{"id":1985,"date":"2016-11-15T07:30:15","date_gmt":"2016-11-15T15:30:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abilitytools.org\/blog\/?p=1985"},"modified":"2016-11-14T11:27:25","modified_gmt":"2016-11-14T19:27:25","slug":"finding-focus-how-to-take-control-of-adhd-with-evernote","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/abilitytools.org\/blog\/finding-focus-how-to-take-control-of-adhd-with-evernote\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding Focus: How to Take Control of ADHD with Evernote"},"content":{"rendered":"

Re-blogged from Evernote<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Blog written by: Pamela Rosen<\/p>\n

\"Green<\/a><\/p>\n

We asked Nikki Kinzer and Pete Wright, hosts of Take Control: The ADHD Podcast<\/a>, for their thoughts on how Evernote can help children and adults with ADHD keep their jobs, studies, and lives in order.<\/em><\/p>\n

As a certified ADHD coach, Nikki Kinzer knows how deeply Attention Deficit\/Hyperactivity Disorder can impact people\u2019s lives. ADHD is often associated with children, but only about 40 percent of children with ADHD will ever outgrow it. The remaining 60 percent will carry ADHD with them into adulthood. Approximately 8 million adults<\/a> in the United States, or 4 percent of the adult population, is estimated to be struggling with this challenging condition, although most cases are undiagnosed.<\/p>\n

The stakes are high. According to a study published by Contemporary Pediatrics<\/a>, 50 to 60 percent of students with ADHD who start college will not finish with a degree. High school students with ADHD are less likely to attend college at all, and those who do can expect to have significant problems adjusting to the fast pace and independent lifestyle of the college environment. Without some help and accommodation, college drop-out rates are high.<\/p>\n

The ADHD Brain in College<\/h2>\n

But the news isn\u2019t all bad. More colleges are recognizing ADHD as a legitimate brain disorder (as opposed to a behavioral problem that can be corrected) and are designing accommodations for it. Kinzer\u2019s clients are increasingly successful in both college and the workplace, but they still need some one-on-one support.<\/p>\n

\"Picture<\/a>

Nikki Kinzer- ADHD Coach<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cIf someone calls me, they usually feel overwhelmed, or there\u2019s something that\u2019s challenging them with their ADHD,\u201d Kinzer explains. \u201cI work with them on a weekly basis. We go over goals, find strategies to help them reach those goals, keeping ADHD in mind. ADHD brains have to get there a little bit differently,\u201d she says. She works with clients individually, usually over the phone, to help them organize and increase productivity, breaking down projects into smaller pieces.<\/p>\n

For college students, Kinzer says: \u201cOur main goal is to get them that college degree. In that aspect, it\u2019s about time management and project planning. I get their schedules, their syllabi, and we meet twice a week to make sure they\u2019re on schedule for tests and papers. I remind them to do their laundry or their shopping.\u201d She sometimes takes on the role of counselor and confidante, particularly to newly-diagnosed students. \u201cWe talk a lot about how much they should disclose to professors or employers about ADHD, and I let them know that their symptoms are common. I give them tools and strategies. The goal is not to have a coach forever, but to get through the tough parts and learn to manage on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n

ADHD in adult life<\/h2>\n

One person who can testify to the benefits of coaching is Pete Wright, who shares the podcast with Kinzer. A technologist and educator, Wright was diagnosed with the disorder himself 15 years ago. Evernote made the difference for him, but he concedes that even that was overwhelming at first.<\/p>\n

\"Man<\/a>

Pete Wright<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cI was one of the early beta users of Evernote,\u201d he says. \u201cEvernote is wide open, and it\u2019s so deep, you can do anything with it. And that can be a huge stumbling block for someone with ADHD.\u201d For Wright, the discussion is always around accomplishing tasks by taking baby steps and a functional approach. \u201cWhat do you want to accomplish?\u201d Wright asks his podcast listeners. \u201cNotes for college? If you\u2019re always losing pages, leaving them laying around, you\u2019re going to be an absolute disaster for studying. You want to invest in Evernote one issue at a time, and expand from there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Focus on the Elephant<\/h2>\n

Wright tells podcast listeners to approach Evernote based on the first problem they need to solve. \u201cIf I can\u2019t keep track of my notes, then I use Evernote exclusively for notes. I just need one notebook called \u201cNotes,\u201d and I just want to focus on the little green elephant. I know that\u2019s the function that will be addressed by the elephant.\u201d That singular focus is crucial. Wright explains: \u201cIf you can commit to one thing, you\u2019ll be more interested and have more affinity for it. If you have it in your mind that \u2018the green elephant means notes,\u2019 you don\u2019t have to think about all the other things that Evernote can do or all the complexity it offers. You don\u2019t have to think about fifty notebooks, you don\u2019t have to think about tags, you only have to think about the elephant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kinzer and Wright disagree on the topic of tags in Evernote. Wright swears by them, but Kinzer sees them as a distraction that could set the ADHD mind off course. \u201cI use tags for course IDs of the different classes I teach so that I can isolate all the materials from a particular class at once,\u201d Wright says. Still, he uses them sparingly, and to create context and meaning. Kinzer, on the other hand, doesn\u2019t use them at all. She instead focuses on a methodical use of Evernote that helps build habits, something that is crucial to successful organization with ADHD.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor people with ADHD, out of sight really is out of mind,\u201d Kinzer explains. \u201cPeople with ADHD don\u2019t intentionally choose not to use the tool that\u2019s going to help them the most, but unless it\u2019s right in front of them, they aren\u2019t going to think about it. Evernote works best if they put everything in it and set it up with a system of reminders, so it\u2019s always in their sight. They have to have something poking at them all the time. So when I work with my clients, I\u2019m always reminding them, \u2018did you use the elephant? Did you remember to write it down and put reminders in the elephant?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/h2>\n

\u201cEvernote can change their lives\u201d<\/h2>\n

Kinzer describes the delight her clients feel once they discover that, with the help of Evernote, they can be organized people. \u201cI had a client this week who was doing some remodeling,\u201d she recalls. \u201cI told her about Web Clipper, and it was like Christmas morning. She kept saying, \u2018really? I can do that?\u2019 She\u2019d been pulling photos from Instagram and storing them on her phone with photos. But then, she couldn\u2019t find again. There was no organization.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kinzer sees such scenes again and again as students and adults alike learn to manage their lives in spite of their disorder. \u201cIt\u2019s illuminating to see,\u201d she says. \u201cEvernote can change their lives. Once they get one part of it, and it becomes a habit, it can open up a whole new world for them. They don\u2019t have to remember; they don\u2019t have to worry about losing papers, or missing appointments. They only have to think about one thing\u2014whatever they need, it\u2019s in Evernote.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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