“Why Didn’t I Think of That?!” 40 Brilliant Neurodivergent Life Hacks

Leave it to ADHD brains to devise ingenious MacGyver-esque life hack ideas that leave you thinking, “Why didn’t I think of that?” or “I thought I was the only one who did this!”

Let the following strategies, contributed by ADDitude readers, inspire you to break loose from “shoulds,” do things your way, and adapt daily habits to make tasks easier, more palatable, and more likely to get done.

“For visibility, I took the doors off my kindergartner's closet, got rid of all drawers, put underwear and socks in a small rolling cart, put shoes in a hanging organizer, and put everything else on a closet rod her height.” — An ADDitude Reader

“My keys and my cell are on lanyards that I wear around my neck. I can't leave the house without either my keys or phone this way.” — Dawn, Illinois

“I use a fabric organizer with 31 pockets to organize my medicine for each day of the month. I’ve hung two organizers (one white one for the morning and one black one for the evening) near the kitchen, where I cannot miss them.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I leave vitamins in the car cupholder and stash meds in smaller quantities in multiple places (office, purse, car, bathroom, etc.).” — April, California

“After years of urging my son to put his laundry away, he asked to have a laundry basket for dirty clothes and a laundry basket for clean clothes. Now he never has to put clothes away — he just pulls clean clothes from his clean basket. The clothes are wrinkly sometimes, but it works for him, so I let it go.” — Tara, Minnesota  

“I stopped folding underwear. This makes it more likely that it will find its way faster back into the drawer after washing. I leave laundry that needs to be folded in our living or dining room, where I’m more likely to see it, and then I fold for a few minutes at a time.” — Carmen, Austria

“I sort laundry straight out of the dryer into a different basket for each family member. Sometimes it gets put away, sometimes they dress out of their basket of clean clothing, but it is faster than folding and hanging up everything for everyone.” — An ADDitude Reader

🧹Read: How to Motivate for Cleaning House When You Really Don’t Want To

“I never make any major work decisions or send important emails after 2 p.m. on Fridays.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I try not to do anything major when [my kids] are coming off medication. It is very damaging to try and get them to achieve when they have one hand tied behind their back.” — Russell, Australia

“Smart watches that vibrate have been a game changer for waking up easier and getting me out the door on time.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I attach a long retractable keychain, with my car key, to my purse. Since getting a push-to-start car, I was losing track of my keys, but having them physically attached to my purse now prevents me from doing annoying things like unwittingly leaving them in the cupholder/passenger seat or on top of the car with no memory of doing so.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I take one piece of trash out of my car every time I leave it.” — Lauren, California

“I leave a basket with socks, hair elastics, and a brush near the door so that we're not having to rush back upstairs when we're getting ready to leave the house.” — Jen, Canada

“I hum ‘don’t put it down, put it away’ when I find myself not wanting to take the time to do the things that will prevent stress and anxiety later.” — Donna, Michigan

“I count 5-4-3-2-1 before my brain has time to think — then I’m already up and doing the task.” — Katherine, Belgium

“I use self-talk to help me stay on track with household chores and to recall where I place important items (e.g., ‘I am setting my sunglasses on the kitchen counter’).” — Diane, North Carolina

“My husband and I have ADHD. Consistently sitting down to go over our finances and schedule each week was hard to do. So, we started calling it the donut meeting and always bring donuts to our meetings. The anticipated treat has made it much easier to stick to.” — Stephanie, Kansas

“Showering is one of those tedious things, especially on a hair wash day. My daughter, who also has ADHD, showers at night by candlelight. I tried it and it is life changing! The gentle flicker of the candles and their calming yellow glow take away overwhelm. They transform the act of showering from tedium to a sensory joy.” — Tanya, Australia

“Once a week I ask a friend over so I can get some housework done while they talk to me.” — Melissa, Oklahoma

“I hate doing dishes. I do, however, have two cats. I convince myself to do dishes right away by telling the cats that I don't eat their food, so they can't eat mine. (They would lick the dishes if I left them unwashed.) It sounds stupid, but if it feels like I am doing it because of them and not me, it works better.” — An ADDitude Reader 

“I've created a ‘making chores fun’ playlist that I listen to when I'm cleaning.” — Matthew, Australia

“I’ve started using a dry erase marker to leave myself reminders on multiple mirrors and windows.” — Colleen, Arizona

“I have a chant I use before leaving the house: glasses, keys, phone, water, windows. It works really well…except when I forget to use it!” — Terry, Georgia

“I keep a sticky note in the kitchen listing all the steps I have to do in the morning before I leave for work. Checking in with everything on my sticky note ensures I leave for work feeling prepared and calm.” — Jen, Nevada

“My morning prescriptions are on the dining room table so that I see them and remember to take them while I'm eating breakfast.” — Kathryn, North Carolina

“I have a ‘reminder’ spot in the kitchen where I can set things that I will see in the morning so that I don't forget about them.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I have notepads in every room. So as things come to mind that I want to remember, I jot them down instead of trying to keep them in my head.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I place things where I would use them instead of away and out of sight like ‘normal’ people. Beside my bed I have my makeup wipes because that is where I will use them.” — Debbie, Arkansas

🧹Read: Popular Productivity Advice That Torpedoes the ADHD Brain

“I get a vegetable box delivered to have adventurous meals with veggies I don’t tend to pick out.” — Lauren, California

“I use an app (Paprika) as a place to collect recipes. I also keep a handwritten list of go-to recipes with ingredients I usually have around, which helps reduce the mental burden of cooking and decision fatigue.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I really don’t like to cook, but I make myself get all the ingredients out at once as fast as possible in the order that I will use them. I repeat to myself that I will get through only this step and then I’ll see if I can continue. I often realize afterward that it was so much easier than my head was telling me it would be.” — Laura, Florida

“To remind me to eat, I have sticky notes on the fridge, inside cupboards, on the juicer, etc. I write things like, 'I have a healthy relationship with food,' 'It’s okay if I want to eat this whole cake,' and ‘I left you some chili/pasta/sandwiches because I love you.'” — Sammi, United Kingdom

“I leave water bottles throughout the house so I remember to drink water.” — Nicole, Pennsylvania

“Our mornings intentionally begin with music, which sets up our day for better energy and positive vibes.” — Lorryn, Indiana

“I made an index card with guidance that I read every morning at work called ‘Should I speak?’ I also take detailed notes at meetings to stay engaged.” — An ADDitude Reader

“We give each other time to find our words for our overwhelming emotions — to unscramble our thoughts. We hold appropriate social norms in public but are more loose with each other when we are together (e.g., ‘talking’ to the TV is OK, announcing what we think the outcome of a movie is after the first 10 minutes).” —  Donna, New Zealand

“I take morning walks right when I wake up, which are only possible because I put on my street sweatpants right on top of my pajamas.” — An ADDitude Reader

“I follow a YouTube account, MonikaFit, that provides simple, easy-to-follow exercises that last from 5 to 20 minutes. Even better, she does not spend the bulk of the time talking, which I find distracting and boring. I need to be able to keep moving from one exercise to another seamlessly, or else I lose attention. I will sometimes leave my yoga mat out overnight to make sure it does not slip my mind while beginning my morning routine.” — Alicia, Texas

“I used to hate doing the daily 10-minute core routine recommended for my success as a D1 runner. But I was also trying to minimize my social media scrolling time. Solution: I could only look at TikTok/Instagram during core; eight years later and I still love core workouts (and getting my daily scroll in, guilt-free).” — An ADDitude Reader

“I had to do exercises as part of a physical therapy program. I spoke to the physio about habit stacking and incorporated the exercises into my existing routines, like brushing my teeth and taking breakfast dishes to the kitchen.” — Sue, United Kingdom

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