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Let me start by saying: if there were an Olympic event for "Tasks Started and Never Finished," I’d have enough gold medals to open a pawn shop.
Filing paperwork?
Responding to emails?
Updating spreadsheets?
Even thinking about them makes my dopamine curl into the fetal position.
But I figured something out — not how to love these tasks (gross), but how to outsmart my brain into finishing them. Not through discipline or willpower — because lol — but through trickery, bribery, and some good old-fashioned psychological warfare.
Let’s break it down.
🎣 Step 1: The Bait-and-Switch (aka "The Trojan Task")
My ADHD brain loves starting things. The rush of beginning something new? Instant dopamine. But finishing? That’s where fun goes to die.
So instead of saying “I have to do my taxes,” I say:
“I’m just gonna open the file and look at what I did last year.”
Boom. Low-stakes. No pressure. Once I’m in the file, though, I’m like, “Okay, well since I’m here…” and suddenly, I’m doing taxes.
I call it the Trojan Task — sneak the boring task in under the guise of something easy.
It works way better than brute force.
⏱ Step 2: The Fake Deadline
I used to tell myself “I’ll do it later,” which was a lie, and my brain knew it.
Now, I give myself fake deadlines, and I schedule them. Like:
“I have 25 minutes to clean this inbox before I jump on a call.”
The key? Making it sound like the task has a countdown clock. ADHD loves drama.
If I really need to finish something, I’ll say:
“The future of my business depends on this being done before 2:00 PM.”
It doesn’t. But my brain doesn’t know that. It just hears “urgency” and goes into action mode.
🎁 Step 3: Bribery Works (and You Know It)
I promise myself a reward every time I finish a task I hate.
Coffee? ✅
10 minutes of Reddit scrolling? ✅
One YouTube video about capybaras? ✅✅✅
The trick is, I don’t get the reward until the task is done. My brain learns:
“Ugh fine, let’s just get through this email so we can look at animals with tiny hats.”
Over time, these tiny bribes train your brain to associate boring tasks with pleasure. It’s literally classical conditioning. You’re Pavlov. Your task is the bell. The reward is... snacks.
🧃 Step 4: Turn It Into a Game (or Distract Yourself on Purpose)
If a task is annoying, I don’t try to make it feel fancy or aesthetic.
I turn it into a game — or I distract myself on purpose.
I invent imaginary points for every step I finish.
I set a timer and try to “speedrun” the task.
I listen to a podcast to keep my brain entertained while my hands do the work.
Basically, I try to trick myself into forgetting how boring the task is by throwing something fun in the mix.
My brain doesn’t want the task. It wants the dopamine. So I just smuggle it in.
🤝 Step 5: The Accountability Trap
Nothing motivates me like the fear of disappointing someone I respect. So I tell a friend:
“I’m going to finish editing that blog post by 4 PM. Check in on me.”
Or I post it in a Slack group. Or write it on my whiteboard like a mad scientist.
External accountability puts just enough pressure on me that I’m like:
“Crap. Now I have to do it, or they’ll know I watched 19 TikToks instead.”
⚙️ Bonus Hack: The "One Ugly Draft" Rule
If I hate writing something (hello, email copy), I promise myself I’ll do one ugly draft.
No edits. No pressure. Just brain-dump it.
Turns out, the hardest part is starting — and once the ugly draft is done, my brain says:
“Wait... that wasn’t so bad.”
Sometimes, finishing just means lowering the bar until it’s on the floor.
TL;DR for My Fellow ADHD Hustlers:
Trojan Task – Start small, sneak the big task in later.
Fake Deadline – Add drama. Your brain loves a plot twist.
Bribe Yourself – Snacks and screentime are excellent motivators.
Distract or Gamify – Use podcasts or points to make it suck less.
External Pressure – Tell someone. Or post it. Or write it in blood (marker).
One Ugly Draft – Lower the bar. You can always clean it up later.
Finishing tasks you hate isn’t about discipline. It’s about outwitting your brain — and using dopamine like a tactical weapon.
The truth is, we’re not lazy. We’re not broken. We’re not bad at finishing things.
We’re just operating on a different operating system.
And once you learn to write code for that system?
You can do anything.
Even taxes.
Maybe.