The Nuance of Neurodivergent Productivity - Five tips that support you to be sustainably effective.

Noticing your Consistent Inconsistency as a Neurodivergent professional?

Stop raging at yourself and start proactively managing your productivity in a more sustainable way.

If you’re a neurodivergent professional, particularly if you are ADHD or/and Autistic, you’ve probably noticed that your functioning capacity varies hugely every day.

Some days you might be focused, articulate, and “on it.” Other days, even opening an email feels like a marathon and pretty much every day you wake up not knowing how you are going to be.

Of course, everybody’s energy and focus will ebb and flow, but for Neurodivergent people, the swings tend to be much sharper. Generally speaking, we can be considered the sprint runners of the productivity world and tend to either be highly productive in excess of others, OR barely functional. These fluctuations aren’t a sign of weakness or lack of discipline. They’re a normal part of being neurodivergent and are highly influenced by neurotransmitters, sensory load, executive functioning capacity, emotional regulation, and environmental stressors.

Even though this consistent inconsistency is to be expected, in a world built around consistent output and “steady productivity,” these ups and downs can leave us feeling guilty, anxious, or like we’re failing to meet expectations, especially our own. We worry that we are ‘being lazy’ when the reality couldn’t be further from the truth.

Want to sense check if you are being Lazy? Are you having fun when you are unproductive? If you aren’t having fun, and in fact are racked with guilt and misery, then let me assure you; you aren’t being Lazy!

As a Neurodivergent coach working with Neurodivergent people every day, one thing I know is that negative self-talk about this phenomenon is hugely wasted energy. Instead, I support my clients to treat each fluctuation in capacity as information we can use to make a plan.

Instead of beating ourselves up internally, understand that every good or challenging day tells us what’s working, what’s not, and where we might need rest, structure, or support. This information gives us the opportunity to proactively plan ahead, no matter where we are in terms of our capacity and enables us to minimise the impact.

Feeling Consistently Inconsistent?

Here are five practical tips I use with my coaching clients to help manage your fluctuations in capacity with more compassion and, hopefully, greater success.

1. Gather Insight - Notice and track what’s going on for you.

   
   

   Use your strengths in pattern recognition for good!

   
   

   Keep a journal or app note where you how you are functioning in addition to things like sleep, diet (especially protein intake), movement/exercise, the type of work you are doing and what’s hard about it, sensory load, social demands, and energy.

   
   

   Over time, you should notice patterns which will help you be proactive in how you support yourself. No, none of this is new information, but most of us tend to forget that we have control over many of the factors that influence how we function.

   
   

   Maybe you function better if you take a walk at lunchtime, perhaps your creativity peaks in the evening, or maybe you notice you are more focused when you drink enough water. Awareness allows you to plan with your brain, rather than railing against it.

Note for my AFAB peeps - make sure you incorporate tracking hormones into this - the link between Estrogen and Dopamine is real!

1. Prioritise long term regulation over immediate productivity

   
   

   When capacity drops, our nervous systems are often signalling overload. Trying to “push through” can lead to burnout, shutdown or, at the very least, a more protracted period of lower productivity. There is a reason that the research tells us that 50% of Neurodivergent professionals experience medical burnout in any one year - we tend to use the strategy of 'pushing through' as a default.

   
   

   Instead of doing what you usually do when you try to do more with less capacity, pause and ask: What does the information I have gathered about my body or brain mean that I need right now to regulate?

   
   

   It might be a sensory reset (a walk, weighted blanket, or quiet), movement, hydration, or reduced input. You will recover your capacity much faster when you treat regulation as essential in your day to day life, rather than an optional thing you only consider when you in complete burnout.

   
   

I believe that accepting our ongoing need to proactively engage in regulation strategies is one of the fundamental ways to build long term sustainable functionality as Neurodivergent professionals

3. Build Flexible Routines (Not Rigid Schedules)

   
   

   Rigid routines are great when they work, but they don’t account for days when your capacity drops and encourage an 'all or nothing' attitude. As soon as the routine is disrupted, as it inevitably will be, we lose momentum in productivity all together.

   
   

   This can lead to internalised frustration and erode our trust in ourselves that we will ‘do what we said we would’. Instead, teach yourself that you can be relied upon whilst also respecting your body’s fluctuations.

   
   

   Design modular routines (small interchangeable blocks of tasks) that you can scale up or down but that still enable you to keep on track. For example:

• On a high-capacity day: deep work, networking, creative tasks.

• On a medium day: admin, process work, checking in with clients or colleagues.

• On a low day: maintenance tasks, quiet thinking, or strategic rest.

Teach yourself that you can look after yourself whilst also doing what you say you will.

Learn to see flexibility as sustainability not failure.

4. Have to get something done regardless? Understand what motivates you and use it!

   On those occasions when taking time out to regulate is not feasible, you may need some extra motivational hacks up your sleeve. Neurodivergent brains tend to thrive on five key motivators. These motivators are linked to increased dopamine production which can enable us to be more productive.

   
   

   These motivators are:

   
   

   • Passion and Play: Doing things that are enjoyable and intrinsically motivating.

   • Interest: Focusing on tasks that are inherently fascinating.

   • Novelty: Seeking out new, exciting experiences to stay engaged.

   • Competition (or Cooperation/Challenge): Adding a people element of challenge or competition to make tasks more interesting.

   • Hurry (Urgency): Creating time pressure to feel a sense of urgency and get things done.

   
   

   If you really have to get through tasks even when you are not feeling it, consider which of the five motivators might be helpful for you and incorporate it into how you are approaching things.

   
   

   Maybe you could set a timer for 30 minutes and aim to crack through 6 emails (Urgency), or maybe you could tell a colleague you will send them a piece of work to review at 4pm (People).

   
   

   For more information on understanding and utilising Neurodivergent motivators, see an article I wrote on this here

   
   

5. Create Psychological Safety for Yourself and Others

   
   

   You have the right to be psychologically safe in the workplace. This means it's important to be honest about your capacity where it’s safe to do so.

   
   

   If you’re in a leadership or client-facing role, model this transparency. It gives others permission to be human too.

   
   

   Set clear boundaries that enable your regulation, use calendar blockers where feasible, and communicate proactively (“I’ll need extra time on this,” or “I’m low on capacity this week but will follow up Monday”).

   
   

   Self-advocacy builds trust, not only in others, but also in yourself.

   
   

If you are a Neurodivergent professional, I would love to help you reduce your overwhelm at work and support you in designing a Career you can thrive in. 

Alternatively, if you are an awesome manager or HR professional looking for an evidence-based way to increase the wellbeing and performance of your Neurodivergent employees (over and above basic workplace adjustments) whilst boosting retention, innovation and profitability - let's talk!

Book a no-obligation complimentary 15-minute chat here to discuss how I can help you achieve you work more sustainably and achieve your goals.