・゜⬩ㅤㅤㅤ procrastination checklist by adhdpie

1 ㅤ do i honestly intend to start the task despite my lack of success?

• no: it's shitty to say one thing & do another better be honest with myself.
• yes: go to step 2

2 ㅤ am i fed, watered, well-rested, medicated properly, etc?

• no: guess what? this is the real next task!
• yes: go to step 3

3 ㅤ does the idea of starting the task make me feel scared or anxious?

• yes: anxiety brain! identify what's scaring me first!

4 ㅤ do i know how to start the task?

• no: adhd brain! time to make an order of operations list.
• yes: go to step 5

5 ㅤ do i have everything i need to start the task?

• no: adhd brain lying to me about the steps again! the first step is "gather the materials".
• yes: go to step 6

6 ㅤ why am i having a hard time switching from my current task to this new task?

• i'm doing fun doing what i'm doing.
  • it's ok to have fun doing a thing!
• i have to finish doing what i'm doing.
  • might be adhd brain! can i actually finish the current task or will i get trapped in a cycle? does this task really need to be finished?
• the next task will be boring/boring-er than the current task.
  • adhd brain! re-think the next task: what would make it more exciting? what am i looking forward to?
• i might not have enough time to complete the task.
  • adhd brain wants to finish everything it starts.
• i just want to make the person who asked me to do it angry.
  • sounds like anxiety brain trying to punish itself because i know i'll be miserable if someone is angry at me. why do i think i deserve punishment?
    • no i seriously want to piss them off! ↷
      • ok i'm being a shithead.

7 ㅤ is the task time sensitive?

• no: have i figured out what's wrong?
  • yes: good job! good luck doing the task!
  • no: go to step 9
• yes: go to step 8

8 ㅤ have i already procrastinated so badly that now i cannot finish the task in time?

• no: adhd brain thinks that i have all the time of the world but the truth is i don't!
  • reality check: if i'm having fun doing what i'm doing i can keep doing it but i should probably set a timer &/or ask someone to check on me to make sure i start doing the task later today
• yes: adhd brain is probably caught in a guilt-perfection cycle since i can't have the task done on time, i do not even want to start
  • reality check: having part of a thing done is almost always better than none of a thing done! if i can get an extension, having part of it done will help me keep from stalling out until the extension deadline. i'll feel better if i at least try to finish it.

9 ㅤ HELP! i've completed the checklist and still don't know what's wrong!

• was i really honest with myself?
  • no: better give the chart one more pass.
    • restart!!
  • yes: if i'm still mystified, ask a friend to help me talk it out.