Capture tasks in one place
Give new tasks one reliable place to land, so there's less to hold in your head.
Not ratedADHD evidence
Start with the time you have
1 minute
Pick the place your next task will go, somewhere you already use, and picture opening it.
5 minutes
Make a single inbox and put three loose tasks into it.
15 minutes
Collect tasks from one other list, move appointments to your calendar and choose one next action.
30 minutes
Consolidate your currently active task lists, leaving old archives alone; test whether the new inbox is easy to reopen.
A plan
Make capture easy to repeat
- Use one inbox for new tasks.
- Check it at the same daily cue.
- Remove a capture step if you keep avoiding it.
How sure the science is
Not rated, ADHD evidence
No pooled trials to rate. This rests on single studies, expert consensus or clinical practice. Measured in people with ADHD.
ADHD clinical guidance and programme content; the isolated strategy has no separately rated efficacy estimate.
The number, drawn
Keep one central place for tasks and reminders
Why it matters
Scattered notes make it harder to find what needs doing. One task list is part of ADHD skills programmes and NHS practical advice, but its own effect has not been established. The programme evidence is not proof that a particular notebook or app treats ADHD.
How to do it
- Pick one notebook or simple notes list that's easy to reach.
- Put new tasks there as they come up, without sorting them first.
- At a regular daily check, move dated commitments to your calendar and pick a next action.
Putting it into practice
In real life
- Put 'return library book' beside 'reply to repair email' in the same inbox.
- Dictate a task into your existing notes app when typing is awkward.
Watch out for
- Common mistakeA perfect filing system can delay capture, so write a rough task first.
- Common mistakeAn inbox that is never reopened becomes storage, so attach its check to a regular daily event.
Trusted guides
How we rated it
- Evidence grade
- C Small or mixed studies, expert consensus or clinical practice. Worth knowing, not worth betting on.
- The number
- Keep one central place for tasks and reminders (Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, 2026)
- Benefit
- 44/100 The benefit score is an editorial prioritization for the general list, weighted by certainty. It is not a prediction of what will happen for you.
- Effort
- Some effort
Sources
- Tier 1 guidelineStrategies and support (ADHD: while you wait)Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, 2026
- Tier 2 studyDescription and Demonstration of CBT for ADHD in AdultsCognitive and Behavioral Practice, 2010
General information about ADHD, not a diagnosis or an individual treatment plan. Tailoring changes the order of suggestions; it does not assess you. Medication decisions belong with you and a qualified clinician.