How to Have a More Productive Day By Choosing To Do Less
- Eric Kaufmann
- Aug 4, 2024
- 5 min read
Updated: 10 hours ago
[Updated: April 2025]
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Hi Friend,
Before we start talking about neurodiverse productivity advice, keep this in mind:
Your self-worth is not...
tied to how productive you are.
tied to the number of to-dos you check off.
tied to your most recent performance review.
Work's important. Being productive feels good. But, it's not everything.
With that being said, have you ever looked back on your day and felt like you got nothing done? It sucks, right?
I see it with many of my clients. It's not laziness. It's executive function overwhelm. And, it's more common than you might think.
Why Do Neurodivergent Adults Struggle With Productivity?
Email, Slack, and meetings bombard us all day as we are pulled in 50 different directions. While technology makes our lives easier, it also makes us overly accessible. No one likes living their day prioritized on other people's demands, yet many neurodivergent adults do.
While you might not be able to ignore your coworker's Slack message, you can use your executive function skills to make every day more productive.
Today, I'm going to show you how.
Let's dive in.
Biggest Productivity Mistakes Neurodivergent Adults Make
They don't know their EF strengths (or gaps)
Most productivity advice skips a crucial step: understanding your executive functioning profile.
If you don’t know where your strengths and struggles are, it’s almost impossible to spot (or fix) what’s getting in your way.
But once you do know? You can finally stop fighting yourself and start playing to your strengths.
They rely on generic productivity advice
Most mainstream productivity hacks are built for neurotypical brains, not ours.
Strict routines? Rigid schedules? Personal deadlines?
For many autistic adults and adults with ADHD, these strategies backfire fast. Instead of feeling organized, you end up feeling overwhelmed…or worse, like a failure.
Your brain needs strategies that actually fit you.
They create unrealistic plans
When you focus on everything, you finish nothing.
Unrealistic plans lead to overcommitting, overplanning, and feeling like you didn’t do enough, no matter how much you got done.
Then...
You stop trusting your own plans. You stop trusting yourself.
It’s not you. It’s the plan. (And we can fix it.)
How to Have a More Productive Day by Doing Less (5 Steps)
This is the framework I use to have a more productive day. I hope you can adapt it to fit your life and brain. Remember, keep it simple.
Assess Your Executive Function Skills
Before designing a productivity system, figure out your executive function strengths and gaps. With this information in hand, you can predict the tasks that will be most challenging. And, you can start designing systems that play to your strengths.
If you haven't taken a free executive function assessment, I recommend starting here.
Put Yourself First
Before starting your day, do something for yourself. It doesn't need to be anything elaborate. It can take less than 10 minutes! Put yourself first.
It could be...
a walk
meditation
reading
a quick, yet delicious breakfast
your favorite song or podcast
Anything that brings you calm and joy!
For me, it's going for a surf or a run in the morning. It's time alone, time in nature, and a boost to my focus for the next few hours.
Prioritize and Connect
The second you sit at your desk, before you open email or Slack, ask yourself two questions:
"What is my number one priority today?"
"Who do I need to be to get that done?"
The goal is to establish my NOP, before I get sucked into other's demands. I put a star next to my number one priority (NOP).
Then, I write one word declaring who I need to be to get that thing done. When I finish, my to-do list looks like this:
Side note: Most days, I select my NOP at night. It’s a part of My Final 15.
4. Plan
This is where your calendar comes in. Look at your day and identify white space – these are times you are free to work on your NOP.
Next, add a new event on your calendar, titled 'NOP'.
This prevents others, and you, from scheduling something less important.
3. Connect
Follow-through is extremely difficult. Yet, it's the most important part of being productive. You can improve your follow-through by connecting your NOP to your long-term vision.
See that star in the picture of my to-do list?
Editing and scheduling my newsletter will help me become a better writer, grow my audience, and serve my community. Those three outcomes are directly aligned with my future vision.
Even so, procrastination, time blindness, and distractions get in the way. That's why I need tools, like the three steps to break the procrastination cycle, to keep me on track.
Summary
While our self-worth isn't tied to how productive we are, getting things done at work is important. Unfortunately, many of us are pulled in 50 different directions throughout the day, making it feel like we get nothing done.
Neurodivergent adults need to approach productivity differently. Here's how:
Open your notes app and write:
My #1 Priority Tomorrow: ____
Who I Need to Be to Do It: ____
When I’ll Do It: ____
Then calendar it like it’s sacred.
I recognize this is easier said than done. If you struggle with follow-through, take a moment to connect your number one priority to something you deeply value. Sometimes, this quick reminder is all we need to get started.
Now, let's get after it!
In service,
Eric
Quick shout out to Seth Perler, one of the most knowledgeable EF experts, for teaching me about NOPs.
P.S. I Launched a FREE Course!
Procrastination can feel like a heavy weight, holding you back from the life you want to lead. It’s the most common challenge we help our clients overcome.
That’s why I created a free mini-course, Break the Procrastination Cycle. It’s designed to help you take the first steps toward freedom from procrastination and build momentum toward your goals.
If you—or someone you care about—struggles with procrastination, this course is here to help. You can access it for free by clicking here.
About the Author
Eric Kaufmann, MS.Ed, is a Professional Educational Therapist and Certified Executive Function Coach. He is the Co-founder of UpSkill Specialists, an online adult executive function coaching company designed to guide adults in overcoming disorganization, procrastination, and productivity roadblocks so they can unlock their potential. Eric is also the founder of Elevate Learning Solutions, an Educational Therapy practice located in San Clemente, CA, that guides students with neurological differences toward becoming independent and confident students and self-leaders.
