It took the forces of nature about 33 million years to create the sculpted hills shown above. It’s not an easy block of time for any of us to get our heads around. For those with ADHD there may be a more immediate challenge with getting a handle on time: Accurately estimating how long a task will take (often underestimated), monitoring the day-to-day passing of time (“What, it’s that time already?!”), and shifting attention as needed (noticing it is time to pack up now in order to be at that appointment on time).

Why don’t time management workshops work for me?

To understand the answer to this question we have to return to what we know about executive functioning. These are the brain processes that help us to plan, initiate actions toward that plan, work with information in our short term memory, monitor the passing of time, regulate our emotions and level of motivation, and more. All in all, the executive functions are important in making choices that take into account more than just the moment. It doesn’t take much imagination to understand why difficulties with these tasks would get adult students into difficult, painful, embarrassing, or costly situations.

If the challenges created by ADHD are not taken into account, the usual time management advice may not be enough. For example, students with ADHD may create a schedule and end up not really using it. Even if a habit of checking the schedule every morning is established, it is still possible to get caught up in an activity and fail to notice it is time to go to that appointment. So more strategies may be needed to effectively manage the glitches that arise.