How to plan your weekly tasks to avoid overwhelm

Despite putting so much effort into TRYING, knowing how to plan your weekly tasks when you have adhd or autism can sometimes leave us adrift in a sea of (well-meaning) advice.

I can’t count the number of cleaning schedules I’ve pinned on Pinterest or systems that seem to only work for these superhuman housekeeping machines.

Executive dysfunction in adults with autism and ADHD is easily dismissed as lazyness from the outside by people who don’t understand what it’s like to live with our minds.

So finding executive functioning strategies that work can be difficult and involve a lot of trial and error.

I’ve developed this template to help me manage my weekly tasks and it works because:

- It’s flexible, so the system doesn’t fall apart if I miss a day… or two
- It allows for co-operation and gamification (if you and your partner/housemates are competitive like that)
- You can easily see when a task was last completed without having to visually keep an eye on the state of things (something I used to do as my primary strategy)

Let me know if you have a strategy, and how it works for you.

[delilahhart]

I definitely would like to see more videos about executive functioning, because that's my biggest hurdle.

[auranah_was_taken]

Your voice is so pleasant, your accent as well. I love how eloquent you are, and your sense of humour is so on point 🥰

[LecheVitrineUK]

I'm drowning in executive dysfunction issues, I'm autistic with ADHD, I have an autistic daughter also, I'm always trying to figure out ways of organising the house etc xx

[LinguaSerbia]

I recently started writing down EVERYTHING that I want to do, to save, to research, every smallest thing. It's a messy little notebook but it's helping me a lot.

[thethayanwitch]

What helped me the most til now was buying a lightweight wireless vacuum cleaner and place it in a high traffic room of my apartment. The old vacuum was just too heavy, too loud and hard to reach in my storage room because the room is crammed (vacuum is big so it can’t be placed in the rest of my tiny apartment. A big plus for me is that the wireless vacuum has a charge for about 45 minutes of intense cleaning. I never know when to stop with a task and easily get frustrated if I don’t have a time limit. This way I always vacuum til the batteries are empty and then take a break or switch to another task.

[annegirl]

Yes, please have more executive function videos! 😄

[danielleyoshihara]

I'm still looking for a strategy that works for me. I'm going to try yours. Thank you for your videos! I am 37 and was diagnosed last October. I'm learning so much about myself. Now that I finally understand myself, I have had to start all over in life to find out what works best for me.

[GladysAmelia]

This frustration has been my life for decades. Thank you for suggesting a system that just might help.

[starsnmoon]

5:19 and that's when I immediately hit the like button. Because I have the same sense of humor in my head...only in my head.

[hakumeichan]

I really need to try this! I'm very very very VERY bad at cleaning around. I don't like being dirty (as many of my family said), I just don't have the energy and the mental capacity to remember to do things and when they are too much I just can't start. My psychologist is trying to help me giving me weekly tasks, one chore that I need to prioritize and if I have done it than good, I'm getting better. But even if I completed that task seeing everything else in chaos makes me incapable of being happy.
I tried with bullet journal, days designated for tasks, I tried everything and nothing worked for me! So if your method works I will find you and give you a really big kiss! ... from my mom too because she is not coming to my home because of the cleaning problem. What a mess!
p.s. with daily tasks, like washing the dishes, or things that you need to do when certain condition are met (like taking out the trash when the bin is full) how do you track those? Thank you

[juliai]

PLEASE add more like this. I've been juggling bullet journals for years. They're great at first, but then it gets overwhelming to keep up with and it can be discouraging seeing all the missed goals at the end of each month. I would love to know more atypical-friendly organization tips.

[GG-yvdt]

Please more executive functioning videos. Maybe digital task management -- emails, purging, organizing.

[isabellabihy]

Wow, I can totally relate to what you're saying! I'm subbed! I have Asperger's and ADHD, and my single (!) household overwhelms me. Total horror is my snail mail box. I've just learned to manage it, some, that is. I cannot always figure out what those folks who send (unwanted) mail really want. There is a load of words in convoluted sentences, instead of a clear list of what is expected from me. No, I'm not dyslexic. I don't always have the nerves to call the sender and ask what is wanted.
My main difficulty is prioritizing. I put a task at the top of my list, then an uncontrollable event occurs, and I should re-order the priorities. Heck, what criteria do you use to reset the priorities? This decision is tough. Is there a set of criteria that are always valid? I need to be sure that my decision is correct. When I start a task, I want to complete it to the end before I start the next one. I definitely cannot perform multitasking. If required, it drives me nuts.
Yes, please do some more videos on executive (dis)function! Happy holidays!

[paxtonanthonymurphy]

Ironically, I was better at keeping the house clean when I had a part time job because I would do one or at most two things before work. For example, I would sweep the floor but save the mopping for later. Or I would wash the dishes then let them air dry in the dish rack instead of putting them away also. Or I would clean the bathroom sink and save the tub, the toilet and the floor for another time. Then I would go to work guilt free knowing that I had done the best I could under the time constraints I was working under. Plus only committing to one or two things at most helped me not to feel overwhelmed by the prospect of having to do everything at once. Thank you Samdy Sam for bringing this issue to the forefront.

[dustyroaddesign]

Please do a video on planning a monthly and weekly calendar. I saw your video was only addressing home tasks. I already do flylady for my cleaning, but I am hopeless for remembering important appointments and I'm sure my children's teachers look at me with pity 😰😭 I've bought calendar after calendar and over the year I look at them and they're empty. I hate spending money on an expensive "good" planner because it's a waste of money. 😭😭😭

[louiseanne]

Yes! Please do more on executive functioning. I struggle a lot in this area :)

[tomxh]

Please! I’d love to see more videos about organization and executive functioning ❤

[angelm]

This is great! I actually found a paper planner-like habit tracker on Amazon for about $5. You can set the month on it and it has Daily, Weekly, and Month spots. For that reason...I can see when I last did it.

[lindathorn]

Yes. Cover every part of executive function please 😊

[mara]

More executive function vids please!!!❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ Love u