I'm 46-years-old and only discovered this life-changing ADHD hack about 2 years ago. I so wish I had discovered it sooner. It would have saved me from a lot of shame and embarrassment over the years.
Because y'all, I used to miss appointments all the time. Hair appointments, doctor's appointments, Zoom meetings, lunches with friends, etc.
And it's not because I hadn't written them down. I diligently wrote them in my planner, added them to my Google calendar and set reminders. But it didn't matter.
I would sit down at my desk, get hyperfocused on whatever I was working on that day only to get a call or text saying, "You missed your appointment. Would you like to reschedule?" or "Hey, I got us a table. Are you on your way?"
Like a lot of people with ADHD, I don't have trouble remembering to do things that happen regularly, like picking my kids up from swim practice. But for things that are sporadic and require me to leave my house, like doctor's appointments, nothing seemed to help me remember them. It sucked.
The First Thing That Helped
Then a couple of years ago I was setting up my home office and searched and searched for a really big wall calendar that was pretty. Spoiler alert...I couldn't find one. So I finally decided to design one for myself and had it printed.
It was big, it was beautiful and it fit everything I needed it to fit! Writing my appointments on my giant wall calendar helped a lot, but why?
Because I made sure it was pretty enough to double as the art in my office, it was the focal point in my office. And it's HUGE, so it's easy for me to see what's written on it without having to open a planner or a calendar app on my phone. In other words, it requires zero effort on my part to see what I've written on it.
So the calendar itself DID help, but the appointments I wrote on my calendar blended in with other things (planned shop promotions, deadlines, etc.) so I still occasionally missed appointments and lunch dates.
I still needed a better way to signal to my brain when something out of the ordinary that required me to be somewhere ON TIME was happening.
My Lightbulb Moment
Then one day I scheduled a podcast interview that I absolutely, positively could not miss, so I wrote it on a post-it note and then stuck it on my calendar. THAT was my lightbulb moment and I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it before.
Since then, I write all of my appointments (virtual and physical) on sticky notes before putting them on my calendar. And it has been LIFE-CHANGING.
(Side note--I've since created cute scalloped sticky notes to use because sticky notes shouldn't be boring, am I right?)
Why is this such an effective ADHD hack?
I have given a ton of thought as to why this hack is so incredibly effective.
It works because at a glance my brain picks up and registers the visual cue (the sticky note) as "you MUST pay attention to this because you have to be on time for this out-of-the-ordinary thing today."
And because I see my large wall calendar and post-it notes every single time I walk in and out of my office, I see sticky notes coming weeks (even months) ahead of time. So the reminder is reinforced in my brain over and over again. Nothing sneaks up on me, nothing surprises me. It is glorious.
Y'all, I've shared this ADHD hack on social media sooooo many times and it's been amazing to hear from so many of you about it helps you, too!
Of course, this calendar hack may not work for everyone with a neurodivergent brain, but if you struggle to remember appointments/dates/deadlines, give it a try! You have nothing to lose.
You can try it with any calendar and any sticky notes! Just make sure you hang it in a highly visible spot that you will see multiple times a day with zero effort. That is crucial. If you try this ADHD calendar hack and it works for you, I'd love for you to let me know @kaleidoscope_living.
That's all for now. I'm off to my physical therapy appointment, that I remembered because of the sticky note on my calendar 🙌🏻
And if you are in the market for a wall calendar, check out our collection of large, reusable wall calendars. I know rainbow colors aren't for everyone, so I now offer them in navy blue and white as well.
Leave a comment