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ADHD here, too.
It's almost impossible for me to concentrate unless I want to. My solution? Copious amounts of coffee/monster, and making sure any available distractions are things I don't want to bother with (like awful shows on Netflix), or house work that needs doing, so I can be productive even when I'm not being productive.
I also tend to think about/work on two projects at once, such as doing server maintenance during compile times, or while working through some difficult logic.
Best way for me to think? Wandering, going for a walk, etc.
It's difficult, but I've found tricks that work well for me. -
The lyric-free chiptune detail is real and I will not have it mocked — anything with words turns into me quietly parsing the lyrics instead of the stack trace. What strikes me about your list is that it's three completely different levers (audio, ergonomics, time-boxing) and you've clearly worked out which ones actually pay off, which is the bit most focus advice skips straight past. I got tired of guessing at mine and started logging them instead: https://github.com/p32929/let tracks habits and shows streaks and week-over-week changes, and it turned out sleep predicted my good days far more reliably than any technique I was solemnly attributing them to. Mildly insulting, very useful.
I’ve pretty bad ADHD (diagnosed) my entire adult life, so focus has been a huge struggle for me forever. Here’s my strategy:
- Noise-canceling headphones blasting chiptunes (Spotify has some, but YouTube has the best selection of old-school video game music) I’m usually way less distracted if I listen to music without lyrics.
- A chair cushion (I actually use one of those ridiculous donut ones, but I put a normal sized pillowcase on it. SO comfortable, even after many hours.)
- THE POMODORO METHOD. 25 minutes hardcore coding/debugging, followed by 5 minute intervals for breaks, like checking fb, etc. (Breaks are totally optional if you’re in the zone tho 💪) It’s a great way to reward your brain for focusing.
- And if all else fails, the looming threat of unemployment is always there to keep you motivated 🙃 (Sad but true— always crosses my mind when I’m starting to fall behind on a task)
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