How to focus at work with ADHD

The real problem isn't focus

Here's something nobody tells you: ADHD isn't a focus disorder. You can focus fine. You've probably hyperfocused on something for six hours straight without eating.

The problem is starting . Getting your brain to engage with the thing you're supposed to do, when you're supposed to do it. That's where everything falls apart.

Your brain has a broken ignition switch. The engine works fine. You just can't turn the key.

All those productivity tips assume the ignition works. They're about what to do once you've started. But you're stuck in the parking lot, trying to will the car to move.

Why willpower doesn't work

Neurotypical brains start tasks through willpower. They decide to do something, then they do it. The decision triggers the action.

ADHD brains don't work that way. There's a gap between deciding and doing. You can decide all day. You can make lists. You can set reminders. You can feel the deadline approaching.

None of that bridges the gap.

This isn't laziness. It's not a character flaw. It's a neurological difference in how your brain produces and responds to dopamine. The "just do it" pathway is disrupted.

So stop trying to fix it with willpower. It's like trying to fix a flat tire by pressing the gas harder.

What actually works

ADHD brains need external activation. Something outside your head that pulls you into action instead of relying on an internal push that isn't coming.

The most reliable external activator? Another person.

Not someone telling you what to do. Not someone checking on you. Just someone there , doing their own work, at the same time you're doing yours.

This is called body doubling. And if you have ADHD, you probably already know it works.

Body doubling is an ADHD thing

The ADHD community discovered body doubling long before productivity influencers did. It showed up in forums, in therapy sessions, in desperate texts to friends: "Can you just sit here while I do my taxes?"

It works because it bypasses the broken ignition switch entirely. When someone else is present and working, your brain doesn't need to generate its own activation. It borrows theirs.

You're not getting motivated. You're getting drafted into work mode by someone else's presence.

They don't need to help you. They don't need to care what you're working on. They just need to be there, working on something. That's enough.

The office accidentally did this for you

Remember how work felt different in an office? Easier to start, even if the work itself wasn't easier?

That wasn't the free coffee. It was the ambient presence of other people working. Bodies doubled without anyone naming it.

Then remote work happened. Now you're alone in your apartment, trying to start tasks with a broken ignition switch and no one around to jumpstart you.

No wonder it got harder.

You can recreate it digitally

Here's the good news: body doubling works through a screen.

A video call with a coworker where you both say what you're working on, then mute and work. That's it. No talking during. No checking in. Just shared presence and parallel work.

It sounds too simple. It is simple. It also works.

Your brain doesn't need the other person to be physically present. It just needs to know someone else is there , right now, in work mode. The screen provides enough presence to flip the switch.

How to actually do this

Find one person at work who'd try this with you. Doesn't have to be your manager. Doesn't have to be your team. Anyone who also struggles to start, or anyone curious enough to try.

Book 50 minutes. Get on a call. Each say one thing you're going to work on. Mute. Work. Unmute at the end and say what you got done.

Do it three times before you decide if it works. The first time feels awkward. The second time feels easier. The third time, you'll understand.

This isn't a cure

Body doubling won't fix everything. ADHD is complex. Medication helps some people. Therapy helps some people. Environmental changes help some people.

But if your main struggle is starting — if you have the skills, the knowledge, and the time, but can't get your brain to engage — body doubling is the closest thing to a cheat code.

Not because it gives you more willpower. Because it stops requiring willpower at all.

You just need someone there. Working alongside you. That's the whole thing.

And it works.