Was diagnosed as a child. I take no medication. Instead I adopted the role of “hunter” (as opposed to “farmer”), as described by Thom Hartmann in his ADHD books. Which means I don’t sign up for “farmer”-like tasks and delegate them instead.

My fundamental tool for staying on track with the work I do sign up with, pen and paper. It started with pencil and paper and the pencils of many varieties picked up from various bargain stores. The variety of colors and designs was what drove me to keep lists. But over years that evolved to a specially curated set of blue, red and green pens. I keep a book next to my dominant hand on my desk. Short term tasks are written in blue. Crossed out in red upon completion. This is a gamification strategy that gives me a little endorphine hit when I do it. On days where focusing seems difficult, I use the green pen to put a bullet point like some kind of human instruction pointer to indicate what I’m working on. Everything revolves around looking at the book. If there is an issue/inquiry for a teammate, it also gets written down.

I have a second book, in which I allocate 2 pages to each project I have. This has a handwritten synopsis of the project and any large challenges the project entails. Very minimal on details. This book is the forest; it serves long term memory issues. The first book is the trees, for short term, is highly detailed and is a diary of sorts in log form. Things not completed yesterday are re-written today as a means of reinforcing my connection to the task or need.

So this is all ritualistic for me. The pens I now favor have come through years of iteration. The “trees” books are Italian-made that my wife gave me and then I went to Home Goods to stock up on them. The paper is ruled and nice to write on and a little fancy. These weigh less than my phone, so I always grab one that I use as a free form note-taking pad in meetings. The “forest” book is thicker, has a specially-designated and fillable table of contents at the beginning. The paper is not lined and has a line or graph paper template to put under the page you’re writing on.

My point here is not you have to have the same fancy pens and books I use. I have chosen things that just “feel right” to me. “Right” means something I enjoy visually and by touch. If you adopt a paper-based approach, absolutely find what works for you. I mean only to share what I have found as an example.

I occasionally go shopping for alternatives; if I one day find something I like better I will repurpose the stocks on hand of books and/or pens and ruthlessly get rid of the old and bring in the new.

Why do I go to such lengths to facilitate writing? For me, the motion and muscle activity of writing is a different way to form memories. Something written becomes more connected to me than something typed. I do use Notes on my Apple devices for certain things but these always seem very detached from me. If I remember or by random encounter a note in Notes visually, and it seems important, I then write it down.

I also use Calendar and Reminders to trigger me, mostly in a reactive way into action. Siri is literally my administrative assistant.

Oh, and my reasoning for avoiding medication: my ADHD is a gift that I do not want to squelch. Yours may be more difficult and maybe medication is your solution.