okay, so what changed?
well, these problems have been with me for really my entire life, but amplified even further several years ago when i started working for myself. i had no choice but to create a structure to my days, weeks and months to work within. and because i’d struggled with it for so long, i became fascinated by organisational systems in general - i’ve read tonnes of books, done courses, and tried and tested myriad different systems over the years. (Getting Things Done, the Bullet Journal Method and Holisticism’s System Spells just to name a few.)
i’ve developed a body of knowledge around the psychology behind different organisational systems, the value of externalising information to free up mental processing, and through research and my own personal experience, a lot of the ways that ADHD minds differ when it comes to organisation.
after wrestling with (and constantly iterating on) what i learned, i now use what i call the Constellation System.
and with this set of tools in my back pocket, this is what the constellation system has done for me…
MORE CLARITY & FOCUS
it’s given me a way to choose which project i should work on right now
it’s much easier to plan my activities for the day / week / month
it saves me a lot of time that i used to spend trying to decide what to do / in decision paralysis
REDUCED OVERWHELM
it’s given me clear, practical limitations for how much i can add to my to-do list
it limits my current projects, allowing me to actually use project collections in my bullet journal again
i create smaller, more manageable projects, giving me the satisfaction of completing things more regularly
EASIER ACTION AND CONSISTENCY
it has allowed me to automate the recurring tasks and projects
i actually take action on a way bigger proportion of my plans and intentions
i now have ONE place that holds all my tasks, projects and routines that i can continually update, rather than having to rewrite a new list every week / month
executive dysfunction still happens sometimes, but less often, and i have better strategies to manage it
MORE AWARENESS
it has shown me the gifts and challenges of different types of activities, and how i can work with them
i understand why i make a to do list some days and my brain just says NO. have a way to troubleshoot that, or do other things that are still important even when i encounter resistance to certain tasks or projects
MORE BALANCE
i can clearly see if one area of my life is getting too much or not enough attention
i can consciously set aside time to appreciate or celebrate my progress after completing a project, where i used to just dive immediately into the next thing because i always felt behind
HIGHER QUALITY DOWNTIME
it gives a theme or flexible structure to my “time off”
it helped me clarify the activities which replenish me in different areas of life, not just baths & netflix binges
i now tailor my restorative activities to avoid getting bored & understimulated
it helps fill my time off with genuinely restorative activities, not just more tasks