From ADHD paralysis to ADHD motivation- why neurotypical strategies don't work

Motivational speakers like Tony Robbins have transformed the lives of countless people, offering proven strategies to boost productivity, success, and personal fulfilment. Their advice is often powerful, practical, and effective—for neurotypicals.

The Problem with Neurotypical Motivation Strategies

However, for individuals with ADHD, sometimes these mainstream motivational strategies can do more harm than good.

Many of the self-development books, motivational talks, and success-oriented methodologies out there offering you the ‘keys to success’, are built on a neurotypical brain framework. They assume a consistent ability to regulate motivation, sustained focus, and execution of tasks in a linear fashion.

I recently listened to a podcast featuring Tony Robbins. He shared lots of motivational advice, including that a great way to build your motivation is to start your day with your biggest, most challenging task.

This is similar to the “Eat the Frog”— concept. This was a term popularised by Brian Tracy in his book Eat That Frog! (2001). The idea suggests that completing the hardest or most important task first thing in the morning sets a productive tone for the rest of the day.

For a neurotypical person, this makes perfect sense. Start strong, gain momentum, and ride that wave of accomplishment throughout the day.

But for ADHDers, this approach can feel completely counterproductive and quite literally, impossible.

Why “Eating the Frog” Doesn’t Work for ADHDers

ADHDers face unique challenges related to executive function, dopamine regulation, and task initiation. Activation—the ability to start tasks—is often one of the biggest hurdles. Often the individual knows what they need to do, even wants to do it, but simply cannot get moving.

When the ADHD brain encounters a complex task first thing in the morning, it’s not met with motivation but rather paralysis, frustration, or avoidance (note that a task being complex is not the issue-ADHDers thrive on challenge!).

Imagine motivation as riding a bike:

• A neurotypical person starts on a flat road. A push gets them going, and they can maintain steady effort with relative ease.

• An ADHDer, however, starts at the bottom of a steep hill. That first push isn’t just difficult—it can feel nearly impossible. And if the task at hand feels overwhelming, they may end up rolling backward instead of making progress. Moreover, ADHDers often experience hyperfocus, which means that once they are activated and engaged in a task, stopping can be just as difficult as starting- think getting over the hump of the hill then the bike is freewheeling, but the breaks have failed!

  
  
  
  

Not only are task transitions challenging, but because activating was so hard in the first place, it can also be hard to want to stop. Individuals may feel concerned that if they do take a break, they simply won’t be able to start again.

This means avoiding taking breaks, ignoring the body’s needs, leading to working for too long. Couple this with a different perception of time meaning they can get lost in a task for so long that they don’t know they’ve overdone it until it’s too late.

With ADHD, the trick isn’t to aim for the hardest task first—it’s to find the right way to activate and build momentum acknowledging that sometimes just getting started is a major hurdle to overcome.

How to Activate When You’re Stuck- Less frog eating, instead think Pacman approach.

Tackle the small manageable tasks first to build momentum before eating your frogs/ghosts/most challenging tasks…

 ADHDers can start with the smallest possible step—one that is small enough to feel manageable but meaningful enough to create a sense of progress. The key is reducing the barrier to entry so that activation becomes easier. Here are some strategies:

1. Start with a Win –

Begin with something easy or enjoyable to trigger a sense of accomplishment before moving to harder tasks. What is one job that can be ticked off the list with little time or low effort? It may not be the most important task, but it’s your ticket to getting there.

2. Break It Down –

The smallest step is not about meaningless busy work; it’s the entry point to activating. When a task feels overwhelming, divide it into micro-steps. And when you think you have the microsteps, look again!

You may be thinking, the first step is ‘sitting down’ to write a report.

This is neither a step that will likely feel like a small win, nor one that actually progresses the task.

Think more about before this happens, what do you need? Do you need to find your notes, download a template, find a specific email, bring together a number of documents for reference? Step one might be simply preparing yourself for the task so that you have everything you need to succeed.

3. Understand that what works for everyone, doesn’t necessarily work for you-

In order to find different approaches that work, it is firstly important to understand how your brain works differently but also to appreciate and not criticise when the approaches you think should work, don’t.

Looking back, I can’t count how many times I’ve resisting doing what works for me because it felt like the ‘wrong’ way, or when I’ve felt ashamed and the need to hide my process in case someone else saw my unconventional approach.

I’ll keep banging that self-compassion drum because when we have it, we can be more open minded and flexible to what we need instead of attempting to bend ourselves to how we think we should be.

4.  Pair with Dopamine-Boosting Activities –

Enhance motivation by integrating elements that stimulate your brain’s reward system and make things more enjoyable.

You might consider ideas such as using music, setting a timer to see how many small tasks you can complete in an allotted time, using visual tools like highlighters, creating a comfortable environment, incorporating a creative approach, or engaging in physical movement before transitioning to desk work.

Making tasks more engaging helps overcome activation barriers and supports sustained focus and productivity.

The Power of Small Wins

For the ADHD brain, success comes not from tackling the hardest task first but from building momentum with achievable wins.

Once activated, it becomes easier to continue, and motivation often follows action—not the other way around.

 Instead of forcing yourself into neurotypical strategies that don’t fit, embrace what works for you.

So, what’s the biggest small step you can take today?

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