Partner Up: How Body Doubling Can Elevate Your ADHD Focus
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I bring you tidings of great joy: You do not have to do the thing alone! Other people can help you get stuff done. You may think that it is not a task someone else can do for you. That may be true, but that does not mean you cannot have the assistance of someone else. Body doubling is a great way of doing what you need to do. It works like this: Another person is present while you do the thing. That is really it. It may sound simple, but it is powerful. The exciting thing about this is you do not have to be in person to body double. This can be accomplished over Zoom or another video conferencing platform.
How Does This Work Offline?
If you want to give this a shot, call up a friend or acquaintance and meet at a coffee shop to get some stuff done. Alternatively, if you have something that needs to be done at home, invite someone over to sit there while you clean your bathroom or whatever.
How Does This Work Online?
You open up a Zoom meeting or another similar platform. Everyone on the call says what they hope to accomplish during the set time for working. Then, everyone goes on mute and begins working. When the timer goes off, everyone goes off mute and checks in on how they did. Another timer can be set for an additional work period, or everyone can go their merry way.
Does the Process Sound Familiar?
If the process of working for a bit, checking in, and then going back to work sounds familiar, it should. It is the world famous pomodoro technique. If you will recall, the pomodoro technique is working for 25 minutes, taking a break, working for 25 minutes, taking a break, and so on and so forth. That is what you are doing with the timed body doubling. It is just a group version of it.
Why Does This Work?
The key with body doubling is accountability. Your camera is on, and people can see what you are doing. If you are not on task, there is a chance they will see you. Even if they do not catch you, you will have to report back to them that you were distracted at the end of the work period. Finally, there is a bit of magic to this process. It may sound like it is not going to work for you, but trust me that it will. I cannot fully explain how this idea of body doubling works, but it does. Many people with ADHD report wonderful results from body doubling.
Wrapping Things Up…
This has been a short blog, but that is what is necessary for the ADHD brain. We do not want to overcomplicate things. That will only make it harder to do. Simplicity can be effective, as long as you are working with your brain, not against it. I encourage you to give body doubling a shot. It is a simple solution to what seems difficult. And as a secret special side note, you do not even have to use friends; there are websites that allow you to do this with strangers. You do not really have an excuse. Get to work (with someone else)!