An ADHD ChatGPT Guide: Helpful Prompts & ADHD Hacks

Have you ever wondered how ChatGPT might help those of us with ADHD? If so, you’re in the right place. ChatGPT is arguably the leader ad therefore making waves in the world of AI. I’ve found it to be a game-changer in supporting my ADHD brain, and I think you might love it, too!

So, we’re doing a deep dive into Chat GPT and how to use it to make your ADHD life easier.

On episode 255 of the I’m Busy Being Awesome podcast, you’ll discover how ChatGPT can help us: Lighten our cognitive load, boost our productivity and simplify our daily tasks.(Heck yes!)

We’ll also get into:

• What ChatGPT is and how it works
• Common concerns about using AI generally
• Specific, practical ways you can use ChatGPT in your life today
• Prompts you can literally copy and paste into ChatGPT to start lightening your cognitive load today

👉 Not sure how to start? No worries! In addition to the training below, I also created a free step-by-step cheat sheet just for you! Click here for step-by-step instructions and prompts you can literally copy and paste into Chat GPT today.

You can listen to the episode above or stream it on your favorite podcasting app here.

Prefer to read? No problem! Keep scrolling for a summary of the key takeaways.

Episode #255: An ADHD ChatGPT Guide: Helpful Prompts & ADHD Hacks (Transcript)

Today, we are delving into the world of ChatGPT and examining why I think it’s such a powerful tool, particularly for those of us navigating life with ADHD or ADHD tendencies.

As I’ve alluded to a few times on the podcast, I think ChatGPT and similar AI tools have the potential to significantly lighten the cognitive load that so many of us with ADHD experience on a daily basis.

Today, we’re exploring some of these innovative solutions and how they can empower us in our daily lives, offering practical strategies to maximize our focus and attention each day.

In this episode, we’ll start by discussing:

• What ChatGPT is and how it works, to give us a solid understanding of the technology.
• Common concerns people have about using AI and I’ll share my thoughts on these issues, which you are, as always, welcome to take or leave.
• Why I believe ChatGPT can be particularly beneficial for adults with ADHD, especially in terms of reducing the heavy cognitive load we often carry.
• How it can help enhance our productivity by streamlining tasks and offering helpful suggestions.
• Practical strategies for making the most of ChatGPT and how I love to use it in my own life.

What is ChatGPT?

I’ll give you my basic understanding and also some analogies to help put things into context. 

ChatGPT stands for Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer. It’s an AI-powered language model. Its role is to help users—us—with different tasks involving language processing. Don’t worry, I’ll break this down and put it in human language.

ChatGPT was developed by OpenAI and is part of the GPT series of models, all within the same chat family.

ChatGPT uses something called deep learning techniques to understand and then generate text-based responses based on the information you give it.

In other words, you write something, and based on the way ChatGPT has been programmed with this deep learning, it can respond with a human-like answer instead of just ones and zeroes.

I’m sure many of you have interacted with these types of AI tools already. If you’ve returned something on Amazon and talked with the chat, you’ve interacted with something like this. Any website that pops up with a chatbot at the bottom of the screen is using something similar.

How Does ChatGPT Work?

ChatGPT works by processing the information you give it and then creating responses based on patterns it has learned during its training phase. But what does that mean? What is this training phase? 

Essentially, ChatGPT has access to a vast amount of text from the internet. This extensive exposure allows it to learn the nuances of language and context. The training process helps ChatGPT generate coherent and relevant responses to our questions and requests, making the answers actually make sense.

Now, you may have tuned out all the technical stuff because it sounds too weird and abstract. If that’s you, no worries—that’s exactly how I felt when I first started reading about it.

I needed an analogy to better understand it and wrap my mind around it.

So, I went to ChatGPT and asked for help. I said, “Hey, can you provide an analogy to help me better understand how this works?”

ChatGPT responded with a handful of options, which helped me understand it better, and I could then expand on these analogies to bring the concept to life in my mind.

The Library Analogy

One analogy is that ChatGPT is like a knowledgeable librarian in a big library.

Imagine ChatGPT as a knowledgeable librarian in a huge library filled with books, representing all the information on the internet.

When you ask ChatGPT a question or give it a prompt, it’s like asking this librarian for information. The librarian (ChatGPT) searches through its training data—the entire library—to find the most relevant books and information, then provides you with an answer.

The librarian uses its training to come back and say, “Here’s what I know based on all the information I have access to.”

Musician Analogy

The other analogy I really liked is that ChatGPT is like a talented musician improvising jazz.

Jazz musicians listen to the notes that other musicians play and respond with their own music, creating a coherent piece because they’ve practiced and learned so much. They’ve practiced scales, listened to countless jazz records, and played at various gigs.

They pull from all that knowledge to improvise within the right key and style.

Similarly, ChatGPT listens to the questions and prompts you provide and responds with text generated based on the patterns it has learned. Like a musician, it improvises to create a coherent conversation.

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I hope these analogies give you a general understanding of how ChatGPT works and how it has learned from the internet.

In terms of what it actually looks like, ChatGPT is essentially like a big message thread. You type in a question or a prompt, which appears on the screen, and then ChatGPT responds right underneath, like you’re having a conversation in a text thread.

Common Concerns with AI and ChatGPT

These concerns typically fall into three main categories.

Privacy

People worry about their privacy when interacting with AI, including ChatGPT. There’s a fear that personal information might be misused or accessed by unauthorized individuals. Concerns about data security, potential breaches, and surveillance are also common.

First, regarding user data and anonymity, when you interact with ChatGPT, your personal information, such as your name, is stripped away from the conversation and data. This serves as a safeguard against unauthorized access to your data since your name is not attached to anything.

Additionally, there’s encryption of these interactions. Every chat you have with ChatGPT is encrypted, which helps prevent data interception.

Can interception still happen? Possibly. But as I’ll discuss later, what I use ChatGPT for doesn’t involve personal data. I’m looking for things like how to make meal prep easier or how to write an email to decline to help with carpooling this week.

I’m not using ChatGPT for anything sensitive. If someone were to see it, I wouldn’t care. So, for me, the benefits far outweigh the risks. I’m not asking ChatGPT anything I wouldn’t be comfortable having anyone else see anyway. 

Accuracy

There’s a lot of doubt about the accuracy of the responses ChatGPT provides and skepticism about AI’s ability to understand context and deliver relevant information. There’s a fear of receiving incorrect or misleading information, and worries about bias in AI algorithms leading to inaccurate or inappropriate responses.

What if ChatGPT is inaccurate and provides incorrect information?

This is a legitimate concern. I have seen instances where I asked questions, and ChatGPT responded with nonsense that made no sense at all.

So, if you’re using it for any kind of research, you definitely want to check your sources—just as you would with anything you read on the internet. We can’t take everything we read as fact; we need to verify the information.

But since we’re not using ChatGPT for legal support or medical information—instead, we’re using it to lighten the cognitive load by streamlining our routines and workflows—you can use your own judgment to decide if the suggestions are helpful.

If you read something and it doesn’t seem helpful, you can simply move on to the next suggestion. We’re not doing deep research here, but if you ever find yourself wanting to use ChatGPT for more serious research, be aware that inaccuracies can occur, and you should double-check the information, just as you would with any other online source.

Reliance on Technology

People often worry that we’ll become overly dependent on AI technology like ChatGPT, leading to a loss of critical thinking skills or the ability to solve problems independently.

There are also concerns about technology replacing human interaction and creativity, and anxiety about relying too heavily on AI for creating content, making decisions, and retrieving information.

Regarding the fear of becoming too reliant on technology, this is also a valid concern. ChatGPT could contribute to over-reliance on tech. However, that’s not how I see its role in my life and the way I’ll be sharing how to use it today.

I think of ChatGPT as augmenting my thinking. It helps with technical tasks so I can focus on creative thinking. It’s like a sidekick or co-pilot—it can handle some tasks, but we still need our human brains to provide direction and a creative lens.

It’s similar to using a calculator. Sure, you could sit down with pen and paper to crunch numbers, but using a calculator is much faster, allowing you to work with the data in useful ways. ChatGPT works the same way. You could spend time manually figuring things out, but using ChatGPT allows you to gather information quickly, so you can dive into the more important work faster.

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I present these concerns because they are legitimate and worth considering. Everyone will have different levels of comfort when it comes to engaging with these types of tools.

Again, you get to decide what you think about these concerns and whether you want to work with ChatGPT or not. If you decide against it, that’s perfectly fine.

However, if you’re open to the idea of experimenting with ChatGPT and seeing how it might lighten your cognitive load, let’s talk about some specific ways and prompts to help our ADHD brains.

Practical Uses for ADHD

It’s no secret that our ADHD brains often face significant hurdles in managing day-to-day tasks due to challenges with executive functions.

As ADHD Adults we encounter obstacles in:

• Planning
• Organizing
• Breaking down tasks
• Prioritization
• Emotional regulation
• Impulsivity

All of these areas are tied to our executive functions, and they make it much more challenging to stay on track because our brains are working extra hard.

ChatGPT can help alleviate some of this heavy workload that taxes our executive functions. It helps us manage our daily tasks more effectively.

1. Reducing Cognitive Load

When we offload tasks like organizing our to-do lists or calendars, ChatGPT can help with thought downloads, generating ideas, and giving us a place to start instead of staring at a blank page and feeling frozen.

It can also help us break down projects.

We’ve talked about tools like Magic To-Do before, which is another type of AI that helps with task management. These different supports allow us to focus our creative and mental energy more effectively on the things that really matter, while ChatGPT does the heavy lifting.

Here are a few ways you can use ChatGPT to reduce cognitive load…

Use ChatGPT to help organize your thoughts

Let’s say you’re feeling overwhelmed by all the different things you need to do for a work project, and you don’t even know where to begin. You know this feeling, right? It’s like, “Oh my gosh, there’s so much to do.”

What you can do is dump everything you’re thinking about for that project into ChatGPT.

Just type it all out or even speak it out. Let it be messy; it doesn’t need to make sense initially. ChatGPT can help you structure your ideas and break down complex concepts into more digestible pieces.

Generate Ideas

ChatGPT can be an awesome brainstorming partner. Let me give you an example…

Earlier, I mentioned that I wanted to provide an analogy for how ChatGPT works. So, I decided to be meta and ask ChatGPT for some analogies to describe itself. It offered several suggestions, but the librarian and musician analogies really stood out to me.

I then built on those suggestions, thinking about how a musician needs to learn scales, listen to different music, and play various charts to really bring the idea to life.

ChatGPT can help you generate ideas and give you something to work with and expand upon creatively.

2. Streamline Communication

ChatGPT can be an amazingly helpful tool to facilitate smoother communication for us ADHDers. Here are a couple of examples:

Drafting Emails and Messages

Let’s say you want to write to a client or colleague, but you’re not sure if your tone is coming across the way you’d like. All you need to do is write what you want to say in ChatGPT and then ask it to rewrite the email/message in a professional, friendly tone.

Summarizing complex information

For example, sometimes I come across an article I want to read, but I’m not sure if it’s worth my time. I copy and paste it into ChatGPT and ask it to highlight the main bullet points. If it’s relevant, I’ll read the full article. If not, I’ve saved myself a bunch of time.

3. Task Management

ChatGPT can also be a powerful tool for task management. It can help us create to-do lists, break down projects, estimate timelines, and map out goals. It’s not always 100% accurate, but it gives you a place to start and reduces the overwhelm of starting from scratch. 

4. Work Tasks

ChatGPT can be super supportive in work settings. It can help with communication, managing deadlines, prioritizing tasks, and summarizing information.

Presentations & Trainings

Let me give you an example. A couple of weeks ago, I was preparing for a free training.

I had typed up all my notes and was about to pull out bullet points for my presentation slides. Instead, I copied and pasted my notes into ChatGPT and asked it to highlight four to five bullet points for each section.

It did, and while I made a few adjustments, it was a much lighter lift and took me half the time it would have if I had done it myself.

Help You Practice for Quizzes & Presentation Questions

I just thought of another use case from my previous career as a professor. I used to get anxious before conferences, especially during the Q&A sessions. If I had ChatGPT back then, I could have put my entire conference talk into ChatGPT and asked it to identify potential questions the audience might ask. I could have practiced answering those questions and felt more prepared.

For those of you in school or different programs, you can use ChatGPT to help quiz you or create flashcards. You can copy and paste your class notes into ChatGPT and ask it to focus on specific concepts. ChatGPT can organize the information into flashcards that you can print out or write down.

The options are endless once you get your creative juices flowing. Think about the specific areas where you feel stuck, and you’ll be amazed at how ChatGPT can support you.

ChatGPT ADHD Prompts

Let’s talk about specific prompts you can type into ChatGPT to get the support you’re looking for.

As I mentioned, I have a cheat sheet with all the prompts we’ll discuss today and many more that you can copy and paste directly into ChatGPT. It’s a great starting point.

I’m going to share a handful of quick-win categories where you can start using ChatGPT today and see immediate benefits.

As you listen, notice the areas where you feel especially frustrated, stuck, or overwhelmed. If I don’t cover your specific area today, you can likely adapt one of the prompts I do discuss to fit your needs.

I know this might sound abstract now, but once we dive in, it will make sense.

1. ChatGPT Prompts for Tasks & Projects

First up: Tasks, time management, and breaking down projects.

Here are some specific prompts you can use:

• “I’m having trouble starting [XYZ task]. Can you help me break it down into smaller steps?”
• “What are the first few things I need to do to tackle [XYZ project]?”

You can type these directly into ChatGPT, and it will provide specific steps.

For example, I tested this with a podcast episode. I typed, “I’m having trouble starting to write my podcast episode. Can you help me break it down into smaller steps?”

ChatGPT responded:“Of course! Let’s break down the process of writing your podcast episode into smaller, manageable steps:

1. Choose a topic: Decide on the topic you want to explore in your podcast episode. It could be something you’re passionate about, timely, or something your audience has expressed interest in.
2. Research: Gather information and resources related to your chosen topic. This could include articles, books, interviews, or personal experiences.
3. Create an outline: …”

And it continued through 13 steps, all the way to publishing.

ChatGPT guides you through the process step by step. You can correct it, add more details, or adjust as needed.

2. Prompts for Prioritization

You can also use ChatGPT for prioritization.

Try prompts like:

• “I have a lot on my plate. I have ADHD and struggle with prioritization. Can you help me figure out which tasks I should focus on first? Here is my current to-do list: [list your tasks].”
• “My long-term goals include [XYZ]. Knowing this, what tasks are most important for me to complete today? Here are my tasks: [list your tasks].”

ChatGPT will respond with its suggestions. You don’t have to follow its advice blindly—use your own knowledge and insights as well. This will help you sort through the noise and prioritize effectively.

3. Prompts for Managing Time

ChatGPT is also incredibly supportive when it comes to managing time, which is a huge benefit for those of us with ADHD.

For example, you might say something like,

• “I have ADHD and struggle with time blindness. How much time should I allocate to [XYZ task]?”
• “I have a six-month project, and it feels really overwhelming. Can you help me break it down into manageable steps and set up a timeline for each phase?”

Do you see how ChatGPT can really do some of this heavy lifting?

Related: Download my Free Time Blocking Templates To Help You Create & Stick to a Schedule

4. ChatGPT Prompts To Create Checklists

You could also use it for creating checklists for detailed projects.

For instance,

• “Can you help me create a checklist to ensure I cover all the steps required in [XYZ task]?”
• Or even for a packing list: “I am traveling to [location]. It will be [XYZ degrees] and sunny. Will you please create a packing list to ensure I don’t forget anything?” See what comes out.

5. Prompts To Improve Black & White Thinking

I also love ChatGPT for helping find the gray areas in black-and-white thinking. Many of us with ADHD struggle with all-or-nothing thinking, and ChatGPT can be really supportive here. It can help explore alternatives.

For example,

• “I’m feeling stuck in some black-and-white thinking. Can you suggest some alternative solutions for this problem?”
• Or, “It seems like option A is the only answer to [XYZ problem]. What other options might I consider besides option A?”

More specifically, here’s an example:

“It seems like getting a new planner is the only answer to getting my projects done on time. What other options could I consider besides getting a new planner that could help me solve this issue?”

Do you see how in the template question, you can insert your specific problem or obstacle and where the black-and-white thinking is, then let ChatGPT offer you different responses?

You might also say, “I’m struggling to see the bigger picture here. Can you provide some perspective on this issue?” Or, “What would be helpful to consider about [XYZ obstacle] that I might be overlooking?” 

For example, “I’m trying to get out of black-and-white thinking. What would be helpful to consider about my colleague who’s micromanaging the project? What might I be missing?” ChatGPT can give you various reasons to help your mind consider other possibilities.

6. Prompts To Help Generate Ideas & Solutions

ChatGPT can also be super useful for generating ideas and solutions.

You could say,

• “I’m stuck on this project at work. Can you help me brainstorm some new ideas to approach it from a different angle?”
• “I’m planning a surprise birthday party for my friend, but I am totally out of creative ideas. Can you suggest some unique themes or activities? She’s really into [XYZ hobbies].”
• “I keep forgetting to pack my lunch for work. Can you help me come up with some quick and easy ideas that I can prepare in advance and also strategies to help me remember to do this?”

Let ChatGPT help you do that heavy lifting.

7. ChatGPT Prompts for Meal Prep & Household Tasks

Let’s talk specifically about food and meal prep because I hear time and time again how much of a heavy lift this is for so many of us.

You might type something like,

• “I’m feeling overwhelmed and don’t know what to cook. Can you suggest a quick, easy meal that I can make with these things on hand? I have pantry staples and eggs in the fridge that I want to use.”
• “I don’t have a lot of energy or time to prepare dinner, and I’m really stressed. Please provide a simple recipe that I can make in 15 minutes, with pasta.”

A couple of days ago, I wanted to do some meal planning for the week, so I typed into ChatGPT: “Can you help me create a weekly meal plan that accommodates a dairy-free, high-protein diet? I’d like meals that are quick to prepare and require minimal ingredients. You do not need to provide breakfasts. Please focus on eggs, chicken, tuna, ground turkey, and beans as my main sources of protein. I also have several bags of frozen vegetables I’d like to use up, including cauliflower rice, vegetable medleys, broccoli, and peas.”

ChatGPT came back with lunch and dinner options for every day of the week, such as:

Chicken and Broccoli Bowl: Sauté chicken and frozen broccoli until cooked through. Season with soy sauce and sesame oil. Serve over a bed of cauliflower rice or mixed greens.

It was so helpful not to have to think through all the different options with the different proteins I had in my freezer and fridge. I was trying to use up the food I had in the house, so I just let ChatGPT know what I had and added some guidelines because I can’t have dairy. And voila! I had an entire meal plan for the week in about one minute.

Another time, I might say, “Please provide some dairy-free, high-protein, simple meals that I can make,” and ChatGPT would provide them. Then I might ask, “Please provide a grocery list for the above menu for a family of two adults.” This is so helpful because I don’t have to worry about making the grocery list either.

You could even use ChatGPT to manage your grocery budget. You might say, “I’m trying to stick to a weekly grocery budget of X dollars. Please suggest how to divide my budget across different types of food categories.”

Or you might ask for help creating a customized cleaning schedule: “I want to establish a cleaning schedule for my home. Ensure that it is manageable and no more than 15 minutes a day, covering all key areas like the kitchen, bathrooms, and living spaces.”

There are lots of different categories you can play with to fit your preferences. For example, you might develop a laundry schedule: “Please help me create a laundry schedule and break it down into steps like sorting, washing, drying, and putting away.” ChatGPT can help you create that workflow.

ChatGPT & ADHD: Next Steps

👉 Download the free ADHD ChatGPT cheatsheet HERE. Check it out, give it a try, and let me know what works best for you!

In the free download, I have a whole bunch of different prompts—not only around food, menus, and cooking, but also productivity, time management, and home tasks.

Final Thoughts

I know we’ve covered a wide range of prompts and topics today. This is intentional because I want to show the diverse ways you can use ChatGPT to support you in your unique situation.

Whether you’re breaking down tasks, generating ideas, or writing a first draft of an email, ChatGPT can be a valuable support. If you’re open to it, I encourage you to play around and see how it might be most helpful for you.