If it’s not interesting I don’t care. (ADHD Motivation)
You may have heard of people with ADHD having interest-based nervous systems. We are not driven by what some people would be considered to be “important” but instead our engine is fuelled by what we find the most interesting at that time. If we find a task, topic, activity, skill that sparks our interest we can do said thing for hours. Our brains are constantly seeking out dopamine (as people with ADHD have less of it) and if we find something that interests us it releases dopamine every time we do said thing and acts as a positive feedback loop. The more we do the thing the more dopamine we get, the more we want to continue doing it. Therefore, if you can infuse a task with something that interests you, your motivation for doing it may increase.
Examples:
Ex. if you are really into playing sports and being active but feeding yourself, cooking and meal prepping seem boring and tedious, attaching the deeper meaning of properly feeding your body as a way of bettering your performance in your sports may cause an increase in your motivation to cook. You are no longer simply meal prepping (BOOOOORRRRING!) you are fuelling your body so you can keep doing the things you love at the highest quality possible.
Ex. You are having a hard time cleaning out your closet but you have recently become interested in letting go of the past and stepping into your future (after all we as ADHDers are deep thinkers). You can see the cleaning of the closet as a physical symbol of getting rid of the past to make space for new and better things to come. Therefore the task moves from an act of just cleaning (ew boring) to an act of transformation (love it!).
You hate doing your taxes BUT you also recently became obsessed with travelling to Bali. Can you change “doing your taxes:” to how do I organize my finances to see how long it will take me to afford a trip to Bali (Yoga retreat and beaches here you come!)
You really don’t enjoy exercising just for the sake of exercising but you have always had a keen interest in music and artistic movement. Instead of using all of your energy to motivate yourself to go to the gym and go through the motions (Blahhh). You could sign up for a dance class instead where you can experience your love of music and movement, flood your brain with dopamine and endorphins, and get your workout in all at the same time.
School has always felt like pulling teeth. However, now you are a place in your life where you finally get to choose the classes you take. If you choose classes on topics that interest you, you will find that you have more motivation to attend, learn and do your work.
