May: Prioritization — Choosing What Matters (And Letting Go of the Rest)
When everything feels urgent, nothing gets done.
That’s where prioritization comes in. Prioritization is an executive function skill that helps you distinguish between what truly matters, what can wait, and what—if you’re honest—doesn’t need to happen at all. It’s how we shift from reacting to life to responding with intention.
For those with ADHD (and, honestly, for most humans), prioritization doesn’t come naturally. It’s not about laziness or disorganization. It’s often about not being able to see what matters most in a sea of everything yelling for your attention. A task that’s due next week, a dish in the sink, a blinking notification, and your child’s forgotten soccer uniform can all carry the same weight when your brain is overwhelmed.
This results in what we call “urgency blindness” or “prioritization paralysis.”
You might:
Procrastinate by doing something easy (checking email, organizing your sock drawer)
Hyperfocus on a low-priority task (hello, reformatting your entire budget spreadsheet at 11pm)
Avoid everything completely, because choosing feels impossible
And when that happens, guilt and stress pile up—which only makes it harder to prioritize.
So How Do We Learn to Prioritize?
Here are a few tried-and-true frameworks that help train your brain to zoom out, assess the situation, and make better choices in the moment:
The Eisenhower Matrix
Split your to-dos into four quadrants:
Urgent and important (Do now)
Important but not urgent (Schedule it)
Urgent but not important (Delegate it)
Neither urgent nor important (Delete it)
Just seeing your tasks in this visual format can bring surprising clarity.
The 3 D’s Rule: Do it, Delegate it, or Delete it
Instead of holding onto dozens of small tasks, run each one through this lens. Does this need to be done by me? Right now?
The “Top 3” Method
Every morning (or the night before), ask yourself:
What are the three most important things I need to do today?
Not ten. Not twenty-three. Three. That’s it. Anything beyond that is bonus.
Executive Function Practices for May
Ready to build some prioritization muscle? Try one or more of these small experiments this month:
Color-Code Your To-Do List by Urgency
Use highlighters or digital tags: red = must do today, yellow = this week, blue = optional/flexible.
Ask “What would happen if I didn’t do this?”
This one is sneaky-powerful. Many things on your list are there out of habit, obligation, or fear. If nothing meaningful would happen if it didn’t get done… maybe it doesn’t need to.
Timebox Your Priorities
Assign chunks of time on your calendar for the top 1–3 things you’re working on today. Treat them like appointments.
Make a “Not Right Now” List
If you’re someone with a million ideas, this one’s for you. Write them all down in a separate list—not as a graveyard for dreams, but as a holding tank for things you genuinely want to do… just not today.
Final Thoughts: You Don’t Have to Do It All
If no one has told you this lately: you’re allowed to let some things go.
Prioritization isn’t about fitting more into your day—it’s about giving your energy and time to the things that actually matter to you. It’s about choosing instead of reacting.
And here’s the truth: you can get better at this. Prioritization is not just a personality trait—it’s a skill. And like any skill, it grows with practice, support, and self-compassion.
So if you’re overwhelmed by your to-do list this month, pause. Take a breath. Choose your top three. And gently let the rest wait.
Coming Up Next Month
June: Organization — Turning chaos into clarity.