”, and in those situations we need to figure out HOW to get ourselves in a state to actually GET it done.

Anyone who has ever been overwhelmed because they have so much to do, they don’t know where to start… these are for you.

Overwhelm is caused by a nervous-system overload, constant anxiety, all the time. The first step it to reduce the nervous-system overload, whether that be by meditation, clearing out the clutter, or just reducing all of the distractions.

Some of my favorite Distraction Reducing tech include

Tool 1. Calm app

https://www.calm.com/

I’ve been meditating or deep breathing since 2020 or so when I first started suffering the effects of constant anxiety and burnout. Add in a little Covid shutdown and I couldn’t get through the day without doing some deep breathing or at least 10 minutes of meditation.

The Calm app is super helpful with guided meditation, as well as focus music that I constantly use when I am looking to head into hyper-focus mode quickly. In many situations, this app is my focus keeper. (For some reason, my auditory senses need to be stimulated with non-verbal music to make my mind calm).

Well worth the fee (I pay yearly, 69.99) Right now you can buy lifetime for $399.99, but I reserve the right to change my mind. 🙂

Tool 2. RescueTime

https://www.rescuetime.com/

Know the value of tracking your time, but can’t remember (or don’t want) to do it. This app may be just what you are looking for. Why track your time? Well, how do you know what you are spending your time on, or how to change your behavior, spend more time on things you love if you don’t know WHAT you are DOING right now?

Believe me, I hate tracking time, but I love being able to see how I spend my time. That’s where RescueTime helps me out and feels like a better option than manually doing it.

RescueTime is an app you can install on your computer and mobile devices to automatically track the apps you use, the files you open, and the websites you visit. It logs the amount of time you spend on each. You can turn it on and off as needed, or set it to run automatically during specific days and hours. It also features a pause button preset for 15 minutes or one hour, making it easy to disable during breaks.

It isn’t free (But with technology that does that, I don’t think it can be free), but it is as low as 6.99/mo if you pay by the year.

Otherwise you can use THIS! (Time Tracker https://www.anasimplesolutions.com/time-tracker/)

Tool 3: Unroll.me

https://unroll.me/

Email. It is the bane of our existence, and yet we need to be in our email inbox to make sure we are kept up to date of everything going on. Whether it’s family, your kids soccer coaches, the PTA, or just the lady down the street asking if you can walk their dog next weekend. Email is a necessary evil.

I aim to make it less evil by clearing out the clutter and only focusing on the important pieces.

There is a much larger blog post, or dare I say training to help with this, but the first step I would take would be to sign up for unroll.me. It is a little app that you can connect with your inbox that automatically un-signs (or dare I say, “unroll”) you up for those newsletters you wanted to be part of, but no longer have time to read.

It also asks you if you still want to receive certain emails and will send you a periodic list of the emails it has pulled out of your inbox. Best of all, it does this for free. https://unroll.me/app/inbox

Honorable mention:

Momentum (with Pomodoro timer)

So this little app I have used for years… and mostly enjoy it for the serene images and motivational quotes it gives me on a daily basis. But this simple little chrome extension has many more possibilities.

I like to make this screen my “home” screen when I start up my Chrome browser for the day. It shows a different background image and motivational quote, as well as a clock with the time (important for us who get time blindness) or a Pomodoro timer (you can choose which you like).

(For more on the Pomodoro technique, and how it can help those with ADHD, check out this article here

Hidden in the corners are buttons that can help you focus your day. From focus tips to the weather in your area, as well as the ability to add tasks and main items for the day, this little app feels serene and simple. I use the free version but you can upgrade it and get even more functionality. like integrating it with your project management tools and note-taking.

OneTab

https://www.one-tab.com/

OneTab is another google chrome extension that helps save up to 95% of your memory on your computer by clicking the “OneTab” icon in your extension bar and instantly converting all of your tabs into a list. For those of us who have too many tabs open all the time, get lost in them, but don’t want to close them because we have 5-10 projects going on in those tabs, this is a GREAT alternative to A. Calm the Chaos B. Save your computer from constantly updating all of those tabs all the time.

Automations to reduce admin

One type of app I haven’t mentioned yet are automation apps. That is because it is the process that saves you time.. not necessarily automations. But if you have a good process down and want to start delegating your administrative tasks to something or someone else, you may consider the following applications to help you.

While many more tools are having internal automations within their “umbrella” of services, there are only a few real automation tools that I would suggest.

Tool 1. Zapier

https://www.zapier.com

Zapier helps streamline workflows and cuts down on distractions. By automating repetitive tasks, it lets you focus on what really matters and boosts productivity. The easy-to-use interface and customizable triggers mean you can set up automations without needing tech skills. Plus, with its wide range of app integrations, Zapier connects all your favorite tools, making it easier to stay organized and on track.

Tool 2. Make

https://www.make.com/en

Make (formerly Integromat) is another awesome automation tool that’s great for people with ADHD. Like Zapier, it streamlines workflows and cuts down on distractions by automating repetitive tasks, helping you focus on what really matters and boosting your productivity.

What makes Make stand out is its visual interface. You can easily create and manage automations just by dragging and dropping elements. It also lets you customize automations more deeply, so you can tweak everything to fit your exact needs. Plus, Make handles complex workflows with multiple steps and conditions like a champ.

Other tool recommendations to help out ADHD individuals

Whimsical

One of the best ways I have found to help my ADHD brain remain focused when learning new information is to mindmap in order to understand how separate thoughts relate to each other. I also do a lot of process mapping when it comes to working with my clients and my own processes to really figure out what happens when and where things can be dropped or automated.

Enter Whimsical. There are other tools, like Miro, that also are great collaboration and mapping tools, but I have found Whimsical to be extremely easy to use (which is important when taking quick notes) and able to share with others when need be. I have it open on most days just to make sure my thoughts are aligned.

Grammarly

www.grammarly.com

I would be lost without this free little plugin. I absolutely love that it catches my mistakes, mispellings, and makes recommendations for my writing to sound better. I am constantly forgetting when I should use initial caps, if I should you “it’s” or “its'” (sorry grammar nerds!), so I heavily rely on this little app to make sure that I sound like a real adult. 😉

ChatGPT

As the newcomer to the group, I talk to ChatGPT multiple times a day, whether I need to bounce ideas off of it, or have it check a paragraph I write for clarity, or even just to get ideas about the next blog post or even a course or two. It’s like my well-educated assistant.

For those that are a little wary of AI, I completely understand. But remember it’s all in how you use it, AI in it of itself is not a BAD thing, in fact it can be extremely helpful to keep you on track and not lose yourself when something feels “hard” or if you can’t come up with any ideas. And remember, you probably won’t be replaced by AI, but you may be replaced by someone who DOES use AI, so look at how it can help you in the long term and learn how to use it now.

Conclusion

Nothing can replace good habits and when all else fails use paper and pencil. Nothing replaces planning each day based on your values and goals.

But once you have those intangible pieces of your life in place, then finding the right tools to be able to help you with your neuro-divergent brain is vital to keep you on track.

Also, these are just suggestions, and they work for me and my clients, however, every person is different and you may find paper and pen to work just fine for you. That is awesome (and one day I will talk more about bullet journaling as a great way for ADHDers to organize their life).

In the meantime, I hope these suggestions are helpful to you, at least to check out and broaden your horizons as far as what is out there that can and are helpful to those that struggle with our executive function.

If you like what you have read here, or want more help achieving this balance in your work or in your life, check out my productivity workbook or look into my Simplify & Conquer service where we walk through your business processes in 90 minutes and you get personalized actionable steps to reduce the chaos and simplify your systems.

Looking to learn more?

Check out these blogs:

Cultivating Productivity and Mindfulness every day 👈

Managing distractions as a word from home mom with ADHD 👈

Airtable and clickUp Workflow: Optimize Your Processes 👈

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Favorite tools for digital organization with ADHD Read More »

Unlock Efficiency with our ClickUp Business Hub

ClickUp, Productivity / Ana Natkins

Unlocking Efficiency with the Ultimate ClickUp Business Hub

Introduction: The Cost of Inefficiency

Just want to see it? Purchase here

We could all do with an extra day each week. With all of the responsibilities we have to fulfill in our daily lives, let alone making time for ourselves, I use to find myself wishing for an extra day each week just to get all of the “things” done I neglected to do in the other days of the week.

Think things like teacher gifts, calling your mom, making that new recipe you’ve clipped 6 months ago.

Now imagine gaining an extra day each week.

Research shows that employees can spend up to 20% of their time simply searching for information or tracking down colleagues for answers. That is exactly 1 day out of their workweek.

For small businesses and startups, this inefficiency can be a significant roadblock to growth, especially if you are struggling with ADHD and executive function challenges, let alone motherhood.

This is why I have created the ClickUp Business Hub. It’s a simple yet transformative management Clickup template I have designed to streamline projects and business management, allowing you and your team to focus more on strategic growth and less on operational inefficiencies, like searching for all the things.

The Challenge of Time Management in Small Business

Effective time management is super important to be a successful (and less stressed) business operator. However, I don’t know many who run their own businesses who feel “zen” when they are creating products and services, getting their genius out the door.

It’s fair to say… it’s a significant challenge, but not one that gets a lot of attention.

Small businesses, in particular, face the daunting task of juggling numerous responsibilities with small teams, making any inefficiencies even MORE disruptive than for big businesses. (I know, that seems backwards, doesn’t it?)

Check out some of these other time management challenges that I have come across time and time again. Pun intended? … maybe.

Disorganization: Starting a business can feel like piecing together a complex puzzle without knowing what the final picture should look like. Even at the beginning, devising a system for storing crucial documents, contacts and tasks can cause any semblance of organization to fly out the window. Knowing your business process fundamentals from the beginning, and creating a solid organizational system for them already puts you ahead of the pack in terms of using your time with intention.
Task Switching: Frequent task switching leads to decreased productivity and increased cognitive fatigue. I’m tired just saying that sentence. This is particularly challenging for individuals with ADHD, as the constant shift in focus can prevent them from completing tasks efficiently. Look squirrel!!!! 🐿️
Access to Information: Employees often waste valuable time rummaging through emails and files to find essential information that they JUST had 2 days ago. If they knew where to find the information… they could actually be spending their efforts on activities that earn the business money, and isn’t that just the point?

Introducing the ClickUp Business Hub template

I get it, I’ve been in the business world since 2001 and seen all sorts of organizational chaos as well as solutions for it.

I designed the ClickUp Business Hub specifically for entrepreneurs like me (AND YOU!) who need a reliable way to store, find and manage the important business “things” in one place. This isn’t just any template—it’s a fully customizable hub that can and will grow with your business.

What you need ->

Centralized Information: The Business Hub allows you to keep all your essential business details—from team contacts and project timelines to SOPs and important links—in one accessible location. No more searching in multiple folders. No more opening multiple applications. Go directly to the QuickLinks list and find the Brand guidelines for the business. Find the freebie you made last year in the “his reduces the time spent searching for information and ensures that your team is always on the same page.
Streamlined Information Management: The Business Hub features built-in tools that simplify how you view information by views and by context. By reducing the need for task switching, it helps you and your team stay focused and efficient, enhancing productivity without the exhaustion of constant context shifts.
Scalable and Customizable: Tailored to grow with your business, the ClickUp Business Hub adapts to your needs. You can add lists, set up new templates, or tweak settings as your operations expand and evolve, ensuring that the system remains as agile as your business.

Key Features of the ClickUp Business Hub

The ClickUp Business Hub is a well-organized, templated ClickUp folder that contains all the parts of your business that your team will need easy access to. Think of it as a living and breathing wiki, easier to access than a document housed in your Google Drive. Key features include:

Tracking SOPs: Organizes all your SOPs and allows you to see which need to be updated or created after a new process is introduced. Automate accuracy checks every 30 days.
Comprehensive List of Services/Products: Onboard new team members seamlessly with detailed information on all services and products, including pricing.
Internal Training and Resources: Centralizes access to purchased or potential trainings, making them readily available to your team.
Team Details: Provides quick access to team information, including start dates, raise dates, and email addresses, without diving into your email software.
Additional Functionalities: A quick-access hub for important information, software stack data, and a list of automations used in your business.

Real-World Success Stories

I’ve used this exact hub with countless clients and those in operations that felt they had too many plates in the air. It’s not just a theoretical template I made up. Here are some of their stories:

Digital Marketing Firm: Reduced Document management sear times by 50% and greatly improved team collaboration. Projects that once took weeks to initiate are now up and running in days, with clear details and communications.
Event Planning Business: Having all of their vendors information located in 1 place, and able to be linked to various tasks throughout their system was game-changing. What started as a training and resource hub got extended to include all details for vendors, utilizing the original setup for a variety of use-cases.
Consulting Services Firm: Onboarding their team member is now super-easy because they have all of their links, trainings and SOP’s in 1 location organized categorically that makes sense for THEIR business. No more focus-destroying interruptions from new employees.

Transform your organization, by just being organized.

It’s time to take control of your business productivity and stop wasting time searching for things The ClickUp Business Hub is here to make that happen. It’s affordable pricing will pay for itself in.

Want to know more about me? Visit our website to learn more about the ClickUp and other tools that will 10X your productivity. Explore the features, read a few more blogs and even schedule a free strategy call with me. www.anasimplesolutions.com
Where to get this thing? Head on over to HERE
In a digital age where efficiency is key, the ClickUp Business Hub emerges as a beacon of streamlined productivity.
Special Offer: The first 20 individuals to purchase this will be $10 off! Don’t wait! MAKE SURE TO USE THE CODE: CU-BIZHUB10

Your ClickUp Partner in Efficiency

Our ClickUp Business Hub isn’t just another organizational tool. It’s a comprehensive solution tailored to meet the unique challenges of managing a small business and, let’s be honest, your life. Whether you’re struggling with disorganization, inefficient task management, ADHD or simply the everyday demands of growth, the Business Hub is designed to simplify and enhance every aspect of your operations.

With proven results, intuitive design, and adaptable features, the ClickUp Business Hub is ready to help you transform your workflow and achieve new levels of success. Don’t let inefficiency hold you back. Embrace the solution that hundreds of businesses trust and see how much more you can accomplish. Transform your business today—because when your operations thrive, so does your business.

Some more helpful blog posts are

And finally, if you are interested in purchasing any of my ClickUp or Airtable Templates, designed to take you from neuro-spicy overwhelm to organized kick-ass business owner, check out everything here on my EVERYTHING page.

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Follow me on Pinterest

Unlock Efficiency with our ClickUp Business Hub Read More »

Cultivating productivity and mindfulness every day

Productivity / Ana Natkins

How to cultivate productivity and mindfulness every day?

Mindfulness: a modern fad or a practical tool for enhancing daily life?

Despite its ancient roots, some modern men and women still dismiss mindfulness as another fleeting trend, irrelevant in the practical world of business, family, and education.

Others may view it as a complex practice, reserved for the serene few who have hours to dedicate to meditation.

I believe these assumptions are missing the bigger picture. Mindfulness is actually a simple, accessible skill that can be woven into the fabric of our hectic schedules to foster clarity, resilience, and productivity.

I am writing this article because within my own life, mindfulness practices have greatly reduced my overwhelm as much as being organized with my tasks and time. It really is the yin to the yang of organization and motivation.

This is my attempt to debunk the myths surrounding mindfulness and show practical ways to integrate it into your busy day, enhancing your effectiveness and well-being especially if you are a neuro-divergent individual.

What is mindfulness?

Imagine you’re the manager of a busy restaurant, it’s your job to keep an eye on everything—from the kitchen to the customers. Mindfulness is a bit like being that manager but in daily life. It means paying full attention to what’s happening right here and right now, without getting sidetracked.

Here’s what being mindful involves:

Noticing: It’s like being the coach of your own team. You notice what’s happening with you—your thoughts, feelings, and everything around you in the present moment. Are you feeling rushed? Is your mind buzzing with the to-do list while you’re playing with your kids? Ask yourself what you are doing right now and what you need?
Not Judging: Suppose you realize you’re feeling overwhelmed about a big project that is coming up on your schedule. Instead of getting upset with yourself for feeling this way, you simply say, “Okay, I’m feeling overwhelmed,” and let that feeling be there without any self-criticism. It’s like watching cars pass by outside—you see them, but you don’t need to run out and stop them.
Being present: Instead of your mind wandering to that difficult client call you had or the school meeting you need to attend tomorrow, you keep your mind focused on what you’re doing in the current moment. Perhaps you concentrate on the smell of the dinner you are making or really listen to the story your child is excitedly telling you about their day.

Mindfulness may be a practice that has ancient roots but in today’s world, it’s a tool used by people all around the world, including busy moms and entrepreneurs like you, to help manage the amount of responsibilities and tasks that are on our plates in our daily work or home life. Most importantly, the benefits of mindfulness it can help you handle stress, stay organized, and enjoy moments with your family and those you love more fully.

The Science behind mindfulness

Research shows that practicing mindfulness can tweak your brain, turning down the parts that deal with stress and turning up those that help you concentrate and give you positive emotions. This doesn’t just reduce anxiety—it makes you a more effective thinker and leader, able to handle both business strategies and family plans.

There have been studies that claim that mindfulness and mindfulness meditation actually help increase activity in the pre-frontal cortex, or in the area of the brain that helps you reason and problem-solve, giving you more control over parts of your thoughts, including the ones that can cause anxiety and stress.

Mindfulness in daily life

Practicing mindfulness can be about always being calm and collected, but the flip-side actually helps you fully participate in your life. Whether you’re sorting out your business accounts, preparing dinner, or reading bedtime stories, the practice of mindfulness lets you truly engage with the task at hand, making everyday actions mean more in the moment that they happen.

As a mother, a woman and an entrepreneur, I am naturally driven and motivated to hit my next goal, or to celebrate a birthday with my children. Mindfulness has helped me really see the true values in my life, improved my mental health and enjoy the parts of my life that bring me joy. I’d love to help you do the same thing.

Productivity and mindfulness

As a busy parent, businesswoman and neuro-spicy individual, you may think that you are a lost cause when it comes to mindfulness. When you are frantically running from one task to the next, sometimes skipping lunch and eating at your desk so you can get your kids to dance practice at 5:15, is it even POSSIBLE to fit mindfulness into your day or work environment?

Let’s put it to you this way, if your car was out of gas, would you find the time to fill it up?

If your child needed help with a friend who hurt their feelings, would you tell them you were too busy to talk to them?

The same is true with mindfulness practice. It can actually HELP you be more productive and think more clearly, with better focus, no matter how many things are on your task list.

Here’s how mindfulness training specifically helps with productivity:

Clears the Mental Clutter: Mindfulness is like having a broom for your brain. It helps sweep away the distractions and worries that aren’t helpful to you right now. With a clearer mind, you can focus better on what is right in front of you, whether it’s finishing a work presentation or planning your child’s birthday party.
Reduces Stress and Burnout: Just like a computer can overheat if too many programs are running at once, your brain can get overwhelmed when you’re too stressed, let alone your whole body. Mindfulness cools down your brain by calming your thoughts. This not only makes you feel better but also can stop you from burning out, allowing you to remain energized to tackle more of your tasks.
Enhances Decision-Making: When you’re mindful, you’re not just reacting on autopilot. Instead, you’re more aware of what’s happening around you and can make decisions based on what’s really important. This can be a game-changer when you need to decide which tasks to prioritize, what to delegate, or how to handle a tricky situation with a client.
Improves Time Management: By training your mind to focus on the present, mindfulness helps you become more efficient because you are able to complete things faster with more focus. You might notice that you’re not wasting time worrying about what might happen next week, or dwelling on a mistake from yesterday. More time focusing on now means more gets done, and done well.
Strengthens Relationships: Whether it’s with your kids, partner, or business colleagues, being present can make a big difference. Mindfulness helps you listen better and react more thoughtfully. Stronger relationships can lead to smoother days both at home and in your business.

Here is some more literature about mindfulness helps productivity through more sustainable work.

What can happen if we aren’t mindful?

You can understand the importance of mindfulness from a high level, but I wanted to dive a little deeper into what can happen if we aren’t mindful.

I believe that many of us can relate to a lot of these symptoms, which is why I want to share them with you. If you can relate to 2 or more of these, you may benefit from starting with some mindfulness practices.

Mental overload 🤯

Just like a computer slows down when too many applications are open, your mind can become bogged down when you try to juggle too many thoughts at once. This mental clutter can make it extremely hard to focus, especially if it is compounded by ADHD, leading to forgotten commitments and scrambled priorities. Imagine trying to prepare for an important business meeting while also keeping track of your child’s soccer schedule—without the ability to slow down and focus on each task at a time, the details can easily slip through the cracks.

Physical stress 💪🏼

Often, we ignore the early warning signs of stress, but over time, these can manifest physically. You might find yourself struggling with insomnia, experiencing frequent headaches, or feeling a constant, unexplainable fatigue. It’s like pushing a shopping cart with a stuck wheel—no matter how hard you try, it will just add to your exhaustion and frustration.

I had this happen to me over 2 years ago when I had heart palpitations and passed out in my kitchen, it was a direct result of chronic stress and overwhelm and forced me to take some drastic measures and learn how to maintain my task load and release the stress.

Emotional spillover 🥺

Without a way to circumvent and process stressful situations, emotional reactions can become much more exaggerated. Minor setbacks might provoke undue anxiety or irritation, affecting your interactions with your family and colleagues. It’s as if your emotional buffer is gone, and every little bump in the road feels like a major obstacle.

Have you ever noticed at the end of the day your children or your spouse acting grumpier than usual, or have you noticed that little things that wouldn’t have bothered you at breakfast now drive you crazy? Someone eating too loud? Your older kid starting a fight with their younger brother? Your hubby always in the WAY in the kitchen?

Now add more stress to that and see what happens.

Missing the moments ⏳

Almost worst of all neglecting the ability to be mindful means you might brute force your way through your days without truly experiencing them. Important personal moments—like watching your child learn how to on their own or the sense of accomplishment from a well-executed project at work—can pass by unnoticed. Life can start to feel like a series of tasks that must be done, rather than a series of moments to be enjoyed.

Multitasking madness 🤹🏼

One of the greatest theifs of productivity is the one thing that we find ourselves doing TO be more productive, and that is multi-tasking. The act of multi-tasking, or doing more than one thing at the same time, has actually been found to make us less productive at the end of it all. When you are making a phone call, at the same time you are ordering something from an online store, while also watching your toddler color on the floor of your office. At least one of those tasks is going to either be done incorrectly, or end up being crayons on your wall. Being mindful of what you are focusing on will allow you to single-task on one thing at a time and probably still get everything done faster.

I talk more about the multi-tasking myth in this article

Mindfulness in action 🎬

Try this simple mindfulness exercise next time you’re overwhelmed: Pause for a minute, take five deep breaths, and focus only on the air moving in and out of your lungs. Notice how it feels cooler when you breathe in, and warmer when you breathe out. This quick break can help reset your mind and improve your focus.

Mindfulness and meditation practices

With a much better idea of how mindfulness is helpful to you, I’ve compiled a list of possible easy and effective mindfulness practices that can be used at almost any time of the day to help calm the mind and help you focus. Some of them may be obnoxiously obvious, but sometimes it is the simplest and obvious practices that are the ones we don’t even think about trying.

Breathing Exercises One of the simplest and most popular mindfulness practices is focused breathing. This can be as straightforward as taking a few deep breaths before a big meeting or while waiting in the carpool line, or if you work remote like me, while waiting to get onto a Zoom call. You breath in for a count of 3, hold your breath for 3, breathe out for a count of 5 slowly. After 3 of these, your heart will beat slower, your head will be clearer and you will be able to concentrate better on the conversation or task at hand. <<asdf breathing exercise image??

Meditation: Meditation practice is a great mindfulness option that doesn’t need special equipment or lots of time—just a few minutes each day can make a significant difference in focus and concentration.

Apps like Headspace or Calm provide guided meditations that can help beginners get started. Whether it’s a 10-minute session in the morning or a quick five minutes while sitting in your office, regular meditation can enhance your focus and reduce stress.

I use this when getting ready for bed at night, or if I’m having a particularly stressful day.

Yoga Yoga combines physical postures, breathing exercises, and meditation, making it a comprehensive mindfulness practice. It not only helps in reducing stress but also improves physical health. Classes can range from gentle to vigorous, and many are designed specifically for busy professionals who need a quick mental and physical reset.

Walking Instead of just walking as a means to get from point A to point B, turn it into a mindful practice. Pay attention to the sensation of your feet touching the ground, the rhythm of your steps, the sounds around you, and the feeling of the air on your skin. This can be especially refreshing during a busy day and is easy to incorporate, whether you’re walking to your next meeting or around your neighborhood.

I walk with my dog every morning (if you follow my social media at all, you have seen him many times) and on most days when I pick up my youngest from school. It helps force a break, gets exercise and sit down with my tasks ready to work.

I found some more exercises, specifically for ADHD individuals listed here.

Alternative mindfulness practices

I want to include some other practices in here that I have either heard about or tried myself as they may be helpful to those who have a bit more time, or need more options.

Journaling Taking a few minutes to write down your thoughts reflect on your day, jot down what you’re grateful for, or simply document the moments you want to remember.

Mindful Eating Turn your meals into an opportunity for mindfulness by eating slowly and without distractions. Focus on the flavors, textures, and smells of your food.

Crafts and Creative Activities Engaging in creative activities like drawing, painting, or knitting can be wonderfully meditative. I did this when my kids were younger creating cute crochet hats for them.

Tech-Free Time Set aside time each day where you disconnect from all electronic devices. This can be during dinner, the first hour after you wake up, or right before bed. (Ideally, all three)

These mindfulness practices are not only popular but also versatile, fitting into various schedules and lifestyles, especially for a busy entrepreneurial mother looking to incorporate mindfulness into her hectic routine.

Finding time for mindfulness practices during a busy day

Even with all of these mindfulness possibilities, as a busy entrepreneurial mom, it can feel like every minute of your day is accounted for. However, integrating mindfulness into your routine doesn’t need to be time-consuming or cumbersome.

First of all, Start Small. Begin with just five minutes of mindfulness a day. It could be a few deep breaths before you start your car in the morning or a quiet moment of reflection before you sleep. Remind yourself to do it by adding it as a habit to your morning routine, or leave a note to yourself on the steering wheel of your car. These small practices can build a foundation for a more mindful lifestyle without overwhelming your schedule.
The moments between activities (transition times) are perfect opportunities for mindfulness. These could be the minutes spent waiting for the coffee to brew, standing in line at the grocery store, or waiting for your computer to start up. Use these snippets of time to practice mindful breathing or to simply observe your surroundings and sensations without judgment.
Schedule It Just like you schedule meetings and family appointments, pencil in your mindfulness time. It could be a 10-minute slot for meditation or yoga during your lunch break or right after dropping the kids at school. Treating mindfulness time with the same importance as other appointments can help ensure you commit to it. If it’s important, you put it in the calendar! 😀
Mindful Habits Choose routine tasks to perform mindfully each day. Whether it’s doing the dishes, folding laundry, or organizing your desk, focus fully on the task at hand. Notice the details of your actions, the sensations, and even the thoughts that arise, bringing your focus back to the task whenever it wanders.
Mindfulness can be a family activity. Spend a few minutes each evening discussing what each person was grateful for that day, or practice breathing exercises together if your kids will do it (getting mine to breath? Not yet… maybe when they are older). Not only does this set a great example for your children, but it also enhances your own practice.
Use technology to your advantage by setting reminders on your phone or using apps that prompt mindfulness exercises. These tools can help you stay on track and make mindfulness a regular part of your day. I know the apple watch does this periodically, but you can also just set an alarm.

A final word on mindfulness and daily productivity

Finding time for mindfulness doesn’t require major lifestyle changes. Instead, it’s about making small adjustments and using moments already available in your day more intentionally. By integrating mindfulness in these simple ways, you can reduce stress and enjoy a more fulfilling life amidst the bustle of entrepreneurship and motherhood.

So that is my deep dive on mindfulness and it’s importance in productivity. If you’re anything like me—a busy mom and entrepreneur juggling a million things at once—you might think adding mindfulness into the mix is a bit much. But trust me, it’s not about sitting silent for hours in a zen garden; it’s about finding small moments throughout your busy day to just breathe and be present.

Mindfulness is our secret superpower. It helps clear the fog during chaotic days and brings a sparkle to the ordinary moments, like really hearing the excitement in your child’s voice over a small win at school or feeling the satisfaction of nailing that client presentation.

So, let’s start small. Take a deep breath in the morning rush, feel the sun on your face for a minute, or just enjoy the quiet of your house before the day kicks off. It’s these little nuggets of calm that can transform our hectic days. Here’s to making mindfulness a natural part of our bustling lives and to enjoying the journey along the way. Cheers to living fully, laughing often, and loving the little moments!

Some more helpful blog posts are

Managing Distractions with ADHD
Streamline Your Day: How to save time in daily life
Airtable for ADHD
Ultimate ADHD system with ClickUp and Airtable

And finally, if you are interested in purchasing any of my ClickUp or Airtable Templates, designed to take you from neuro-spicy overwhelm to organized kick-ass busienss owner, check out everything here on my EVERYTHING page.

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Cultivating productivity and mindfulness every day Read More »

10 Super Simple Ways to get work-life balance when you are ADHD

Productivity / Ana Natkins

10 Super simple ways to get work-life balance when you are ADHD

Are you eternally trying to achieve that “work-life” balance you keep hearing about? Having enough time to focus on work, and still be able to make it to your kid’s open-house at 6:00pm? Do you find yourself answering emails at 8PM for “end of the day” deliverables in between eating your own dinner and paying bills? Now add in a little neuro-spiciness into the mix… and if you are anything like me you have a recipe for overwhelm and burnout and just generally not feeling good about your life. It is difficult to achieve work-life balance when you are adhd. The cards feel like they are stacked against you.

The fact is, you CANT have work-life balance unless you take specific steps and set boundaries to make sure that it happens, and sometimes, you will need to give more time to work, or your family, depending on what is going on. How do you know when that is? How do you figure out how to let go of the guilt? How do you give yourself the space to do your job well when your executive functioning doesn’t work like the “neuro-normals”.

Achieving this balance isn’t impossible, in fact it’s pretty simple if you just follow a few guidelines.

For individuals with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (or ADHD), achieving work-life balance requires intentional steps and coping strategies to manage both professional and personal responsibilities effectively. This blog post discusses 10 actionable ways to create such a balance, including assessing your current situation, setting clear goals, and automating routine tasks. These strategies help reduce overwhelm and burnout, fostering a healthier lifestyle and enhancing productivity by leveraging support systems and setting practical boundaries.

I can’t do it. I have too many responsibilities. I don’t have anyone helping me. I have adult ADHD and my brain doesn’t work that way.

Sound familiar?

These thoughts are common, especially if you have high expectations for yourself as a lot of us entrepreneurs, women, and perfectionists do. We all know what this feels like when we are hyperfocusing on something at work and then forget to have dinner, or pick up our kid from soccer practice…. no? Just me?

They are definitely holding you back from having a more healthy balance between your work, your family and your “play” time (or time you spend doing something for the simple reason that you enjoy doing it).

For years I thought that climbing the corporate ladder, no matter what it took was the way to my happiness. I took minimal maternity leave with my second child, worked at 5AM and until 10PM sending emails and striving to reach that next level… when in the end it got me nowhere and ended up raising my stress level so much I had heart palpitations and adrenal fatigue. Two years after this health scare, I also found out that I was ADHD, which added a whole other level of complexity to it.

Since then, I’ve learned a lot and I really want to share it all with you, so you don’t have to learn the hard way like I did.

So settle in to learn 10 actionable ways to achieve work life balance with (or without) an ADHD brain without having a health or mental breakdown in the process.

Yes, you can have this so-called “balance”, and I’m going to show you how.

#1. Assess your current work life balance

The first thing you need to do is figure out what you spend your time doing currently and why it is that you feel your work-life balance is out of whack. If you don’t know WHERe the problem lies, it’s hard to pinpoint what needs to change in order to fix it.

You can do this in a variety of ways, including keeping a journal, getting feedback from others, visiting a therapist or health practitioner, reviewing your personal goals, or my favorite – tracking your time and what you spend your time on.

Make note of the things that you enjoy spending time on, when you feel guilty for spending time on something, or even when your skin is crawling when you are working on something that you don’t enjoy but feel like you “have” to do.

#2 Set clear goals around the parts of the balance that you want to change

After you have taken a look at how you currently spend your time and identified the pieces that don’t bring you joy, or effect your mental or physical health, it is time to figure out WHAT needs to change in order to get you to Emerald City (aka, work-life balance).

This is the time when you want to be brutally honest with yourself about what you can or cannot do in order to be able to breath at the end of the day… or dare we say it, sleep at night.

Be forewarned, this may mean you will disappoint individuals in your life that have counted on you… or just expected you to do certain things. This could be the teachers that you promised to be room mom for, or your neighbor that you always help them shovel their driveway. It’s not that you like them any less or want to help them any less, it’s that you have decided to not sacrifice yourself and your time to endeavors that don’t fulfill something in you.

Keep the goals simple, clear and achievable, start with “I will spend 1 hour a day going on a walk by myself”, or “I will leave work at 5PM every day for a month”. These goals, also known as boundaries will be the markers to abide by in order to actually balance the things.

Read my blog on goal planning or get my Airtable goal planner.

Pro Tip: You may benefit from writing your goals down on the family calendar or even a post-it note on the mirror in the morning. Keeping it front and center makes it a priority.

#3. Create a tribe of others who are also looking for work-life balance

Did you think you had to figure out how to do this all by yourself?

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

It’s a whole lot more fun – and motivating – when you are surrounded by other people who are striving for the same thing. Community that aligns with your values can be the thing that you fall back on when your internal motivation wanes (and believe me… when you get that panicked email from your boss at 9PM or your kids wake up in the middle of the night for the 4th night in a row… your motivation will take a nosedive).

How do you find these people? Facebook groups, talking with other parents of your kids that seem to be struggling with the same things. Heck, I bet you can think of 1 or 2 other people within your work sphere that are looking to achieve a healthier work/life balance. Even if they aren’t ADHD, with the amount of stimulation in today’s world and expectation on parents, they have very similar issues that they would appreciate support on.

#4 Prioritize quick wins

One of the hardest parts about making big changes in your life is JUST getting started. This is especially true if you are neuro-spicy and have 10+ ideas in your head at the same time. Where do you start? Of all the the things on your “goals” list, what is the one that you should figure out first?

One might think they should start on the one that seems the hardest, as it may take the longest time to complete, but that is opposite of what is actually going to MOTIVATE you to keep going.

That’s why we want to start with our quick wins.

Let’s say two of your goals are cleaning up your workspace or making sure you have an hour every day to do something YOU want to do.

One of those is a lot easier to achieve than the other by the simple addition of a timer and alarm.

Finding the time in an already stacked day of responsibilities is EXTREMELY hard to carve out.

However, creating a habit to create a clean workspace and keep it clean is a much simpler step by step process that can happen instantaneously.

You can:

Remove Unnecessary Items from your workspace
Organize Supplies using organizers or simply only keeping the supplies you use.
Develop a simple system to keep your workspace organized long-term, like labeling drawers or allocating specific spots for certain items

Hitting easy to achieve goals like this will help to propel you further and immediately promote change to your mental “overwhelmed” state.

#5 Implement Structural Changes

Now that you have some quick wins in your journey to find that balance between the work and personal life, now you can look at the changes that may require more effort but are crucial to the long-term improvement of your life (and that, my friends, is really what we are all about).

Some of these changes may include

Establishing Clear boundaries within all parts of your life. Your work schedule, your family and friend obligations, or even your sleep schedule (super-important by the way)
Create an effective daily routine. Routines are what you fall back on when everything else has fallen to $hit and chaos reigns. Routines will keep you healthy, even-keeled, and able to whether the storms the inevitably hit for many reasons.
Visual aids for organization. Perhaps the most concrete of structural changes, visual aids don’t let the priorities fall to the wayside. You can use of Whiteboards or Bulletin Boards (like I do in my kitchen) or Digital Tools like a shared calendar, project management or task management system for all parts of your life.

#6 Enhance Focus and Productivity Skills

This is where the “rubber meets the road” so to speak. Asking someone who is ADHD to “enhance their focus and productivity skills” can be like pushing them off a cliff and telling them to fly.

You CANNOT do this if the skills are not innate. However, you can start to work on these skills in different ways regardless of what your executive functioning or adhd symptoms feel like at the start.

Regardless of our natural skillsets, being able to be a functioning member of society is important. Because in the end, people need people. We have so many many gifts to share with the world. Being able to problem solve on the spot, being calm in otherwise chaotic circumstances and having ideas an the motivation to come through on those ideas in hyperfocused ways that is not possible for the neuro-typical… but executive functioning? We gotta work on. <3

The following are just a few way to help promote productivity and focus that I find most helpful in my life:

Mindfullness practice and meditation. I use the CALM app to incorporate meditation and mindfulness techniques into my day as well as play ambient or binural music with Amazon Music or Calm while I need to recharge and do my focused work. It improves my focus and helps me get into “flow” quicker than if I was in dead silence. There is even clinical studies on this. Sometimes just sitting quiety for 30 seconds and practicing deep breathing is enough to get me out of my head and be present in the moment.
Engage in physical activity. Regular physical activity is well-documented to improve both mental and physical health. For those with ADHD, it’s particularly effective as it can increase neurotransmitters like dopamine and norepinephrine, which are crucial in attention and thinking processes.

Take a brisk walk, jump rope for 10 minutes, do something to get the heart pumping and the sweat glands activating. This is helpful for focus AS well as depression or low dopamine in general.
I take a 2 mile walk every single morning with my dog (who loves to appear in my social media as my best work partner), and it’s when I get my most ideas and motivation to focus on what will bring me closer to my goals.

#7 Adjust and Delegate

We can’t do it all. It’s just fact. If there are only 24 hours in a day, and 8 are meant for rest, another 8 for work, at least 8 for traveling, shopping, preparing food and cleaning… you really don’t have that much time for your personal life.

Enter delegation. There are SO many various tasks that are on your plate that you probably don’t have to do. Honestly. So many women take the burden of household manager, as well as primary parent and breadwinner. Our fore-mothers paved the way for us to have it all, and damned if we aren’t going to do it all, right?

Wrong. This is a script for becoming a crazy woman, burnt out and worst of all, sick.

Our foremothers would want us to do what fulfills OUR hearts… whether that’s taking your adhd child to yet another psychologist or running your own company to show your kids what women ARE capable of.

So to do this, we need to delegate some of those tasks to others. It could be administrative tasks and keeping the ball rolling at your business, or sending your kids to aftercare after school even though you are home working.

Identify Delegable Tasks: Review your responsibilities and identify tasks that can be performed by others. Look for tasks that are time-consuming but don’t necessarily require your expertise or tasks where others can benefit from the experience as a learning opportunity. Look outside the obvious paid help. Your husband may be the one who could do the grocery shopping… or your kids be the ones to put the dishes away.
Choose the Right Person: When delegating, especially when it’s someone you hire, it’s important to choose individuals whose skills and experience match the task. Clearly communicate your expectations, deadlines, and any necessary details to ensure the task is completed effectively.
Provide Proper Training: Ensure that the people you delegate tasks to have the necessary skills and training to complete them. This might involve spending some amount of time teaching or mentoring, but the initial investment will pay off in the long run.

#8 Just Say No to non-priority requests

Saying no is crucial to protecting your time and energy for tasks that align with your personal and professional goals. Go back to those goals that you set for yourself in item #2. If you are asked to do something that doesn’t align with those goals…. well, you know what to do!

Of course, you will need to be professional when dealing with clients and team members, but how you hold your boundaries and say no will reflect what others can get away with, whether they are team members OR your clients. Be the example.

Here are some steps to be able find out which requests are non-priority and how to handle them.

Evaluate the Request: Whenever you receive a request, take the time to evaluate its importance and urgency. Ask yourself whether it aligns with your current priorities and goals. (See step 2)
Be Clear and Polite: When saying no, be clear and straightforward, but also polite. Express gratitude for being considered and briefly explain why you cannot accommodate the request if necessary.
Offer Alternatives: If possible, suggest alternatives. For example, if you can’t take on a project, recommend someone else or propose a time when you might be available.
Practice Regularly: Saying no can be challenging, especially if you’re used to saying yes to everything. Practice in low-stakes situations to build your confidence.

#9 Declutter regularly

As a mom of 2 boys, husband of a collector and adhd myself, this one is possibly the one practice to achieve work-life balance that I MUST do often or I am just plain overwhelmed with the sight of everything. Even though, many individuals with ADHD MUST have things within sight in order to even remember they exist (I lose my keys and phone on a regular basis), having too many things can have the opposite effect.

Which one feels better?

Regular decluttering of both work and living spaces is a highly effective way to minimize distractions and stress, ultimately enhancing your focus and productivity on the THING THAT MATTER. Visual clutter can significantly increase cognitive overload and distractibility… and ultimately shutting down.

Make decluttering your physical space a weekly habit, or even daily habit.

One of the ways I like to think about it is to prepare the space for the next time it will be used.

This means the dishes should be washed and put away prior to leaving it for the night, or your office desk cleared of post-it notes and random pens and put in a place they belong.

Invest in organizational tools to help keep the clutter put where it belongs and if it’s something you really don’t use, donate or throw them away.

#10 Automate wherever possible

Now that you have good systems to help your time management and you have delegated what is possible and decluttered your workspace, it’s time to automate.

By reducing the time and effort spent on routine activities in work and your home-life, automation allows you to focus more on complex tasks that require critical thinking and creativity which is what we need as adhd entreprenuers. There are a variety of ways that these types of things can be automated, below is just a short list of ideas to start.

Bill Payments: 💵 Automate your bill payments using online banking services. This not only saves time but also helps avoid late payments and penalties.
Email Management: Use email automation tools to sort incoming emails, send automatic replies, or manage subscription lists. This can help keep your inbox organized without manual intervention.
Data Entry and Reporting: Automate data collection and report generation to save time and improve accuracy. Check out my blog on using Airtable for this here. Use software that integrates data from various sources and compiles reports according to your specifications.
Social Media Management: Schedule posts and manage social media interactions using tools like Buffer or Hootsuite. This helps maintain an active online presence without needing to be constantly online.
Inventory Management: Use automated systems to track inventory levels, reorder products, and manage suppliers, which is particularly useful in retail and manufacturing settings.

Many of these types of automations I implement for my clients with my team. We save our clients at least 12 hours a week by setting up the systems and the automations that do the work FOR them and allow them to revel in their zone of genius. (Find out more here)

How to Implement Task Automation

Identify Repetitive Tasks: Start by identifying tasks that are repetitive and time-consuming. These might include administrative duties, regular communications, or data management.
Choose the Right Tools: Select automation tools that fit your specific needs. Consider factors like cost, ease of use, and integration with other systems you currently use.
Set Up and Customize: Set up your automation tools according to your specific needs. Many tools offer customization options, so you can tailor them to perform exactly as needed.
Test and Adjust: Before fully implementing an automated process, test it to ensure it works as expected. Be prepared to make adjustments as necessary.
Train Relevant Users: If the automation tools impact other team members, make sure they are trained on how to use the tools effectively and understand the changes to their workflow.

There you have it!

10 actual achievable steps to take to allow yourself to have a much better work/life balance. Starting with the big goals, the things you want to achieve in life will guide all of the “actionable” steps to take to get to that ultimate “balance” may mean makng some hard decisions. However, in the end, the work is worth it.

If you like what you have read here, or want more help achieving this balance in your work or in your life, check out my productvitiy workbook or look into my Simplify & Conquer service where we walk through your business processes in 90 minutes and you get personalized actionable steps to reduce the chaos and simplify your systems.

Some more helpful blog posts are

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

10 Super Simple Ways to get work-life balance when you are ADHD Read More »

Streamline Your Day: How to save time in daily life

Productivity / Ana Natkins

Are You Truly Busy, or Just Busy Being Busy?

Do you often find yourself at the end of a seemingly busy day with little to show for it? You’re not alone. Many of us spend our days caught in a cycle of reactive busyness—responding to every phone call, email, and solving other people’s problems, which prevents us from making progress on our own important projects. It’s a common trap where being busy does not necessarily equate to being productive.

What is Intentional Productivity?

True productivity isn’t just about doing things; it’s about doing the right things that move you forward in your goals. It may seem like kind of a simple thing, but in many situations it can be tempting to do the easy thing, and not necessarily the thing that will move you closer to the end result you really want. It involves directing your efforts toward important tasks that align with both your personal and professional aspirations. This approach may not come naturally at first, but like any skill, it improves with practice. Often, this might mean asking yourself, “Is this really bringing me closer to my goals and dreams?” or even pondering “What exactly are my dreams?” It’s simple yet challenging work.

I remember in 2002 I was in the process of breaking up with a my long-term boyfriend and came down with Guillian-Barre (a story for another time) which left me broken-hearted and weak. I was extremely lost and made some bad decisions (another story) but I remember making the decision to go back to school, chase after something I enjoyed for myself and move to an apartment in a high-rise in a suburb of Chicago by myself.

It was just the first of a long line of decisions I made to pave the path to my future goals and to not waste my precious time on people and things in my life that didn’t serve who I was meant to be.

That, to me, is what productivity is. Living life with intention and not just about “getting things done”. But perhaps I have digressed a bit too much. Let’s bring it back up a notch.

Some of us run our own business, some of us are working full-time and have side-hustles, and some of us are just trying to get through the day and be parents to our kids, or some other focus in life.

And so, here we are trying to figure out how to eek a couple more minutes a day and not get lost in the endless funnel of energy and activity that we are all too familiar with. Here is my personal list of ways to save your time, your most precious commodity to spend it on the things and people you want to most.

So I have compiled this list of 10 of my best tips to be more productive so that you can do to be more time-efficient in your working day and beyond.

Dare to Plan your day

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” — Benjamin Franklin

Taking 10 minutes in the morning to plan your day, you will be much more successful in doing the things you set out to do. Check out my “morning routine” post on how to do this.

There are multiple things that happen when you take the time to plan your day. Not the least of which is not having to cognitively make decisions throughout the day what to work on next. If you outline your priorities and figure out what work will help you reach those prioritized goals, you only have to do it once, not every time you finish a task.

Focus on 2-3 activities to work on per day

The word “Priority” actually means “the very first or prior thing”, or 1 thing… however, we all know that focusing on 1 thing is pretty much impossible in today’s fast-moving world. However, you can choose 2-3 different tasks and make forward progress on them. Be specific about what you are going to move forward on, and hold yourself accountable.

I’d also like to mention that the priorities can be in different parts of your lives, whether it’s personal health, family needs or work needs. There are only 24 hours in a day, and you need to share them all equally in every part of your life for complete happiness.

Time-block your way

I personally don’t know how any mother or individual DOESNT time-block their day in some way shape or form. Even if we don’t know we are doing it, we still put our kids soccer games in our schedules and doctor appointments, we should do the same with everything else. Now there are many ways to skin that cat (where the heck did THAT saying come from?) but in essence, it’s just setting aside parts of the day for specific types of work. Something you are interested in? Check out this (article on Time-blocking)or this (Creating a digital calendar organization system)

My personal favorite is to create an “ideal” weekly schedule of what I’d like to work on when depending on how I know my energy works. I am most awake and productive in the morning, so I tend to schedule most of my heavily focused work then, when I’m fresh, my kids are at school and I’m not exhausted from all the “doing”. Sometimes I am specific about what I’m working on, other times I am more general, knowing the type of work that I will do, but allowing myself a little freedom to work on what is calling me (following my hyperfocus) at the moment in time.

Don’t let interruptions ruin focused work

The hardest thing to do when working in an office is reducing the interruptions and producing time for focused work. Even at home in my daily life, I get distracted by emails, slack messages and the dog barking at the other dogs in the neighborhood.

Now, while I can’t do much about the dog, I can turn off my phone and slack when working on something that needs my concentration (automations anyone?) and when I worked at an office I’d often book a conference room when I had a particularly challenging project.

When I know I need to focus, I typically make myself a cup of coffee or tea and put on the headphones for ambient music (I use the Calm app and Amazon Music playlists mostly). Essentially, this is akin to muting my senses that frequently distract me (my hearing of “pings” and “vibrates” apparently) and allowing my flow-state to engage more quickly.

Leverage technology whenever you can

I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t mention the awesomeness of using tech to take some of the admin work out of your day. There are so many automations out there that can reduce the amount of work you NEED to do, from changing a status on a project tool, to making sure the right information makes it to an onboarding form. In today’s digital world, the opportunities are literally endless.

Not a day goes by where I’m not thinking of how to utilize technology to make more “space” in my life. For example, I am using an AI in one of my favorite tools, Airtable, to take my blog posts and help separate them into social media blurbs. Still my voice but I don’t need to rewrite everything. That’s at least 30 minutes per blog. There are many creative ways to use technology to improve your productivity, from using a scheduler to set the work hours you are willing to take phone calls, or an all-in-one CRM that makes following your leads simple and effective.

Declutter your physical and digital space

A clean space with less items, be it within your physical space, or digital one, is less noise and information for your brain to process. With less input, your brain can understand and focus on the things it needs to more easily, and therefore waste less time. Decluttering, throwing out, or just plain organizing your physical and digital space will reduce your stress and anxiety. With less things around, you have less to worry about.

Look around the space where you typically do your work. Are there old coffee mugs that still need to be taken to the kitchen? Post-it notes that have last week’s meetings on them? Pick them up, throw them away, wipe down your desk. Have only the essential items out and easily accessible.

Next, go through your digital drive once a week and put your files where they belong. Clean out your download folder and clear out your inbox. Just doing this helps to clear the clutter and allow you to streamline your work and focus so you don’t wast valuable time searching the files and emails that don’t have anything to do with what you need to be working on.

Learn to write effectively (and quickly)

Learning how to write, speak, and explain things in an effective format not only helps communication efforts with others, but also saves you time and stress from miscommunications or back and forth messages. Essentially, communicating using the least amount of words as possible, bullet points where able and simple, non-complicated words are best practices.

Nothing raises stress levels more than trying to read someone’s email that doesn’t have a clear path from introduction to ending, that jumps from subject to subject or uses words that I may or may not need to refer to in a dictionary to fully understand what is being conveyed. It’s a waste of my time and you can bet I won’t be responding quickly… or at all.

Take breaks during the workday

It may seem counterintuitive, but taking breaks in your daily schedule actually helps your productivity simply because you will “run out of gas” if you don’t. Taking breaks helps restore mental energy, allowing the brain to rest in between your tasks. Kind of like your body needs to rest at night to be ready for the next day.

Typically I will take a break after a meeting (as an introvert, I need a breather then), or right before a long work period… or if I can just tell my attention is wandering. I have the tendency to want to work through the mental fatigue, but I know from experience that it is more detrimental to push through if my brain just can’t make the connections because it is spent.

The Pomodoro technique, is a technique that can help you stay focused and productive throughout the day. By breaking your work into intervals of focused work and short breaks, you can maximize your efficiency and avoid burnout. Additionally, incorporating tools like time-blocking and prioritizing tasks can further enhance your time management skills and increase productivity levels in your day.

Delegate what you can

About 6 years ago when I was still working in corporate, I was also managing most of the house, making dinners, grocery shopping and taking the kids on all their extra-curricular activities. One night, I told my husband, “I’m done, you are now in charge of all laundry and meals”. Ever since then he has been in charge of meal planning and grocery shopping and all I need to do is make dinner some nights of the week. What a gift!

This is to say that delegating aspects of your work and life can really help your efficiency, whether it be childcare, administrative services or a simple tasks like your lawn for you. If it’s not something you get inherent joy from, or make money from yourself, delegate to someone else. Hiring a Virtual Assistant may be a great next step to delegating the repeating admin tasks in your business. Here is an article that goes into ways to delegate to a virtual assistant.

Remember to review your day

It may be the LAST thing you want to do at the end of your day, but quickly writing down what you did/accomplished on any particular day is extremely fulfilling. Even on the days where you felt like you spun your wheels, looking back at what you actually did accomplish? (even if it was just taking care of yourself and your family) That’s a win my friends. Now go enjoy the free time that is well-deserved.

There you have it!

10 sensible, easy-to-follow, solid tips on how to spend your time in your day efficiently so you can go on that walk with your best friend, or snuggle up and read a story with your little boy, or heck, linger over a glass of wine and watch Netflix. No judgement!

Implementing these ten strategies can transform not just how you manage your day but how you approach your entire life. By focusing on what truly matters and optimizing how you use your time, you can live more fully and work more effectively. The essence of productivity lies not in increasing the number of tasks completed but in enhancing the quality and relevance of what you accomplish each day.

By refining your approach with these strategies, you can ensure that your busy days are not only productive but also aligned with your deepest goals and aspirations. Whether it’s advancing in your career, nurturing your family, or developing personal projects, these tips provide a robust framework for achieving more with your time.

Did you find these tips helpful? Send me a note and let me know if you have any other tried and true tips for efficiency .([email protected])

If you’d like a bit more help in this area, you can check out my Simplify & Conquer session, which walks through your business and your productivity struggles and gives you solid actionable and personal advice to smooth out the wrinkles. Check it out here and schedule a call if interested

For more on time management and productivity, including how to save 8 hours a week check out the posts below

And finally, I created a Productivity Workbook to help you get started with figuring out how increase your productivity in your own life. It’s free and has a ton of actionable tips and exercises specifically developed to save you 8 hour a week of wasted time.

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Streamline Your Day: How to save time in daily life Read More »

Early Rising for more productivity

Project Management / Ana Natkins

The 5 AM Club: The health benefits of rising early

The quietude that dawn brings is not just a physical phenomenon but a metaphorical representation of the mental clarity and tranquility that can be achieved by joining the 5 AM Club.

Waking up super early, like at 5 AM, is more than just avoiding the snooze button. It’s about getting that quiet, uninterrupted time in the morning when you can think clearly and feel calm. This idea is from a book called “The 5 AM Club” by Robin Sharma. He suggests that starting your day early with some exercise and a bit of thinking can improve your sleep quality and make your whole day better.

I read the 5AM club book about a year ago, and was inspired to try based on the recommendations of the Author, Robin Sharma. Robin Sharma says to divide the first hour into three parts: moving (like a morning walk), thinking, and learning. But doing this can be tough with a busy life, family, and personal stuff. Sometimes, the warm bed wins, and you end up hitting snooze for some extra time asleep.So let’s talk about it. Why the 5AM club is a thing, how it works for some people, and how other people can learn from the benefits of it, but make it work for their own chaotic lifestyle

While this is all well and good in a book, the actualities of it happening? Well, in my life, any downtime is usually spent decompressing, walking the dog or sleeping.

There is so much going on in daily life with a family, kids, and your own brain on a roller coaster that getting up early feels like it’s a crapshoot. You can have ALL the intention in the world, but when that alarm goes off and you are exhausted. Getting out of bed is super-fecking-hard.

The benefits of a morning routine

Okay, so you know I like productivity, I like the attempt at living your life with some intention and not just letting the winds of luck or privilege or “that’s what it’s always been” choose my path. The early morning hours tend to be seen as the most productive time of day because you are fresh from quality sleep and there are minimum interruptions.

Being productive really means using your energy wisely, so that when you are rested, motivated and energized, you do the things that take the most mental effort, to be able to move that much closer to your goals. You could also call this “peak performance”

What are the health benefits of rising early?

Rising early has numerous health benefits (duh!). It boosts productivity, enhances mental well-being, and allows time for exercise and a nutritious breakfast. Early risers tend to have better sleep quality and improved focus throughout the day, leading to an overall healthier lifestyle.

Peak performance is a concept that refers to achieving the highest level of productivity and efficiency in your work. It’s about being at your best, consistently. A morning routine can play a crucial role in reaching this state.

As a mom, a wife, an entrepreneur… this “peak” performance feels like something that some childless 20-something “bro” came up with.

As much as it irks me, it’s kind of right. In order for us to be able to be our best for our company, our family, our friends, taking care of ourselves should be our number one priority.

The point of the morning routine is to start your day with a clear mind, focused vision and healthy outlook. Being able to start your day slowly, doing things that you personally enjoy and fill your soul, whether that be meditation, writing, or prayer can fill you with a sense of calm and patience.

Having a morning routine can do wonders. It helps you tackle your day and tasks with energy and enthusiasm.

Basically it sets you up to succeed in whatever it is that you want to do for that day… and who doesn’t want that?!

Oprah Winfrey swears by her morning routine. She starts her day with meditation, followed by a workout, and then spends time planning her day. This routine helps her stay focused, energized, and productive throughout the day.

Other well-known entrepreneurs and businesswomen, Richard Branson and Michelle Obama take time every morning to meticulously plan their day including spending time with family and alone time to reflect.

A well-planned day is a day with room for everything that actually matters.

It’s not just about getting more done. It’s about spending time on things that make you feel good and are good for you. Starting your day with physical activity, like a short walk, is great for your body and can help avoid health issues like obesity and high blood pressure. Spending some time thinking or learning can help you feel more alert and ready for the day.

Morning Routines and Mental Health

Starting your day early can also have significant benefits for your mental health. Morning is a time of quiet and calm, perfect for activities that nourish your mind and soul that you wouldn’t have time or bandwidth to do otherwise.

Whether it’s meditation, yoga, reading, or simply enjoying a cup of tea in silence, these activities can help reduce stress, improve focus, and boost your mood.

One of my favorite morning activities is going on a 2-mile walk with my dog. Even just the act of going outside, breathing the cool air, and walking the neighborhood is enough for me to feel inspired and ready to take on the day.

For women entrepreneurs with ADHD, these benefits can be even more pronounced. ADHD can make it challenging to focus and stay organized. A morning routine can provide the structure and framework to boost dopamine, helping to manage these symptoms and improve overall mental health.

Does it have to be in the morning?

This is the question that I find myself asking whenever I read books like the 5AM club.

Do you need to set your alarm clock super-early to have these types of morning routines?

Choosing to wake up early for the 5 AM Club means changing your sleep habits. It’s hard to go from your usual routine to something new, especially if it means getting less sleep at first. You have to fight the temptation to stay in bed. It’s about saying no to sleep inertia (that groggy feeling when you wake up) and using your morning for a head start on your day.

Even though waking up at 5 AM is great for some people, it’s okay to tweak it to better fit your life. Maybe you need a bit more sleep or prefer different morning activities. It’s all about finding what’s best for you and your sleep schedule preference.

The short answer is no. You don’t NEED to get up before everyone else, but you should find time sometime in the morning to center yourself, get your blood pumping through morning exercise and prepare for the day.

Being reactionary is not only unproductive, it is also stressful and causes anxiety when you flip from one thing to the other all day.

Starting your day with a morning routine, WHENEVER that time is, should help you maintain control of everything for the rest of the day.

It helps with mental clarity, consistency, and most of all, better time management.

The reason why it’s so effective to get up and start the day this way, is because you won’t be interrupted by small children, husbands asking questions, friends calling to ask you to bring their kid to school, clients with emergencies to clear up…. you get the point.

I personally try to get up by 5:45 to get an hour of my own morning routine, to wash my face, drink my water, journal my hopes and fears and plan the details of my day… all before the kids get up at 6:45. I think I would be lost without it.

Crafting a Productive Morning OR Bedtime Routine

So what makes a morning or bedtime routine perfect for crafting a productive day?

It’s basically a spa treatment for your brain. Involve a little movement, a little deep thinking, and a bit of forward thinking.

In short, it doesn’t have to be complicated.

Robin Sharma recommends doing 3, 20-minute segments of movement, reflection and growth.

Here’s a simple step-by-step guide:

When you get up, drink a cup of water to hydrate and help your kidneys clean out your insides.
Include some form of exercise, even if it’s just a short walk.
Add a mindfulness activity, like meditation or journaling.
Identify your most important tasks for the day.
Plan a healthy breakfast that will give you energy.
Stick to your routine consistently.

Here’s my self-care routine:

Get up and drink water and start the coffeemaker
Go to restroom, wash face, brush teeth, put on sweats or something comphy that’s not my PJ’s
Take my freshly made coffee downstairs to my office
Journal about my health, mood, and things I’m grateful for
Review my scheduled appointments for the day and the week and plan my day around those appointments so I’m prepared
Wake up the kids and get them ready for school
Take the dog for a walk
Make a quick breakfast (oat bran pancakes and yogurt or an egg usually and more water)
Shower
Do my morning work activities which include checking metrics, replying to high-priority emails and client work.

For women entrepreneurs with ADHD, you too can have morning routine success

It can be helpful to include strategies that specifically address ADHD symptoms.

Using a visual planner, or digital tool that is easily accessible to help you prepare for the day. I have found that even though I have events of the day on my calendar, writing them out helps solidify them in my mind and make me less likely to be late to a meeting or accidentally skip.

Taking the time to meditate or pray in the morning, to clear your mind of obtrusive thoughts is also a GREAT exercise for those of us that have too many thoughts all the time. Even if it feels impossible, just the practice of it will help give you more control over time.

Prepare the night before. Leave a cup of water out by the fridge for your first drink. Make sure the coffeemaker is set up to go so all you have to do is turn on the switch (or better yet, set the auto-timer). Make sure your computer has all windows closed at the end of the night so you won’t be distracted on what you were working on before bed.

These are just a few tips that I have found works for those with ADHD, but again, everyone is different, you will need to find what works for you.

Successful Women Entrepreneurs with ADHD

There are many successful women entrepreneurs with ADHD who have harnessed the power of a morning routine. Take the example of Karina, a tech entrepreneur. She starts her day with a yoga session, followed by a healthy breakfast and a planning session. This routine helps her stay focused and productive throughout the day.

Or consider Lisa, a fashion entrepreneur with ADHD. She wakes up early to meditate and plan her day, then goes for a run before starting work. Her morning routine is a crucial part of her success.

I have also heard of other ADHD superstars who can’t STAND a morning routine. They like to roll out of bed at 9AM and hit the ground running. They are night owls, who’s energy peaks in the evening. They do have a nighttime routine where they make sure everything they need in the morning or have their workday planned the night before.

In the end, it doesn’t matter WHEN you do it, just that you do it.

For some who’s dopamine is best in the morning, using the self-control to get up early and take time for yourself is best. Others, they get a flood of dopamine in the evening. Whenever it is, grab hold of it and make it your own!

How to become an early riser to take advantage of this?

While the benefits of early rising are clear, making the transition is often met with hurdles.

Much like any sort of habit in life, consistency is key!

Your body gets use to your sleep/wake cycle that you normally follow. This is otherwise known as your body clock. This is why jetlag exists. When suddenly you want to walk around, when your body feels like it should be in a deep sleep, it will drag you down and make you feel as though you are walking in mud and just want to curl up in a ball and sleep.

So don’t expect to get up at 5 AM some day and feel happy about it. 🙂

It’s better to take it gradually and then be consistent about it.

If you want to start waking up earlier, do it bit by bit. Set your alarm just 15 minutes earlier and see how it goes. Keep to this new schedule every day, even on weekends, so your body gets used to the new sleep cycle. This can help improve your sleep quality and make waking up early feel more natural.

Once you are getting up at a time that feels good and allows you to fit in your morning routine… then make it consistent.

This means don’t sleep in on the weekends. A consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends, to reinforce your body’s sleep-wake cycle.

Yep, I said it, you may hate me for it, but you ASKED!

Keeping this consistent waking time even when you DON’T need to be up that early will not only make it easier to get up at that time but also make you more productive on the weekends. 😉

Granted, in actuality, I don’t get up that early on Saturdays, because I like to stay up with the hubster and watch a show on TV on Friday nights. But I know that it’s going to make it harder for me to get up early on Monday, but that’s a hardship I’m willing to face to be able to spend time with my husband.

Now you know the facts 🙂

I like to look at it in the words of Buddah:

Each morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most. – Buddha

Following a morning, mid-day, or evening routine really just allows us to live our life with intention and meaning. So many of us just kind of float through life following someone else’s plan for us or reacting to other people’s needs. We only get one of these things (that we REALLY know of) called life, and I personally choose to live it with intention.

This means taking the time to a) Understand what my values are B) create a schedule and activities that support those values and C) being consistent about revisiting and staying the course.

Especially for those with ADHD, a routine and systems are so important for us to have the structure required to thrive. A morning routine is a great start to establish that structure had habits regardless of the stress and chaos the rest of the day brings. You are in charge, you make the plans.

FAQs

What is the 5AM Club and why does it matter?

The 5AM Club is a concept popularized by Robin Sharma through his book “The 5 AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life.” It revolves around the idea of waking up at 5 AM every day to dedicate the first hour of your day, which Sharma calls the “Victory Hour,” to personal development activities. This could include exercise, meditation, reading, or planning your day. The significance of the 5AM Club lies in its emphasis on using the early morning hours to focus on self-improvement before the demands of the day take over, thereby setting a positive tone for the rest of the day.

What are the benefits of waking up early?

Waking up early has several benefits that contribute to both personal and professional growth:

Increased Productivity: The quiet of the early morning is often considered the best time for deep, uninterrupted work. There’s less noise, fewer distractions, and it’s easier to focus on tasks.
Enhanced Mental Health: Early risers often report having a more optimistic outlook on life and lower levels of stress, as the morning routines help in setting a positive tone for the day.
Better Physical Health: Utilizing the morning for exercise can boost your energy levels for the day, improve your physical health, and help in establishing a regular fitness routine.
Improved Quality of Sleep: Following a routine of waking up early usually leads to going to bed earlier, which can improve the quality of sleep over time.
More Time for Personal Development: The morning provides a great opportunity for self-improvement activities like reading, meditating, or planning, which might be harder to fit into a busy day.

How can you craft your own 5AM Club?

To create your own 5AM Club, consider the following steps:

Gradual Adjustment: If you’re not a natural early riser, gradually set your alarm earlier by 15 minutes every few days until you reach your 5 AM goal.
Evening Routine: Establish a calming evening routine that supports good sleep, such as limiting screen time, reading, or meditating before bed.
Purposeful Mornings: Plan your early mornings with activities that you find fulfilling and energizing. This could be exercise, reading, meditation, or planning your day.
Consistency: Stick to your 5 AM wakeup time even on weekends to reinforce your body’s internal clock.
Accountability: Share your goal with a friend or join a community of early risers for support and motivation.

Can you wake up early, or does another time of day make more sense?

While many people benefit from waking up early, it’s important to recognize that everyone’s biological clock, or circadian rhythm, is different. For some, their peak productivity might come later in the day or even at night. It’s crucial to listen to your body and observe when you feel most alert and productive. If early mornings don’t suit you, consider identifying another block of time that can be dedicated to personal development and focused work. The key is consistency and ensuring that you allocate time for your priorities, regardless of the time of day.

Want to know more about productivity and tips like these?

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Looking to learn more?

Check out these blogs:

Top 5 ways to Simplify your life 👈

Ditch the multi-tasking myth 👈

How to focus on the right things 👈

Early Rising for more productivity Read More »

Airtable for ADHD

Project Management / Ana Natkins

Maximize Your Productivity with Airtable for ADHD

How does Airtable help individuals with ADHD stay organized and focused?

Airtable supports individuals with ADHD by offering a versatile platform that simplifies task and information management. Its user-friendly interface and customizable features like diverse view options, automation, and linked records cater to the unique organizational challenges faced by those with ADHD.

To say that ADHD has had a profound on my life is pretty much the understatement of the century. Of course, I didn’t realize how much of an understatement it was until I started to suspect and was finally diagnosed with neurodiversity last year.

I had lived for 46 years before that thinking that although my parents said I was smart, there were just some things I couldn’t wrap my head around, and although I was really good at problem-solving, understanding emotions, and music… there were just some HARD things. And I was frustrated.

The more I meet other women that have a similar story, I realized how our strengths can be so overshadowed by what’s HARD, that we constantly berate ourselves for not getting shit done.

It just so happens that my early problem-solving, combined with a Compaq computer, and lots of outdoor imagination time allowed me to mull on the ways I could make up for my “detriments”.

I became a big fan of spreadsheets, columns, and rows that helped me organize my information not only to organize my life but also to keep my notes for college classes and basically calm the overwhelming beast that would eventually take over my brain.

The world has come a long way since the first appearance of Excel, but I still feel that the structure a spreadsheet gives you can be extremely helpful in organizing information that our brains have a hard time putting together.

Airtable is a database tool that has become more and more popular in recent years for small and large businesses because of it’s flexibility and ease of use when it comes to the organization of information. It can be organized and viewed in a variety of ways, allowing the user to be able to use it in the way that works best for their brain.

I wanted to take some time to explain why the Airable features are so helpful to those who may be challenged with their executive functioning and make some recommendations for the use of this tool inside and outside of business.

What is ADHD?

ADHD, which stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, is a neurological condition that can affect a person’s ability to focus, control impulses, and maintain consistent energy levels.

It’s like having a brain that’s a bit differently wired than the neuro-typical person. It makes some things like executive function, cognitive control, and impulsiveness harder to control. As mentioned before, I have had this my whole life but only recently found out what it was. My two children have also been diagnosed with ADHD, which affects executive function and other cognitive skills.

While it can be viewed as a disability, I am extremely passionate about using the positive aspects of it to help my clients gain success and allow systems and technology to help keep focus on the things that matter.

Nevertheless, there are some specific things that ND individuals can do to help themselves with the help of technology.

First, let’s talk about some of the main challenges that those who are “neuro-spicy” or neurodivergent may deal with.

Easy distractions – ADHD individuals are easily distracted by multiple things in their environment. Eliminating distractions on the technology front can be extremely helpful.
Trouble prioritizing. When everything feels important, nothing is important. Knowing how to identify the important tasks, data, and information quickly before their minds grab something can make the difference between focusing on a task or being distracted by something else. While we generally are better with routine tasks, sometimes things out of the ordinary may throw us off.
Information Overload. One of the reasons why it can be difficult for those with ADHD is that we are easily overwhelmed by all of the information we can see on our screens. Being able to view everything at once may seem like a benefit, but in reality, making all those connections can just feel like a tidal wave washing over you.
Keeping items in short-term memory. Because those with ADHD tend to have a harder time with focus on capturing and organizing information, it can be harder to keep things in short-term memory, even if they are right in front of our face. If we aren’t focusing on it, it will just pass us by.

Features in Airtable that are beneficial for those with ADHD.

The best part about Airtable for ADHD in my opinion is that it is based on simple principles, columns and rows, but the way you can create multiple categories, and view it in different ways is what makes it SO powerful especially for ADHD brains that need to process information differently and have more unique challenges that most neuro-typical individuals.

Let’s review some of the aspects of Airtable that can really be helpful in this regard.

Custom Fields: Airtable supports various field types like text, number, date, checkbox, attachments, and more. You can create a multitude of categories and fields that give a different bit of context to the main piece of information. For example, you can use attachment fields to store images or documents directly in your base, or link records to create relational databases.
Linked Fields: How many times have you found yourself putting in duplicate information in different programs or even within the same software? Things like Client information and emails, or even your product descriptions, etc. Being able to link fields together in Airtable allows you to create “Master files” of different parts of your life or business and align them wherever you need to by using Linked and Lookup fields.
Views: Views allow you to see your data in different formats, including grid, calendar, kanban, gallery, and form views. This flexibility helps in managing tasks, timelines, and workflows more efficiently and for different types of looking at the data. For instance, a Kanban view can be used for agile project management, while a calendar view is perfect for scheduling or looking at a Content Calendar.
Formulas: Airtable allows for the use of formulas similar to those in spreadsheets, enabling you to perform calculations or manipulate data within your base. While this may be a little bit of a more advanced use case, you’d be amazed how some of the most simple formulas can help you expand the Airtable for ADHD functionality.
Integrations: Through its API and services like Zapier or Integromat, Airtable can integrate with a wide array of other apps and services, automating workflows between platforms. Some of my favorites are Slack, Google Drive, and ClickUp. This means you can connect Airtable with your email, calendar, marketing platforms, CRMs, and more, streamlining processes across your tools and not having to THINK about it all the time.
Base Templates: Airtable offers a wide range of pre-built templates (as do I!) for different industries and use cases. These templates can save time and provide a structured start for your project, whether you’re managing a marketing campaign, tracking a product launch, or organizing a content calendar. I don’t even start from scratch with my bases, I either use a base I’ve created before (find my templates HERE) or I use one of the many free ones that Airtable offers.
Syncing: You can sync data between different bases or even from external sources like Google Calendar or Dropbox. This ensures that your information is up-to-date across all platforms, reducing manual data entry and potential errors. It’s like using multiple tech systems as 1 all-in-one system specifically designed for YOUR business.
Automation – If the base is built for your business, and you have all of your views and custom fields set up to help you organize, find and act on the information in there, the next step would be to DEFINITELY include automation. I’m not even talking about external automation using third-party tools like Make or Zapier, there is a plethora of internal automation that you can create just within Airtable that puts it miles above the majority of tools available for small businesses and is a great help to those that have a hard time imprinting information in their short term memory and suffer from neurodiversity.

I could go on, but I feel as though 8 is enough to tackle at this point 🙂.

So HOW are these Airtable features helpful for Neurodiversity?

Because every person’s brain works differently, tools that are made to be flexible are always the best bet when it comes to working with them. Sometimes it takes a bit to set it up, but once it’s there, it’s smooth sailing.

Always out software for yourself to make a decision, especially if you are overwhelmed and/or think differently than the average person, but if you are someone who is easily distracted, has trouble prioritizing, lack-of-clarity, suffers from information overload or have trouble keeping information in your short-term memory, you can understand how the features above, particularly the single trusted system, can help you get things done. This is especially beneficial for neurodiverse individuals who may struggle with sensory overload and context-switching.

Being able to have all the important information you need in one place (imagine all of your Zoom links and Calendar scheduling links in one place), reduces the need to hop between different tabs or browser instances. Much less of a chance of seeing an unfinished task and getting distracted from what you were doing. Additionally, Airtable’s email management feature allows for automatic sorting of incoming emails into specific folders, reducing clutter in your inbox and saving mental energy.

How about sending out an email to a lead if you haven’t contacted them in a week automatically?

Or syncing your Google calendar to your Airtable base so you can see when you have availability for consulting sessions without ever having to leave the program?

Finally, you can view the images for all of your social media posts in one place thanks to attachments AND can automatically post them on the prescheduled post-date. Amazing for your brain and saving a lot of time? Yes, please!

Interested in figuring out how to do this? Schedule a FREE Strategy call with me!

How you can get started on Airtable as a neurodivergent business owner

I want to point you to all of these awesome functionalities because I truly believe that Airtable is one of the best programs out there to do EVERYTHING that needs to be done to organize and streamline a business. However, much like any tool, starting out on it can feel a bit daunting. Especially for an ADHD entrepreneur or business owner who gets distracted by all the shiny objects.

Steps to get started in Airtable

Figure out the information in your business that you would REALLY benefit from it was organized. Client data? Product information? A centralized place for all of the disparate links and important things you need to see?
Once you know what that is, check out my templates (here) or Airtable free templates to see if there is one that reflects your needs.
Set up your first table with the MAIN information needed for the information.
Examples: Client First Name, Last Name, Email, Socials
Set up additional Tables for “related” information.
Examples: Products Clients have purchased, Financials of when clients have last paid and what they paid, any forms that you would like them to fill out.
Customize fields (Short text, long text, drop-downs, multi-list) as needed to best classify and
Add all of your data and information
Link the fields and tables that require it for a fuller understanding
Experiment with the views to find one that works best for you and/or your team.
Share and collaborate with other team members or embed the view into another tool.
Iterate and Improve over time.

Want a video or youtube of these steps? Let me know! (Email me here! [email protected])

In conclusion, Airtable for ADHD 😙

So regardless of your “condition” or your struggles in everyday life with executive functioning or just being overwhelmed by all of your ideas and thoughts, make sure you take the time to recognize your unique strengths.

We are super lucky to have tools like Airtable to be able to manage some of the areas where we feel like we lack (or rather there is so much going on in our heads that we NEED something out there to put in all our brain thoughts.

The flexibility and adaptability of such platforms are especially beneficial, allowing you, and everyone to leverage their strengths and address their challenges effectively. Airtable’s features, from customizable fields to automation, provide a structured yet adaptable environment that can be tailored to various cognitive and organizational needs.

I challenge you to try it out, see how it can help you and organize all the things.

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Looking to learn more?

Check out these blogs:

The ultimate ADHD productivity system 👈

Ditch the multi-tasking myth 👈

Mastering Client Communication 👈

Airtable for ADHD Read More »

Managing distractions as a work from home mom with ADHD

ADHD Tips, Productivity, Work-life balance / Ana Natkins

Managing Distractions for ADHD Mompreneurs

How do you manage distractions as a work from home mom with adhd? Being a mom is a challenging task, when you add ADHD and entrepreneurship into the mix, it feels as though you are pushing a boulder uphill while blindfolded with your hands behind your back. As mothers, we all want to give our children the time and attention they need, but we also need to have our own identity, with our passions and goals priorities.

ADHD mompreneurs face unique challenges, with their attention split in 15 different directions, as well as constantly reigning in the “squirrel brain” and raising good humans. One of our most significant hurdles is managing distractions, whether it be external, or mental, especially when working from home with children present. This sounds almost next to impossible… but with some planning, asking for help when you need it, and a few little tricks to help you get focused, it IS possible.

How do I manage my distractions?

Discovering the essential strategies for ADHD mompreneurs to conquer distractions and boost your work-from-home efficiency in this blog We off practical tips, balancing parenting, and professional responsibilities with a blend of understanding ADHD, structured planning, and utilizing time-saving and tools to help out.

Understanding ADHD and Its Impact on Productivity

ADHD, or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, is “defined” as a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity.

Yes and no….

In reality, especially for women, ADHD affects several different and often unexpected ways based on personality, upbringing, and skills learned throughout their lives. What remains true is that there are Executive Function challenges. That means, we struggle with the processing of information and organizing it in our heads. It also means that we are more sensitive to the multiple sensory stimulation (like noises, smells, sounds, touch) that seem to be constantly vying for our attention.

This makes focus EXTREMELY difficult unless its something we are super-interested in, and then the “feel-good” chemicals in our brain flood our system and we can spend HOURs on that one thing. If only we had a “Productivity” button.

In my case, that thing is problem-solving and making databases and interconnecting systems that resemble huge lego-block castles in my brain. It just makes SENSE, and I love the satisfaction of looking at my creation once it’s complete…. but I digress.

Unfortunately, we can’t go down our rabbit holes all day, we have responsibilities and little mini-me’s that need our attention and patience, so we need to do deep work while we can and leave the other parts of the day available for those that need us.

This unique situation can lead to increased distractions and decreased work efficiency. But there is hope… if you know how to deal with it.

Identifying Distractions at Home

Distractions are a common issue for individuals with ADHD and can come from a wide variety of sources. These can range from external factors like noise and interruptions to internal distractions like racing thoughts or hyperfocus on non-work-related tasks. (Don’t I KNOW it!)

For mompreneurs working from home, additional distractions can include home maintenance issues, children’s needs, and other family responsibilities. These distractions can (and do) significantly impact work efficiency, leading to decreased productivity and increased stress.

Ever heard of “mom guilt”? You know, when you have half your attention on your kids, but you feel guilty for not being fully present, but then also half attention on your work and you feel as if you suck at what you do? I feel you girl…

So sit down for 15 minutes with your cup of coffee, and write down a list on whatever scrap of paper is available of all the things that have distracted you in the last 24-48 hours.

Here’s mine:

Strategies for Managing Distractions

There are strategies that ADHD mompreneurs can use to manage distractions and improve work efficiency, believe it or not. And these are not strategies that I’ve just read about and repeating to you. They are things I have tried and have had success with myself.

Keep in mind, that some strategies that work one day may not work the next, this is the fun that is ADHD (and motherhood in general), but with these in your back pocket, you can always try another one.

The first step should be to create dedicated workspace or home office that will help separate work from your home activities during your work day. An “office” if you will, even if it’s a corner of your dining room. Generally, it is better to have a door between you and the “distractions” so they are out of sight. A “place” to do work is a silent clue to your body that you are in work mode and you are more apt to be able to focus on it.
Structured schedule. Okay folks… I know you ALL cringed at the word “structured”, but it’s not as bad as it sounds. While having a schedule, or certain times of day for certain tasks, sounds confining, it ALLOWS you more freedom for the things that matter. Here is my example. Routines are your friend…. so are habits, especially when you have ADHD brain. This doesn’t mean you have to always follow the schedule… but it does allow you to pay attention to the pressing matters
Use tools and apps for focus. When you have the chance to sit down and work, there are a variety of things you can utilize to help you. Some of my favorites are The Pomodoro Technique, The Calm App (ambient noise) quick meditations for mindfulness, and Essential Oils like Doterra.
Turn OFF the things that are most distracting for you. (I’m looking at YOU Instagram and Facebook,…. and sometimes YouTube and Pinterest)

Balancing Work and Parenting Duties as well as ADHD

Balancing work tasks and parenting responsibilities let alone house duties and cleaning is another significant challenge for ADHD mompreneurs. If you are like me, not only are you doing client work, “pounding the pavement” for sales, and marketing, but you are also the first in line for your kids needs.

While both my children are school-age, I am still the one to pick them up if they are sick, attend all of their 504 and IEP meetings, organize their distance learning if a snow day calls for it, let alone do all the runs for their doctor appointments. My children, with their own unique needs end up being my responsibility because I am the one that works from home, allowing me more flexibility, but it also means I am more easily distracted.

Their school days also end at 2:15 (which feels EARLY), and therefore my afternoons are taken up by snacks, homework, piano practice, fits, broken toys etc. so I need to make use of the morning hours to do the majority of my business work.

This means that I have to be strict with myself on when I work and PLAN before the week to circumvent those “things” that pop up unexpectedly. I also need to think ahead as far as how my daily schedule is going to work to make sure I have the time to get it all done.

If you have a plan, you can change the plan if something derails you. If you don’t have a plan, your life might as well be ruled by chaos.

Weekly Planning: Sitting down with a cup of tea and some ambient and relaxing music on Sunday night or Monday morning and do the following

Write down all the events you have going on during the week for your home and work schedule
Write down anything you need to do in order to be “ready” for those events.
Write down anything else that needs to get done this week outside of those events
Look at the “quiet” times in your schedule for the week, plan the “heavy thinking” items for those times.
Admin things you can get done during kids practices, while they are watching Bluey (which I have never seen by the way… but I hear it’s good).
Self-care time. Yes, this is important.

Then at the beginning of every day, write down your big 3 priorities for the day keeping that initial llist in your mind.

This allows for flexibility but still keeps the most important items.

Also remember, taking care of yourself is not a luxury, but a necessity for maintaining balance and managing ADHD symptoms. Make sure you save time for a shower and a hot cup of coffee.

Tips to manage those distractions IN the moment

So I know that all of these hints are well and good, but what do you do when you are IN the moment, and you KNOW you need to get things done but your noisy brain keeps taking you down the rabbit holes?

Well my friend… first, recognize that you ARE going down rabbit holes. Recognizing WHEN you are distracted goes a long way to figure out what is distracting you and why.

If you are thinking about if you have the ingredients to make dinner, write down that question in a notebook or something and GET it out of your head so you can refer to it later or the next day.

If you have too many tabs open, and every time you go to one to close, you get distracted by what’s on the page and start doing something (not that I just did that 5 times in the last 10 minutes). Close your WHOLE browser and start fresh. Open ONLY the PM tool, or wherever your online task list is, or your manual notebook with your priorities for the day and ONLY open what you need.

Headphones and ambient music. I don’t know what it is (and it may be different for everyone), but it’s like being in a cave for me and all of the “noise” falls away.

Seeking Support and Resources in Motherhood

Regardless of what distracts you and when, your mental health is important. If you have executive function struggles (either from ADHD or just being over-tired and overwhelmed) it’s important to remember that you’re not alone in this journey.

Seeking help when needed is crucial for managing the challenges of being an ADHD mompreneur. There are numerous resources available, from ADHD coaches and therapists to online communities and support groups. I know I didn’t hesitate to reach out to these support networks, even before I knew that I was neuro-spicy. They can provide valuable advice, encouragement, and understanding. Something we all need from time to time.

CHADD – https://chadd.org/

Additude Magazine – https://www.additudemag.com/resources/

More to ADHD – https://www.moretoadhd.com/

All in all….

Managing distractions is crucial for work from home efficiency, especially for ADHD mompreneurs. Despite the challenges, remember that with some help, you have the strength and resilience to overcome them.

Try these strategies, search for some more resources, and local support, you can manage your priorities, balance work and parenting duties, and achieve success, whatever that means to you.

Keep going, keep striving, and remember to take care of yourself along the way. You’ve got this.

The only way to learn something is to USE it!
Grab my FREE Productivity Workbook below

Looking to learn more?

Check out these blogs:

How VIP Days are super-productive for clients 👈

Ditch the multi-tasking myth 👈

How to focus on the right things 👈

Managing distractions as a work from home mom with ADHD Read More »

Boost Productivity: Ditch Multitasking Myth

Operations Management / Ana Natkins

Ditch Multitasking: Boost Your Productivity Instead

Are you someone who prides themselves on their ability to multitask? Do you feel like you’re getting more done when you juggle multiple tasks at once? Unfortunately, research shows that the opposite is true. Multitasking can lead to a decrease in productivity and cognitive ability. But don’t worry, there’s a better way!

In this blog post, we’ll dive into the science behind multitasking and why it’s not as efficient as we once thought. Learn why multitasking is a myth and how you can enhance your productivity. We’ll explore the downsides of multitasking and how it can impact your work life. But most importantly, we’ll provide you with practical tips and techniques to transition from multitasking to single-tasking. You’ll learn personalized strategies for ADHD business owners and when it’s actually helpful to multitask. So let’s ditch multitasking and boost our productivity instead!

Understanding what multi-tasking is…

Multitasking, in its simplest form, refers to the act of handling more than one task simultaneously.

Sound good right? Two tasks for the price of one.

On the surface, yes, it does. If I could do 10 tasks at once I would be the consultant/wife/mother of the century… but the fact is, I am human… and human’s CANNOT actually multi-task, even if that’s what they want you to think.

What is the definition of multi-tasking?

The concept of multitasking is often misunderstood. It is believed to be the ability to juggle multiple tasks simultaneously, but there is much research shows that it leads to burnout, distraction, and reduced productivity at the end of the day.

In reality, true multitasking is a myth as our attention and focus cannot be divided efficiently.

The Impact of Multitasking on Productivity

So let’s talk about multi-tasking in the lens of productivity. The whole POINT of multi-tasking is to be productive right?

That is the part that is the myth… multitasking makes you less productive. Sorry old boss!

Multi-tasking for a human is actually the same exact thing it is for a computer, it’s not multi-tasking, it’s task SWITCHING.

(On a separate note, computers memories and processing has improved exponentially year over year, but our human brains have NOT so it’s not even a fair comparison to make)

It is literally impossible to focus on two tasks at once. Like the aforementioned computer, you are just switching your attention from one task to the next. When this happens you get “attention residue” which is the lingering effects of a previous task on our ability to FOCUS and perform well on subsequent tasks.

When we switch between tasks, some of our attention remains on the previous activity and hinders our performance on the new task. This phenomenon is particularly relevant in today’s world, where we are constantly bombarded with distractions from various sources such as emails, notifications, social media and the Slack sound constantly going off.

The cognitive consequences of multitasking are also far-reaching, impacting individuals’ ability to effectively manage previous tasks while transitioning to new ones. The key word here is “effective”. Managing something effectively means being able to be fully absorbed and focused on every aspect of it in order to make sure everything is accounted for. (Read – detail oriented)

This, in turn, affects the productivity of knowledge workers, creating a false sense of being a great multitasker. In reality, the distractions caused by notifications on the cellphone, laptop, or even the dog under the desk hinder the seamless transition from one task to another. As a result, multitasking mismanagement becomes a significant challenge for individuals striving to excel in their endeavors. Recognizing the detrimental impact of multitasking is the first line of defense in reclaiming focus and productivity, enabling individuals to break free from the multitasking myth and adopt a more effective approach to task management.

Now imagine all of that as an ADHD individual who is already dealing with racing thoughts, executive functioning challenges and getting through the “boring stuff” so they can chase the dopamine.

Understanding how multi-tasking myth concept is crucial for anyone looking to optimize their work habits and improve efficiency.

What is the draw of multi-tasking why do so many people do it?

Many people are drawn to multitasking because they believe it increases efficiency and productivity.

Actually, I believe it’s because of 2 reasons: 1. We have been trained through smartphones and devices to react to competing stimuli immediately and 2. because we are constantly chasing the dopamine that comes with “discovering” something new that needs our attention.

Example: We are waiting for a file to load or a program to open on our computer. While we are waiting, we hear a “ping” from some device, or the computer itself to let us know that we have a message. While we are still waiting for the computer, or person, or whatever to finish a task we think “why don’t I just check on the message to see what it needed”. Suddenly you are going down a rabbit-hole

However, studies have shown that the human brain is not built for multitasking. Multitasking is actually a myth, as it leads to attention residue and negatively impacts working memory, ultimately reducing overall productivity.

The Illusion of Efficiency: Exploring the Downsides of Multitasking

Despite the natural tendency to get more done in less time, our brains just are not meant for multitasking Studies have shown that working memory suffers when switching between tasks. There are times when there seems that we have to multi-task… At this moment I’m listening to my son practice piano while I’m writing this blog for example… but when I REALLY need to focus… I take steps to make sure my brain can focus on that one thing.

Multitasking is a Myth: The Ultimate Guide to Getting More Done (By Doing Less) <<<asdf Picture of someone thinking really hard>>

Burnout is a common result of too much multi-tasking. Burnout, a form of exhaustion that can come from the mental and emotional fatigue of “trying to do it all” and constantly feeling swamped by all of the responsibilities you or your job requires from yourself. It’s the result of excessive stress… which can come from constantly trying to do ALL. THE. THINGS.

You can see how multi-tasking though not the only cause of burn-out can definitely add to the feeling of overwhelm and panic.

Surprisingly, multi-tasking can actually lead to decreased productivity as our brain switches between tasks. I know, it’s funny how something we do because we want to get more done in less time actually causes us to go SLOWER in our attempt to check everything off of our to-do lists. Our brain switches between tasks so quickly that it can’t hold all the information necessary to remember the pieces needed for each task.

This leads me to the accuracy issue that is tied in with the myth of multi-tasking. Everytime your brain switches tasks, you pay a small “tax” that basically just tires you out and makes you less able to do the deep-thinking that your most valuable tasks require.

Everytime you are QAing an email, double-checking an automation or making dinner you need to make sure you are accurate… or someone could end up with salty cookies.

Multitasking and the Workplace: A Troublesome Partnership

Despite numerous studies demonstrating its detrimental effects, the myth of multitasking still persists in the workplace. Many times (like in my case) it is even celebrated or required for certain roles.

Multitasking actually causes different parts of the brain to function simultaneously, resulting in negative impacts on attention and task performance and therefore is like asking someone to perform at suboptimal level.

The negative consequences of multitasking can be seen through switch cost and the lack of focus when dividing attention, imagine trying to set up a complicated workflow or write a company-wide communication and have constant interruption with emails and phone calls.

This undermines productive time and diminishes the quality of work due to attention residue. Businesses and entreprenuers need to understand that being a great multitasker does not necessarily mean being effective in their jo. Instead, focusing on one task at a time can lead to better results and reduce cognitive strain for effective and a happier team.

A Better Way to Achieve Productivity – Single-tasking

Transitioning from the myth of multitasking to the reality of single-tasking opens up a world of productivity potential. And we all know how productivity can open up your time to spend doing those things you ACTUALLY love.

Embracing single-tasking as a productive time management technique allows knowledge workers to boost their full attention and efficiency on specific tasks.

Why focusing on one thing at a time benefits productivity

Let’s talk about Focus for a moment.

Focus is the act of directing your attention on a single object or activity without letting distractions take it away. All of your mental energy is pointed at a particular task, subject, or thought. With all of your cylinders running in the same direction, you are able to think more clearly and accomplish tasks more effectively.

Being able to focus on one task or one problem at a time not only allows quicker thought, but it allows for deeper thinking and better problem solving or ingenuity than just getting as many tasks done as possible.

This is why meditation and clarity techniques are so effective, especially for those of us that are ADHD and often are thinking about multiple tasks or subjects at the same time. Once we are able to slow down our brain, and our bodies, our ability to problem solve and gain clarity seems to multiply exponentially.

Transitioning from Multitasking to Single-Tasking

Okay, so how do we actually move from Multi-tasking to sitting down and doing 1 thing at a time? In a world where everyone is so busy doing ALL the things, taking the steps to actually FOCUS on a task can seem…. counterintuitive.

When I asked my community about whether they thought multi-tasking was a myth, I got a variety of answers from “If I didn’t multi-task I wouldn’t be able to live my life” to “completely impossible”.

The fact is, we all multi-task and it is part of our everyday lives, but we really need to figure out HOW and WHEN to single-focus task in order to keep the plates spinning, but the deep-thinking work required to solve complex problems, to be able to explain them to others cannot be done simultaneously with other tasks.

Finding the time for those tasks the require the focus, that need deeper thinking is a combination of prioritization and learning how to reduce distractions and single focus on the task at hand. This is a combination of figuring out what available time you have in your day, how to structure it so that you are able to prioritize deep-thinking tasks as well as get the other “smaller tasks” that are also important but don’t need the deep thinking.

Techniques to Enhance Focus and Reduce Distractions

Enhancing focus and reducing distractions is crucial to boosting productivity, but I find that there are so many apps and techniques out there to choose from, it’s difficult to really figure out what will work. The answer is, there is no “one size fits all” to help increase focus for any individual, but some of the items below will help figure out the areas in which you can work in order to reduce the multi-tasking for the areas of your life where it’s needed.

Mindfulness Practice, in addition to being good for your mental health and decrease of burnout, mindfulness practice can be excellent to help focus your energy into one task. It helps trains your brain to focus on the present moment, which can directly improve your ability to concentrate on tasks, especially for those that are ADHD like myself. By clearing away the clutter and reducing stress, it creates a mental environment where creativity and innovative thinking can flourish.

I personally use the “Calm” app to help with my mindfulness practice, as well as play Binural beats when I am writing or need to concentrate.

Prioritization Matrix: While there are quite a few options of matrix to choose from out there, I prefer to keep it simple and constantly refer to the Eisenhower matrix when looking at how to prioritize my tasks.

Every morning I get up, get my cup of coffee and site down to my mindfulness and quick journaling practice where I identify that tasks I need to get done that day and then prioritize them into “Urgent/Important”, “Not-Urgent/Important”, “Urgent/Not-Important” and finally “Not-Urgent, Not Important”.

<<<asdf>>> image of Eisenhower matrix

For more in-depth understanding of the matrix, check out this from ClickUp or my blog on productivity and adhd.

Time-Blocking – Time-boxing, also known as time-blocking, is a time management technique that involves allocating a specific, fixed period of time (a “time box”) to each task or activity. This approach is designed to increase productivity and efficiency by providing a structured way to manage time and tasks.

This technique can be extremely useful to help organize your days in order to use the time that you have wisely. It also can be very eye-opening when you really look at the time you actually have for focused work with everything else that we typically have going on in our lives. From general house and family maintenance, to kid’s activities, to work meetings, to doctors and health appointments… the time we have for actual productive focus is quite small. Make sure you

Minimizing Distractions. I think it goes without saying, that if you minimize distractions you are able to increase your focus. This is sometimes harder to do than you realize. Finding a place where you won’t be disturbed or interrupted (like an office where you can close the door), as well as turning off all unnecessary notifications (I don’t turn off my phone in the case of a phone call from my kids school), will significantly help with this.

ADHD TIP I also find that listening to ambient, lo-fi or binural music on my headphones has been a game-changer to help me focus on 1 mental task at a time, while keeping my brain busy processing the auditory but non-distracting sounds is extremely helpful. Added bonus if you use earbuds or headphones to physically block your ears from external stimuli

When would multi-tasking actually be helpful?

Multitasking can be helpful and sometimes unavoidable in certain situations. While it would be great to live in a perfect world where we can all do one task at a time, it is not our reality… especially if you are a parent or adhd. In fact, it is sometimes necessary to do two things at once to get the benefit of both activities.

I know I know, it is counterintuitive… just keep in mind that It is productive when working on tasks that don’t require full attention or when working on different tasks that don’t overlap.

Doing 2 tasks that don’t both require your focus

When working on tasks that don’t both require your full attention, it actually possible to be productive, but you have to choose the right tasks. Usually this is when one of the tasks is physical in nature, doesn’t require a lot of brain power (exercise, walking, running) and the other is only requires a smaller amount of focus.

For instance, I tend to make dinner while listening to a podcast or audiobook, and I believe that it actually HELPS me to focus on the task at hand as long as what I am listening to doesn’t require me to do equations on my feet. (Translating how many tablespoons go into a 1/4 cup however, I can handle).

As a member of the neuro-divergent community, I also find that when I’m on a meeting, I find it EASIER to understand and absorb the information being presented by either Mind-mapping or doodling or coloring while the meeting is going on. This is because my brain tends to wander when it’s bored (even if I know the information is important), and so I use the power of the physical action of writing and coloring to keep the dopamine in the brain while letting my ears listen and grab onto the concepts.

If you are interested in some of the types of tasks you can do at the same time, I encourage you to read the book “Thinking Fast and Slow”

Thinking Fast and Slow

Conclusion

So despite what your boss, your friend or your cousin may tell you (they are AWESOME at multi-tasking), the fact is… no one is awesome at it, and if we insist on living in a world where our attention is spread thin over a multitude of activities at the same time… you are asking for burnout.

It may not be today.

It may not be tomorrow.

But eventually, your mind and body will retaliate… and by then, it may just be too late.

But we’ll save the conversation of burnout, what it means and how it can permanently effect you for another day 🙂

If you want to move forward toward your goals and dreams… do less. Do only those things that truly matter to you. It may mean that you need to make some difficult decisions about things you have already committed to, or tell someone that you can’t run the classroom party this year.

Set priorities, eliminate distractions, practice mindfullness and enhance your focus. Accomplish more in less time.

Want more? Join my mailing list for productivity conversations and real talk about life as a neuro-divergent entrepreneurial mom. (and get notifications of when my blog comes out!) Sign up here.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are some alternative methods for boosting productivity?

Boost your productivity with these alternative methods: break tasks into smaller, manageable chunks; prioritize based on importance and deadline; take regular breaks to avoid burnout and maintain focus; utilize productivity tools like time management apps or project management software.

Are there any tools or apps that can help me stay focused and productive?

Yes, there are various tools and apps available to enhance focus and productivity. Some popular ones include Trello, Asana, and Todoist, which help with task management. Additionally, tools like RescueTime can track time spent on tasks for better time management. Focus@Will is a music app that claims to boost concentration and productivity.

Can I offload some of my tasks so I can focus on the ones that matter?

Yes, offloading certain tasks can be a great way to prioritize and focus on the ones that truly matter. Consider delegating tasks to colleagues or outsourcing them to freelancers. By doing so, you can reduce stress and improve overall productivity. Remember to prioritize the tasks that only you can do and delegate the rest for maximum efficiency.

Looking to learn more?

Check out these blogs:

The Ultimate Productivity System: ClickUp & Airtable

Airtable Goal Tracking Made Simple: Achieve your Goals

The Power of VIP Days

As always, Keep it Simple,

Boost Productivity: Ditch Multitasking Myth Read More »