"Just do it"

Jessie

November 1, 2025

One of the most frustrating pieces of common productivity advice out there is "just do it". There is maybe some wisdom to the concept, you eventually have to start a task to complete it, but it's almost worthless in isolation. How do you "just start"?

Well, I have ADHD, and in order to do pretty much anything, I have to learn the hard way how to make myself productive. I can't use neurotypical advice, as it often doesn't work. But "just do it" interests me specifically because of the small bit of truth in it.

The way I think of it, productivity is a momentum-based system. Imagine you are on a bike, and need to ride up a hill. Which is easier: building speed by riding on level terrain first, or immediately starting your ride at the base of the hill? Obviously, because of physics, the former is easier.

A lot of the ways I've learned to work with myself is based on this concept of momentum. In order to start working, I have to just start. If I can't bring myself to start, I need to reduce the task until I can push through. If I can't bring myself to start even then, I likely need to rest.

Consider getting up in the morning. For my ADHD brain, this is an overwhelming process, filled with a massive list of tasks. I not only have to wake up, get up, get dressed, and pack anything to go out, I need to consider any physical or environmental needs, like hunger or cleanliness. If I try to "get ready", I lock up.

When I'm just waking up, my executive functioning isn't exactly in peak condition, so I have to account for that barrier. I can't "get ready", I have to "sit up". In the back of my head, there's a domino of tasks to build to. If I sit up and stand, I am out of bed, and then less likely to go back to sleep. For the moment, my sole task is to do that and only that.

Every task is thought of like this. When I'm on taking my medicine, I am only to take my medicine. If I see clothes on the floor, I should disregard it. If I think of an email I need to send, I shouldn't check. I am a single thread processor, only able to do one task. I can create a queue, but if I try to multitask, I will overload myself and potentially lock up.

This is to me what "just do it" actually means. Or, at the very least, this system is the only way I can "just do it". For any project, any task, any chore, I must break it into a queue, then focus entirely on each task in the queue until completion. Each completed task becomes a boost of energy that creates momentum. Remember the bicycle metaphor? Part of the point isn't just to avoid overwhelm, but to build that energy so I can do the more difficult work later.

I doubt this exact model will work for everyone. I also doubt this is inherently what "just do it" means. But I think building productivity in this systematic way, working with yourself and not just trying to brute force past disability and lack of motivation, is what actually gets work done.

And sometimes, you are just tired. You are at the end of your tether, and cannot be productive. When that happens, you have to rest. Maintenance, rest, it will happen whether you like it or not. It's better to choose than to be forced to when your body breaks down. You deserve that care.