Find the best ADHD planning tools and tips for your neurodivergent mind.
It’s one of the most endearing traits of ADHD. You buy a brand new beautiful ADHD planner, journal, or notebook, while you’re full of ideas and excitement about the months and year ahead. You might even crack it open once or twice before you get to it again … in a year or two.
Why do you get excited about a new tool and then forget about it? Is it inattentiveness? Were you distracted by a shinier thing? Was it just too overwhelming?
I can’t answer all of those, but I do believe one thing to be true. Complicated Organizing = ADHD brain shutdown.
Complex charts, 30-step processes, and idealized goals all feel good in the short-term. They give a sense of control and optimism. But even a neurotypical brain has trouble staying on task all of the time. Once you add too many “solutions” to the mix your brain will simply check out.
This likely relates to common ADHD symptoms in adults, including forgetfulness, restlessness, and difficulty multitasking (NIMH, 2024; Kofler, et al., 2017). Fortunately, other co-occurring traits such as creativity and curiosity can help balance these out.
Over the years I’ve found a method that works for me. I use my Google Calendar on my phone for events and tasks. (Not the task option–I just put the tasks right on the calendar and disregard the time.) I built the habit over time, and with practice, it has stuck.
Then I use fun and intriguing planners and related tools for brainstorming ideas, breaking down larger projects, and exploring grand possibilities. If I stick with that particular tool it’s great. If not I still got what I needed at the time.
This way I can have multiple options and use them or lose them, all without feeling guilty. These days I have been particularly enjoying digital planners and self-development worksheets. I print or import them into GoodNotes and write directly on my iPad. With my Apple Pencil it feels pretty close to the real thing, except there are no loose papers or books to lose track of!
I actually created my own planner, based on common traits of ADHD and the tools I’d like to see in a planner. It has the typical daily, monthly, and weekly pages, but also includes activities to complete chores, emotions trackers, mindfulness activities, and more.
I recommend you experiment to find the process that works for you. Keep in mind that it doesn’t have to “look” the way others expect, and it’s okay to bend the tools to work for you. Or even to make your own!
For inspiration, below are the best ADHD planners I’ve used or plan to use myself! They don’t all have “ADHD” in the title, but each has unique traits that make them work for our wonderful and creative neurodivergent minds.
5 Best ADHD Planners for Adults
The ADHD Action Planner by The Counseling Palette
This is the digital and printable planner I mentioned. It can be printed or imported into GoodNotes. It’s a colorful, gentle, supportive organizer that helps with your self-development, self-care, and entrepreneurial goals. Some of the features include:
Traditional calendar and planner pages
Review of ADHD symptoms
Challenges ADHD ANTs (automatic negative thoughts)
Practicing focus
Body doubling (to get things done)
©Clutteropoly chore game
Emotion tracking
Budget pages
Project Planning
Activity tracking
Vision board
Digital/paper labyrinths and mandalas
Digital/paper Zen garden
Journal pages and prompts
Inspirational stickers
Coloring sheets
Multiple cover options
This is a planner you can come back to again and again as you grow, start new projects, and need a bit of help making the best of your ADHD habits.
2025 Self-Care Planner by Self-Love Rainbow
This yearly digital planner by Self-Love Rainbow is a treat for the eyes and the heart. While it might not focus specifically on ADHD, it’s a good fit for many ADHD minds. The designer includes playful art that focuses on wellness, mental health, boundaries, and self-care.
The visuals help with focus and draw you into the activities. It begins with reviewing the previous year while you say goodbye and clear the slate for a new era. You’ll choose a word of the year, set mini-goals for each month, and try fun, easy challenges.
ADHD Daily Planner
This is a traditional planner, in the sense it’s bound and printed. However, what’s inside is far from. While it does include typical planner pages, it also has a fold-out vision board section, habit development, and gratitude pages.
The ADHD Daily Planner is one of the most popular on Amazon. It’s made by Freedom Mastery, which focuses on the Law of Attraction as a framework to set goals and live your best life.
You are a Bad A** Organizer
If you’re not familiar with Jen Sincero and the You are a Bad A** movement, you’re missing out. The You are a Bad A** Deluxe Organizer is based on Sincero’s book series that features inspiration and activities to help you get past the “blocks” that are keeping you from meeting your goals.
While this one also isn’t focused on ADHD, its simplicity, along with the author’s inspirational features, make it special. If you’re looking for something different but don’t want to get overwhelmed with too much color and activity, take a look at this option.
Rocketbook Fusion Productivity Planner
Looking for a hybrid between paper and digital and don’t want to waste trees? Rocketbook offers an elegant solution. The pages are similar to whiteboards where you can take notes, fill out calendars, and create goal plans. However, once you’re done with a page you can scan it to the app to store it. Then just erase the page and start over!
This may be an ideal solution for many people with ADHD, because you have the satisfaction of hand-writing no\
tes and doodles without the stress and responsibility of tracking lots of physical pages. The company has regular note-taking pages as well as a planner-specific option.
Tips for ADHD Planning
Getting back to the struggles of actually using the planners … after all, what good do any of the above planners do if you can’t use them?
Over the years I’ve found what works for me when it comes to organizing tasks and getting big things done. Here are a few of my tips.
Explore what works
Each brain is different. What works for your mind could be the wrong solution for someone else, and vice versa. Try some of the traditional organizing tools as well as alternative options others might not think of.
Simplify
Consider my method. I use all the tools I once, but I have one solution that overrides the others. I use the Google Calendar on my phone to keep track of my schedule, and I put in one or two tasks to get done each day on the calendar itself. I don’t put down specific times for those, I just have them in mind and know I’ll get them done that day.
Be flexible
Once you have your main, simple solution, it frees you up to try all kinds of things. I love all of the planners above and I get something out of exploring all of them. Some things will stick and some won’t. Think of it not necessarily as a waste or failure but as part of the adventure of having ADHD.
Perhaps like you, I spent years trying to make a planner work for my ADHD. There were a lot of starts and stops, and life organizing is a big habit to stick with. Eventually, I found the best option for me and my brain. Once you find the simplest solution for you it will make the process worth it! (Plus it’s pretty fun to explore along the way.)
Ready to get started on your organizing journey? Try the ADHD Action Planner. Download it and start today.
Sources
Kofler, M. J., Sarver, D. E., Harmon, S. L., Moltisanti, A., Aduen, P. A., Soto, E. F., & Ferretti, N. (2017). Working memory and organizational skills problems in ADHD. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 59(1), 57–67. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12773
NIMH (National Institutes of Mental Health), 2024. ADHD in Adults. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/adhd-what-you-need-to-know
About the Author
Jennie Lannette Bedsworth is a licensed therapist and the creator of The Counseling Palette, a trusted source for therapy games, group therapy activities, and printables. With two decades of experience in the mental health field, Jennie designs resources that make therapy engaging, effective, and accessible for all ages. Ready to transform your sessions? Explore our collection of therapy tools at The Counseling Palette.
Looking for a larger toolkit of resources to help with coping skills, cognitive behavioral therapy, and supporting therapy clients of all ages? Try our Giant Therapy Bundle and have everything you need at your fingertips today.
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