Coaching practices for Why Can't I Stick to the Routines I Try to Make for Myself and Does My Adhd Have Anything to Do with it

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Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?

  • A week of being sick (or away on a trip) knocked all my routines off the rails, and now I’m back but somehow can’t pick them up again
  • I keep doing this thing I swear I’ll stop, and I genuinely can’t say what sets it off or what I’m even getting out of it
  • I keep telling myself I lack discipline, but the behavior I want to stop doesn’t feel like a choice
  • I’m convinced I’ve been mostly sticking to it, but when I’m honest I’m really remembering my intentions, not what I actually did
  • I keep trying to punish myself into a good new habit and all it does is make me dread the thing and avoid it more

Practices that may help

  1. Conduct a habit audit after any major disruption
    After illness, travel, or any routine disruption, deliberately audit which habits are still active and reinstall those that lapsed.
    The Habit Discontinuity Effect
  2. Map the cue-routine-reward loop
    Break a habit into its three parts before you try to change anything.
    The Power of Habit, Made Practical
  3. Identify the stimulus driving the behavior you want to change
    Map the exact cues — environmental, sensory, or social — that reliably precede the target behavior.
    Stimulus Control, Made Practical
  4. Measure to close the feedback loop
    Record the behavior so you see what you are actually doing, not what you assume.
    Habit Tracking
  5. Choose between carrots and sticks based on your goal type
    Sticks (loss-framed penalties) work better for stopping behaviors; carrots (rewards) work better for starting new ones.
    Commitment Contracts, Made Practical
  6. Account for system delays when evaluating progress
    Delays between action and result are built into every system — premature abandonment is the most common failure.
    Systems Thinking for Personal Productivity
  7. Practice routine disruption so it doesn’t derail performance
    Train yourself to reset and re-enter the routine after interruptions so disruption never catches you unprepared.
    Pre-Performance Routines, Made Practical
  8. Review the data to adjust the system
    Use the tracker as diagnostic input, not just a scoreboard.
    Habit Tracking
  9. Cultivate genuine belief that change is possible
    Habits stick permanently only when the person believes they can change — especially under stress.
    The Habit Loop, Made Practical
  10. Practise short sessions frequently rather than long sessions rarely
    Multiple shorter sessions build the habit neurologically more reliably than occasional long ones.
    Shamatha: The Buddhist Practice of Calm Abiding

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