Time management skills—need help

[Rose White]

I need help developing time management skills. I want to use a calendar but I can’t or won’t stick with it. I need help developing the habit. I feel really embarrassed that I’m almost 50 and struggle to keep a calendar. I mostly write shit down (dates to remember) on slips of scrap paper and shove it in a desk drawer.

I wish there was an app that helped me develop these skills but I haven’t found one. I suppose I could try to hire a life coach but I don’t have the income for that currently. I feel kind of hopeless and maybe I’m just complaining.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said, “This time I’m going to do it,” and then it falls away.

I am not stupid but sometimes I feel like I am. My ideal would be to just cook and clean and read and garden all day. Letting the sun organize the day.

I welcome tips and resources especially if you identify with a portion of what I wrote or especially if this is something you also struggle with. I know for some people it’s no big deal, they just do it and it’s a part of their lives. If that’s you it might be hard to understand why others struggle with it. I don’t want to be seen as lazy for not developing this habit, I have enough to feel ashamed about

 

[Friday]

My ideal would be to just cook and clean and read and garden all day. Letting the sun organize the day.

What do you need to do in addition to these?

 

[Rose White]

Financial management and school now and medical/dental/vision upkeep and car maintenance and bills and insurance reviewing and work planning and buying shit and kid maintenance and probably should be fixing my credit but that takes time/energy/attention

Blech

 

[RainbowSearchParty]

I get super distracted when trying to use apps because they are always on an internet-enabled device. I use a paper calendar ..... and physically write everything down. Maybe that would work for you? Take the scraps of paper from the desk drawer and write on a (paper) calendar that is on top of the desk?

 

[Rose White]

So I can physically do that stuff but it’s really hard to make it a habit. That’s why I was hoping for an app that can encourage me.

 

[RainbowSearchParty]

I have DID so I thrive on various systems to remember stuff. Post it’s. Everywhere. And e-mails can be automated. So you could set up an email to yourself that lands in your inbox daily, with a little note to do the calendar, plus a little affirmation. I always try to tell myself how awesome I am in those reminders. building a habit is a slow process but it’s just like anything else, one step at a time ….

 

[Charbella]

So I can physically do that stuff but it’s really hard to make it a habit. That’s why I was hoping for an app that can encourage me.

I have everything on my phone. Lots of it is set it up once and then let it run. Things like I have every 6 months oil change, once a year car register, every 3 months change air filter, every other week my injectable meds. I can easily speak to my phone to set an appointment and most things have 3 alerts one a week before, one a day and another 1 hour. All my doctors offices send text reminders so I add those and I schedule my therapy 3 months in advance. Supposedly if you keep it going 20 days then it’s a habit you can maintain. My brain loves for me to do the same thing on auto pilot. It leaves actual brain space for other things. My work uses a calendar system that lets me upload to my iPhone and then they run together in different colors. Everyone I care about has their birthday in a reoccurring date in my phone. You can set appointments or reminders on whatever system you want.

 

[Midnightmoon]

In the UK the obvious choice would be access to work funding, which is available to anyone with a disability/ MH / LD need working (I think over 4 hours but I might be wrong there, memory sketchy) and gives physical equipment as well as mentors and coaches. Time management is like on of the top skills they work on! I had it to help with the dyslexia when I was nursing, the mentor was fab. I don't suppose there is anything similar in the US?

 

[Teasel]

I wonder if you might find a thread here on the topic helpful? So all of us who struggle with this might encourage each other?

I mean an ongoing support thread

 

[Rose White]

don't suppose there is anything similar in the US?

If there is it would not be on a federal or state level but on community level, through a church, charity, or county organization. That sounds really great you can access it—Amazing it helped you with dyslexia!! I don’t know of any programs here for adults with dyslexia—except prison. There are lots of resources for people in prison—I think it’s the US’s preferred way of dealing with mental health and disabilities, sadly.

wonder if you might find a thread here on the topic helpful? So all of us who struggle with this might encourage each other?

I mean an ongoing support thread

Good idea! I will open one.