Why the ADHD Brain Chooses the Less Important Task — and How CBT Improves Prioritization Skills

By J. Russell Ramsay, Ph.D., Updated on April 12, 2023

Facing a to-do list top-heavy with critical, complex tasks, adults with ADHD often tackle the easier items — ones that keep them busy but not productive. Called “procrastivity,” this self-defeating ADHD time-management habit can be helped by cognitive behavioral therapy approaches that teach patients how to prioritize tasks.

A combination of “procrastinate” and “activity,” the term “procrastivity” aptly describes a tussle common among adults with ADHD who are always busy but never seem to make headway on life’s important goals. At its root is an implementation problem: the individual knows what they need to do, but they won’t or can’t do it, so they keep occupied with more palatable but less critical tasks.

Filing taxes, for example, is a high-priority, strict-deadline task that an adult with ADHD might put off for re-seeding the lawn. While a worthwhile activity if the grass is indeed bare, this gardening is not critical, especially when April 15 looms. If tending to the lawn is the priority task, on the other hand, some adults with ADHD might find opting to watch or read the news in a bid to stay informed. Productive? Yes, but low on the scale of priorities.

Procrastivity can especially affect people with attention deficit disorder (ADHD or ADD), as the disorder, at its core, is a struggle with executive functions and self-regulation. Completing everyday tasks and learning how to prioritize is often more difficult for people with ADHD compared to their neurotypical peers — and all that back up effectively creates a breeding ground for procrastivity.

Why do some tasks that would be otherwise avoided suddenly become more appealing in the face of higher priority to-do items? And can the ADHD mind be trained to steer clear of this low-hanging, time-wasting fruit? This is the conundrum of procrastivity and the promise of its match: cognitive behavioral therapy.

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