Task Initiation is Connected to Good Time Management. Here's how you can roll that boulder uphill when you have ADHD.

Task initiation is the ability to start a task without procrastinating, especially if the task is boring. We're not motivated and may hit an obstacle, so we move on to the next thing, never finishing the original task. In other words, task avoidance. Jumping from one thing to another can easily get us behind.

We might have a block of time to do something, but we haven't thought about what we'll actually do when the time comes. Because we haven't planned ahead, we might not have any of the supplies on hand to do the job. Or the task might involve more than we thought and we aren't sure how to approach it or just how to break the pieces of it. Anxiety kicks in and we get stuck. Perfectionism rears its head and we are in a state of overwhelm.

Task initiation is one of the front of the brain skills or executive skills, required to get started on a task. People with ADHD struggle with these hidden cognitive processes such as planning or prioritizing. To the outsider this can look like laziness or lack of willpower.

Try this

• Decide it. Look ahead to see when you have a block of time. Know exactly what task you will do at that time. This gives you lead time if you need to ask for help.

• Think it. Think about any supplies you might need to do the task. Have them in place the day before you plan to do something.

• Eat it. You may have heard the phrase "eat the frog." It means to do the task right away before you can talk yourself out of it.

• Approach it. If there's something you need to get done, do a warm up task first to get yourself in the right mindset. After it is done, give yourself a reward.

• Partner it. The buddy system can go a long way in getting something done. It might be talking to someone as you clean your room. Or having someone sitting with you as you do a task.

• Help it. Do what you do best and get help for the rest.

• Remember it. Think of the 3 words: Simplify, Delegate, Eliminate. Applying these words can solve almost any problem and save us a great deal of time.

Ask yourself

• What task is hard to start?

• What activity can I do to get into action?

• How will I reward myself?

• Who can help?

If you're having trouble answering that last one, look no further for someone who can help! Schedule a free consultation with an ADHD coach today!