Focus Forge | Cornerstones: An Introduction
Introducing a 4-part series where I'll be sharing silly strategies for fighting functional fog
For the first few months after my diagnosis, I was constantly awestruck (and at times enraged) by the sheer volume of support systems that were already in place in my life. My personal brand of ADHD can make things both difficult to start (executive dysfunction, yay) and difficult to stop (thanks, hyperfocus), which means strategies I use to "get unstuck" are woven into the fabric of my life, often hiding in plain sight.
In this series I'll be sharing some of my tried-and-true favorites, focusing on lesser-known or refreshing plays on productivity classics. They might feel pretty silly at first, but don't let that fool you: the best tools are the ones you use, and the amount of time even a silly strategy can save you if you use it is a pretty powerful thing!
I've gathered them into the following categories. The first deep dive, Part 1: The Oracles, will drop on Tuesday, June 17th, with a new part of the series arriving each Tuesday after that for the rest of the series.
Oracles: To make the decision for you, put you in touch with your intuition, maybe even offer a glimpse into the future.
Commencements: For building routines, and when you just need to get moving.
Alchemies: Transform anxiety and overwhelm with curiosity and cognitive reframing.
I'll take you through each category with fun examples, details about the tools I actually use, and suggestions for when you may want to mix and match (Spoiler: The Anthropologist plays well with everyone), but the thing I like most about these is that there are no hard rules. Don't forget that it's absolutely okay to take what works and leave the rest, tweak and reinterpret to your heart's content, and —most importantly— know that it isn't a reflection on you if these strategies aren't your jam, it's simply your brain telling you to stay curious and keep experimenting.
The Cornerstones series was created because there seems to be a lot of shame around productivity in the neurodivergent community. I don't see enough advice that takes the way we're wired into account, plus most of it is focused on "normalizing" us as much as possible— and I don't think that's healthy. For one, it feeds into the illusion that normal is a thing that actually exists, and two, there's a lot of untapped potential in leaning into how curious and creative our brains naturally need to be.
I'm excited to share the tips I've gained through lived-experience, and would love to hear if you have any unconventional productivity power-ups of your own.