Photo: Peter Wald Photography.
A blank document asks you to come up with an idea and decide how it should sound, sometimes before you've managed to get a sentence down. Brooke Schnittman's starting point is to give those jobs some space.
“For writing, I often have clients start with a brain dump or mind map instead of trying to write in order,” Schnittman wrote in an email interview with Tingles. “They can then organize the ideas into a beginning, middle, and end, sometimes using a graphic organizer, before worrying about polished sentences.”
That makes the first pass useful even when it looks unfinished. A graphic organizer can also help give the ideas structure, including at the start of the writing process.
The desk itself has a role in getting started. “For the desk setup, I recommend making the space as clutter-free as possible and keeping only the essential tools in the same, easy-to-remember place,” Schnittman wrote.
“Less searching and fewer decisions reduce cognitive load, which can make it easier to initiate the task,” she wrote. That is her explanation for keeping the tools in a predictable place.
For a meeting, her preparation fits on a note card. “For a meeting, that may be three bullet points on a note card, a quick grounding breath, such as saying ‘I’m excited’ three times before speaking, and one sentence they want to make sure they say,” Schnittman wrote.
“Practicing the opening out loud and using brief cue cards instead of a full script can also help,” she wrote. The note card has a specific job here, it holds the points the speaker wants to return to.
A fidget needs a job just as clear. “A fidget can serve as a helpful secondary focus, giving someone enough stimulation to listen, think, or regulate nervous energy while their primary attention stays on the task,” Schnittman wrote.
“If they are constantly looking at it, using it to avoid the task, or becoming more distracted, they may need a quieter option, a different way to use it, or no tool at all,” she wrote.
That last option belongs in the decision. A desk tool doesn't have to earn a permanent place simply because you bought it, and trying it once doesn't commit you to building a whole routine around it.
“The best tool is the one that supports the task without adding another demand,” Schnittman wrote. For a Tingles reader choosing what stays on the desk, that's a useful place to stop: keep the tool accountable to the work you wanted to do.
Readers can learn more about Schnittman's ADHD and executive-function coaching work at coachingwithbrooke.com.