For people with ADHD, the dance of managing time, tasks, and relationships often feels overwhelming. But as new technology develops, new ways to make life easier start to appear on the scene. AI is one of these new technologies that has the potential to totally change the way adults with ADHD manage their daily lives.
AI tools, like ChatGPT, can help people with ADHD find and develop personalized strategies that align with how their brain is wired, making it a lot easier to live life in the ways that work best for them. In this post, we’ll talk about some of the most common tasks ADHDers are completing with AI tools, including some intro ChatGPT prompts you can try out today and tips for writing your own AI prompts for ADHD management.
How AI Can Be a Game-Changer for Adults with ADHD
There are so many ways AI and people coping with ADHD can work together to make life easier easier. Here are just a few examples.
Reducing Overwhelm
- breaking down tasks into smaller, more manageable pieces
- creating to-do lists and schedules
- prioritizing to-do lists
- organizing or summarizing information
Help With Time Management
- estimating how long it will take to complete a task
- adding buffer time between tasks and appointments to account for driving, transition time, etc
- implementing time blocking
- evaluating whether a given deadline is doable or not based on your other commitments
- planning out a long-term project with time estimation and deadlines
- organizing your to-do list based on types of tasks and the time of day your brain is most productive
Improve Communication
- providing strategies for difficult communication at home or in the workplace
- organizing thoughts before speaking or writing (for example, structuring conversations or emails in a logical manner, editing or providing suggestions for avoiding tangents or rambling)
- identifying the tone of a piece of writing, or editing writing to change the tone, such as making a letter or email sound more formal, easier to read, more or less emotional, and more
- provide conversational practice and tips for improvement - for example, rehearsing a difficult conversation ahead of time
- assistance with setting boundaries and assertive communication
Assist in Studying
- creating detailed study guides, quizzes, or flashcards
- identifying study skills and creating study plans
- clarifying concepts
- explaining difficult topics
- offering examples and illustrations to demonstrate concepts
- foreign language vocabulary, grammar explanations, and conversational practice
Assist in Writing
- idea generation
- creating & improving resumes and cover letters
- expanding content with additional information, examples, or explanations
- help organize complex information into structured outlines
- provide synonyms or other alternate wording suggestions
- edit to improve grammar, punctuation, clarity, structure, style, and tone
- help with integrate research findings into your writing
- formatting for MLA, APA, Chicago style, etc
- providing prompts or reflection questions for practice or assistance developing ideas, plots, characters, and more
Example ChatGPT Prompts for ADHD Support
All the tasks mentioned above can be accomplished through tools like chat GPT if you just know how to ask the right questions. Below are some examples of things Chat GPT can simplify:
- Organizing tasks: “I have to clean my kitchen. Can you create a list that breaks down this large task into smaller ones.”
- Scheduling productivity: “I have a project due in two weeks that requires steps A, B, C, D, and E. Can you create a schedule so that all tasks are finished by the deadline?”
- Simplifying communication: “I need to write an email to my supervisor explaining my project delay. Can you draft a polite and concise message for me?"
But the utility of AI doesn’t stop at common requests. It can also accommodate more unique or creative tasks:
- Mental Health: “Suggest a five-minute mindfulness exercise that I can do before work to increase focus."
- Daily Life: “Create a meal plan for the week for a vegetarian who hates mushrooms.”
- Decision Making: “Debate with me about whether I should take this job or search for something else.”
These prompts are just a few examples of the hundreds of ways chat GPT can help people who are coping with ADHD. AI can be a personal assistant, planner, motivational speaker, and companion all in one. The only true limit is your imagination and ability to generate a prompt.
Tips to Improve ChatGPT Prompts for Managing ADHD
As mentioned in the last section, your ability to think of prompts is the main limit to what you can do with Chat GPT. Sometimes, even if you can think of a prompt, you don’t get quite what you want. But the great thing about AI is how interactive and customizable it is. So if you don’t get what you need on the first go, you can make adjustments until you have a response that fits your own personal wiring.
- Be Specific: The more detailed your prompt, the more tailored the AI’s response will be. For example, instead of asking for a generic study plan, specify the subjects, your preferred study methods, and any limitations, like time or space, that you have.
❌ “Create a vegetarian meal plan.”
✅ “Create a vegetarian meal plan for one week. All meals should take less than 30 minutes to prepare. All meals should take fewer than 8 steps to complete. Do not include dishes with quinoa.”
- Add Context: Providing context about your environment or preferences helps AI understand your situation better. For example, if silence distracts you more than ambient noise, mention this when asking for advice on working from home.
❌ “Write a title for my blog about AI.”
✅ “I’m writing a blog about how AI can help people manage ADHD. Give me 5 catchy title suggestions. Titles must include this keyword: AI for ADHD”
- Experiment: If the first response doesn’t hit the mark, don’t hesitate to rephrase your prompt or offer more information. Persistence in fine-tuning your request can lead to the perfect solution. For example, let’s say you ask ChatGPT, “Give me an example workout routine with exercises you can do at work.”
❌ “Give me a different suggestion.”
✅ “That suggestion won’t work because I only have 30 minutes for my lunch break. I also have a very small office. Give me a routine that takes less time with exercises that take up minimal space.”
AI, ADHD, and Liberation
Using AI as part of your strategy for managing ADHD isn’t just about playing with cool new technology; it’s about recognizing and honoring your individual needs. So often, adults with ADHD have to make their brains work the way other people want them to. AI gives you the power to create your own systems and your own strategies so you can achieve success in the way that works best for you. In a world that often prioritizes neurotypical ways of operating, finding and personalizing these tools that resonate with your way of processing the world can be truly empowering.
For people working with ADHD coaches, discussing how to integrate AI into your management strategies can be incredibly beneficial. At Shimmer, we encourage a collaborative approach to exploring how AI can complement your existing toolkit. Together, we can identify some of your biggest challenges and figure out how AI can support your unique needs.
