Can’t tackle those to-do’s? Stop confusing projects with tasks

If you have ADHD, you might sometimes feel like you're drowning in a sea of to-dos, with your brain on the back burner. One minute you're tackling a simple task, and the next, you're knee-deep in brain soup.

Sounds like a recipe for disaster, right?

Many adults with ADHD struggle to differentiate between projects and tasks - but understanding the difference can be the special sauce for improved productivity and peace of mind. In this post, I’ll serve up some quick facts on what makes this distinction so important - and so difficult - for many ADHDers. Then we’ll get into the meat and potatoes: how to tell the difference between a project and a task, and what to do with that knowledge.

🔥Boost productivity and banish overwhelm

Understanding the difference between projects and tasks may just be one of the most simple, yet transformative insights I’ve discovered for managing Adult ADHD. This concept can help you:

• Avoid Overwhelm: By breaking projects into bite-sized tasks, you can avoid feeling like you've bitten off more than you can chew and reduce ADHD task paralysis.
• Improve Time Management: Recognizing that a "quick task" might actually be a three-course project can help you allocate time more realistically.
• Boost Motivation: Completing tasks provides quick wins, serving up the dopamine your brain craves and keeping you engaged in longer projects.
• Enhance Planning: Distinguishing between projects and tasks allows for better prioritization and scheduling, the key ingredients in the recipe for effective ADHD task management.

🤔Why does ADHD make it hard to distinguish between projects and tasks?

Before we dig in, let's address some of the reasons this distinction can be particularly challenging for those of us with ADHD:

1. Time Management: For many of us, the brain’s internal clock just reads “now” and “not now.” Understandably, that makes it tough to estimate how long something will take to complete.
2. Impulsivity: The ADHD brain might jump into action without fully considering the scope, like starting to bake without checking if you have all the ingredients.
3. Working Memory Issues: Our brains can struggle to remember information and work with that information at the same time. We might forget parts of a project, making it seem simpler than it really is.
4. Overwhelm and Avoidance: Large projects can feel daunting, leading to procrastination or avoidance. When something feels too big or unappetizing - even if we know logically it’s not the case - it can drain the dopamine we need to feed our brain’s executive functions.
5. Planning: ADHD can make it challenging to envision and plan a sequence of steps, which is crucial for identifying the tasks that make up a project.

📋Projects vs Tasks: Defining the difference

Let's clear up the confusion by defining what we mean by projects and tasks.

What's a Project?

A project is like planning an entire dinner party menu. It's a larger, more complex undertaking with many moving parts.

• Consists of multiple related tasks or activities (appetizers, main course, dessert)
• Has a defined beginning and end (from menu planning to washing the last dish)
• Aims to achieve a specific goal or outcome (a successful dinner party)
• Often requires planning and coordination of resources (ingredients, cooking utensils, time)

Think of "Redecorating the living room" or "Launching a website" as projects - they're the whole meal deal.

Especially large projects may also be comprised of several smaller sub-projects, each of which with its own list of tasks. In our dinner party example, each dish you plan to make can be seen as a sub-project.

What's a Task?

A task, on the other hand, is like a single step in a recipe - for instance, "Chop onions" or "Preheat oven to 350°F" are individual tasks.

• Is typically shorter in duration (like preheating the oven)
• Has a clear, defined objective (chopping vegetables)
• Can be completed in one sitting or a relatively short time frame (setting the table)
• Is often part of a larger project or workflow (one step in preparing the main course)

Examples of tasks might be "Buy paint for the living room" or "Write a blog post for the new website."

✅Breakdown bonus

Now that you understand the difference, breaking projects down into tasks should be much simpler. A few bonus pro tips:

• Tasks should be things that take an hour to complete, tops. Ideally, they should be closer to the 20-30 min range.
• If you discover a task that takes longer, and you’re struggling to figure out how to break it down more, you can always split it up into time increments, rather than actions.
  • For instance, sorting through a pile of paperwork may not be easily broken into sub-tasks, but you could break it down into 5-10 min chunks of time.
• You can break down projects and tasks as far as you want. Some days, you may need more of a breakdown than others, and that’s okay!
• Struggling to initiate a task? It’s a good clue that it may be in need of further breakdown. Keep going until the first step is so simple it’s almost silly, if need be (I have literally broken down tasks to the point of, “First step: stand up from the couch”).
• Not sure how long a task or project will take? Make a guess, then multiply it by three.

👨‍🍳Savoring success with ADHD task management

Like mastering one of the key fundamentals of cooking, understanding the difference between projects and tasks is a game-changer that can elevate your entire work process. By breaking down your grand feast of projects into bite-sized, manageable tasks, you're setting yourself up for success, one ingredient at a time. With practice, you'll find that managing your ADHD becomes less of a daily struggle and more of a well-orchestrated symphony of productivity.

Feeling like you could use a sous chef? Shimmer’s expert ADHD coaches can help keep you motivated, put out unexpected kitchen fires, and fine-tune ADHD management tools and strategies to fit better into your life. Bon appétit!

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