My friend doesn’t say that she has ADD or ADHD, just that she’s too disorganized to get organized, or actually, that she’s not compulsive enough. I wrote about having an appointment book, with room for to do lists, etc, with her at all times. She could put the yellow stickies that she keeps losing in there.
Margaret wrote quite astutely that appointment books and to do lists don’t work unless you know how to use them. Right!! There are many strategies for that:
Make a habit of checking the book and the list several times a day. If necessary, you can use an anchor for that – check it every time you go to the bathroom, or every time you hang up the phone. The to do list needs to be kept short, 5 things max. You can keep a longer one and transfer items to the 5 list as you cross things off. But you don’t check the long list, just the 5.
There are more strategies but these are the basics.
Bottom line: if you have ADD or ADHD, you need an appointment book and a to do list, but they will not work unless you know how to use them. Thanks to margaret.
doug 
bryan has a great new site on positive thinking clik
lynn on organizing clik
it won’t work for me clik
too disorganized clik
(if she has the appointment book with her all the time, she won’t need the yello stickies anymore. Think of the savings!)
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good points, especially the last – i am in terror of losing my appointment book (or my i phone) but i do make a copy of the next months appts so i wont be entirely lost if i should lose it. all my shirts have pockets, so it is easy to keep up with my appointment book ( and i don’t set it down anywhere), but i think it is hard for women who may not have pockets.
it sounds like the stickies is a good strategy that works for you
thank you for commenting
doug
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I like these ideas, BUT as someone with pretty severe ADHD, keeping up with an appointment book is a challenge all by itself. It’s frustrating to hear people to say “make a list” or “keep an appt book” as if we’ve never considered that option. I have found that designating a spot like home or office to permanently keep my appointment book & master list works. I then use sticky notes to take with me with five or so critical items. Occasionally I do lose the sticky note, but at least I haven’t lost my entire list and appointment book.
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