Prioritization Without Overwhelm
One of the prerequisite modules for my ADHD coach training at ADDCA was called “Personal Transformation”. I wish everyone in the world could take this class. The information I revealed and learned about myself was truly life changing.
One of the sections was designed to uncover our values, and the technique is a truly brilliant one. I’ve since used it in many different ways. It allows our true feelings about things to be known, without overwhelm setting in. Since ADHD often has a tremendously hard time with prioritization, this is an incredible tool.
The method is somewhat complex to explain, but the best way I’ve found is to compare it to a round robin sports elimination. On a grid, write each item along the left-hand column and on the top row. Where the items intersect, compare the two by a predetermined set of criteria (in the picture I’ve used fruit and the criterion is which I like best) and write the “winner” in the cell.
Once all but the same/same cells are full, write down how many times each item appeared (or “won”). This will give you the ranking of the list and the order in which to do the tasks, if that is what the items are. It turns out my favorite fruit of the selection given is peaches (11), followed closely by apricots (10), and then strawberries (9).
I’ve used this method to determine which of my many hobbies I want to focus on and which projects to put time into and in what order. A friend of mine has increased the complexity by adding weighted influencers such as the desirability of the task and the boost of energy that will result when it is completed.
What else could this method be used for?