This logo isn't an ad or affiliate link. It's an organization that shares in our mission, and empowered the authors to share their insights in Byte form.
Rumie vets Bytes for compliance with our
Standards.
The organization is responsible for the completeness and reliability of the content.
Learn more
about how Rumie works with partners.
Do you struggle with ADHD procrastination?
Feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or unable to get started, even on tasks you know matter?
It’s not your fault — but it doesn’t have to stay that way.
The key is understanding why it happens.
Photo by Nik Shuliahin 💛💙 on Unsplash
Lack of Self-Management Skills
ADHD procrastination is often tied to challenges with self-management, which can make everyday tasks feel really overwhelming. People with ADHD may experience issues with:
Planning: Struggling with figuring out how to get started. For many, just breaking a project into manageable steps feels overwhelming or exhausting.
Time blindness: Difficulty sensing how long tasks will take, or even realizing how much time has passed.
Focus: Staying focused on a task can feel like a constant battle because the ADHD brain is always seeking something new and interesting to focus on.
Did you know?
An ADHD planner can help you stay focused on your daily tasks. You can also find practical ways to ways to tackle time blindness and tools to help you manage it.
Lower Emotional Control
People with ADHD may experience more intense emotional reactions. To escape these difficult feelings around tasks, they often end up avoiding the task itself.
These emotions might come from:
The stress of feeling unproductive
Fear of failure or not meeting personal standards, which are often set unrealistically high
Anxiety when a task feels too hard
Low self-esteem due to facing ADHD challenges
Test Your Knowledge
Which of the following thoughts are common for people experiencing ADHD procrastination? Select all that apply:
A. "I’ll start later when I feel more motivated and focused."
B. "I’m too overwhelmed to even begin, so I’ll just avoid this task for now."
C. "It’s not important enough, I don't really care."
D. "I’m afraid of messing up or not doing this perfectly, so I’ll put it off."
Quiz
Which are common for people with ADHD procrastination? Select all that apply:
People with ADHD procrastination often struggle with motivation, task initiation, and perfectionism. ADHD procrastination is usually not due to laziness or a lack of care.
Take Action
By understanding the parts of ADHD that lead to procrastination, you can become aware of your triggers and find ways to work through them:
This Byte has been authored by
Liat Liberman
Instructional Designer
MA