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The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

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Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#191

Post by brailsafe »

drzaiusx11 wrote: post #159
onemoresoop wrote: post #32

I may have ADHD, I never went for a diagnosis and found body doubling useful at times, especially when I was in school some decades ago, back then I had no name for it. However, I find white noise very helpful with staying on the task and with increased focus. My company moved, about a year ago, into a very cramped office that is also extremely noisy. This exasperated me, I would get drained of energy in a couple of…

as an AuDHDer, noise cancellation and white noise are critical for my mental health (at work and elsewhere), but near constant _interruptions_ of my flow state by coworkers in the same physical space causes me almost visceral pain, and has only been amplified to unsustainable levels (for me) from forced RTO. I started fully remote at my current employer, so I communicate effectively and prolifically on async comm cha…

You're using "AuDHD" quite liberally, is this a serious portmanteau you've adopted as a label after getting diagnosed for both or either?

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#192

Post by zoogeny »

I've been thinking about this for a while. Seeing paid services like Focusmate, Flow Club and Focus101 show the basic idea is attractive enough to make into a lifestyle sized business.

But my idea was a bit more. A lot of people are leaving religions for many reasons. One of the interesting parts of religion, from my perspective, is a community of people meeting at some cadence (e.g. once per week). At that time, they all make a public commitment to some set of values. It's like a shared affirmation.

This led me to wonder if this ritualistic activity is important in a psychological way that is effective outside of theistic or other dogmatic beliefs.

I was thinking of a service exactly like the ones mentioned, except it would also include some kind of intention setting. The word "prayer" is a little loaded and often brings to mind asking a God for some kind of favor. And "intention" is more like a stated goal.

It is interesting that in the modern world we feel comfortable stating/sharing intentions that are productivity related. But we don't share intentions that are more broadly ethical/moral in the same way that religions promoted.

If anyone has examples of services that do what Focusmate/Flow Club/etc. are doing but on a broader scale, let me know.

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#194

Post by riedel »

janwillemb wrote: post #58
esaym wrote: post #43

Wish I could read it. The menu stays open on Firefox even if you hit the X. https://imgur.com/a/T6tY7dc

I could read it using the reader view

Sometimes it needs those constructive comments. Thanks, this worked for me.

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#195

Post by drzaiusx11 »

brailsafe wrote: post #191
drzaiusx11 wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

as an AuDHDer, noise cancellation and white noise are critical for my mental health (at work and elsewhere), but near constant _interruptions_ of my flow state by coworkers in the same physical space causes me almost visceral pain, and has only been amplified to unsustainable levels (for me) from forced RTO. I started fully remote at my current employer, so I communicate effectively and prolifically on async comm cha…

You're using "AuDHD" quite liberally, is this a serious portmanteau you've adopted as a label after getting diagnosed for both or either?

i have a formal diagnosis for both, and yes this is a common abbreviation used within the autistic + adhd community.

edit: i probably should have lead with what that abbreviation meant, but although counterintuitive they’re common comorbidities

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#196

Post by riedel »

onemoresoop wrote: post #32

I may have ADHD, I never went for a diagnosis and found body doubling useful at times, especially when I was in school some decades ago, back then I had no name for it. However, I find white noise very helpful with staying on the task and with increased focus. My company moved, about a year ago, into a very cramped office that is also extremely noisy. This exasperated me, I would get drained of energy in a couple of…

I actually wrote my diploma theses for 6 month in a very crowded student bar / café . I didn't even suspected such diagnosis, but I guess it is not so much about diagnosis as finding the things that work. A former colleague always had TV series on while working. Brains are sometimes strange. Also now beyond 45, it seems I have to find new things that work for me.

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#197

Post by halfcat »

kristianp wrote: post #65
onemoresoop wrote: post #32

I may have ADHD, I never went for a diagnosis and found body doubling useful at times, especially when I was in school some decades ago, back then I had no name for it. However, I find white noise very helpful with staying on the task and with increased focus. My company moved, about a year ago, into a very cramped office that is also extremely noisy. This exasperated me, I would get drained of energy in a couple of…

What do you do about notifications from Slack/Emails/Teams messages?

Notifications need to be off if you’re doing focused work, and good managers will not only know this, but support you in it, or even expect you to set this boundary in order to do your best work.

Simplest version is to have agreed upon avenues of escalation, which can be ”if someone doesn’t respond in the timeframe you need, pick up the phone and call them, and if they still don’t respond, pick up the phone and call their boss”.

Then from your end, you just need to make sure your boss is set as a favorite contact or whatever is required for them to be allowed through your do-not-disturb settings.

You can also set other routines like weekly check in meetings with certain groups. Often times people don’t need you right now, but they think blowing you up on slack is the only way to get what they need. By setting aside a couple hours one morning and having several “office hours” style meetings, you give people the comfort of knowing they have a time they can get your attention, and that often cuts down on 50-80% of the ad-hoc interruptions.

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#198

Post by firoso »

Tabular-Iceberg wrote: post #59

This is where remote work goes off the rails, but then it’s wild how intentionally isolating the implementation of RTO that many large corporations are doing now. They line people up in rows, put headphones on their heads and wire them up to Teams and Jira to spend the whole day in isolation. Because taking a walk to another floor of building to talk to someone like a normal human being is too wasteful, but somehow f…

I am ADHD. I work remotely. My productivity went up substantially after leaving the open office. Body doubling is one of many tools, and it is not a required one. I do however often livestream my coding work in an open teams chat meeting and hang out with others im working with relatively often.

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#199

Post by firoso »

mrbluecoat wrote: post #143
Tabular-Iceberg wrote: post #59

This is where remote work goes off the rails, but then it’s wild how intentionally isolating the implementation of RTO that many large corporations are doing now. They line people up in rows, put headphones on their heads and wire them up to Teams and Jira to spend the whole day in isolation. Because taking a walk to another floor of building to talk to someone like a normal human being is too wasteful, but somehow f…

I work far more effectively remotely in isolation. The article is specifically about those with ADD/ADHD, not a generalization.

I have ADHD. I doubled my productivity going remote and working from a well curated home office.

Charging station for my phone just inside the room, good sitting/standing desk and chair, good laptop, with a dock, 3 displays. A desktop with a vertical monitor I use for teams chat, technical documents, and work management only. Second laptop used for secure prod access tucked under a monitor riser until needed. Whiteboard. Couch with a small station for engineering journaling. I also take video calls from the couch often. Treadmill and elliptical, TV for watching YouTube tech videos while I'm taking a fitness break, bookshelves for my collected engineering journals and useful books. Roughly 275 sqft. Virtual body doubling helps sometimes but is hardly needed.

Re: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

#200

Post by firoso »

stitched2gethr wrote: post #151
Tabular-Iceberg wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. I got fired from that place for being too negative and now work somewhere much more sane. The CEO to his credit went on a campaign to improve the culture, but middle management obstinately refused to change a single thing. I recently heard he got fired by the board too, go figure.

Remote work did a number on middle management. When many of them realized that if they aren't the strategic brain at the top, and they aren't individual contributers, and they can supervise butts in chais, then they aren't actually providing that much value.

So adapt. Learn to curate your team and their work. Lead by helping people organize, getting obstacles out of their way, shielding them from alarmist BS from higher management, and stop worrying about butts in seats. Focus on agreements, goals, commitments, accountability, growth, and coaching.

It's not that hard.

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