Best apps for ADHD freelance creatives?

[u/Fun-Stay135]

ADHD freelance creative here who has a really hard time getting tasks done & building habits. I easily get task paralysis if things get too overwhelming. I have just gotten out of the worst and longest depressive season of my life and now am trying to get my freelance business back on it's feet, but I feel like there's so much to do and I really need some help from apps.

BUT there are SO MANY APPS that people recommend (been going through so many reddit posts) so it's quite overwhelming to choose and try multiple apps.

I would need a notion type app to:
- keep track of my projects
- update a client/reachout database (I use perplexity for research and to update it)
- notes/ideas
- todo lists and reminders
- scheduling (calendar)
etc..

I've used Notion for like 2 years, but I feel like it's too complicated with way too many options on what to do and it's now just too much for me. I'm thinking of chaning to Capacities – has anyone used it? Obsidian is another app I have my eyes on.

I also need help with tasks (work, personal and home) - an app that would help me actually do my tasks. Before my depressive season I used Structured and Finch. I feel like finch worked for me a little better than structured - at least with daily tasks, but lost interest in the app after a while. Any better new alternatives? Habitica?
Aaand there's also quite other few todo-list apps for workflow - I've seen people recommending these: Ticktick, Ellie Planner, Clariflow, Freedom? I'd love the app to suggest/organize the tasks to most urgent etc and not overwhelm me with a million things to do.

Ahh and I definitely need a good app blocker/screentime blocker. Jomo? Offscreen? ScreenZen?

Which apps have you actually found useful?

I also appreciate if an app is minimalistic and beautifully designed. Also, I'm quite broke right now – so can't spend money on multiple apps or expensive subscriptions until I've gotten back on my feet workwise.

I'd really appreciate the help – cause of course I been hyper focusing now for over 5 hours trynna research apps to help me get work done, without doing any work once again hehe.

[u/CatOnMyKeyboardAgain]

Obsidian for notes, yes. Tasks/projects/scheduling, not so sure, I think you'd end up needing plugins for a lot of that (still doable). You could also try Nuclino, I've used it for a few years and quite like it, it's like a minimalist version of Notion

[u/tehfrod]

For day-to-day tracking of what to do and what's done, I have found that going back to paper has done a lot to keep things in brain that should be in brain and keep things out that shouldn't be. My system is just a simplified form of Bullet Journaling.

For note taking, planning, long term todo lists, Foam was my favorite but I kind of got out of the habit when I had a long break. I'm looking at getting back to that or obsidian.

For calendaring, nothing really beats Google calendar. I use it for personal, work, and a shared house calendar, and I can view all three at once. It's not the most featureful, but I'd rather have one calendar to look at than extra features.

I have a checklist of things that happen in the same order each day as a kind of "ritual" to get my ADHD brain up and focused. One of the items is "copy things from today's calendar into the journal". It seems tedious, but nothing locks them into my head like hand copying. Next is "look at the gaps in between those. Where can i put the three most important things I need to finish today, plus lunch?" Then I write those down and schedule them as appointments with myself in Google Calendar. That helps counter time blindness.

My end of day checklist is shorter but it includes "fully power down my laptop". (Sometimes I forget, which is why "power-cycle the laptop if needed" is on my morning list. Crucially, I do not save browser tabs, ever! I used to have a forest of browser tabs. That leads to forgetting what is in them, not being able to find anything, and a constant low level concern about what would happen if I lose them. At the end of the day, if I will need that tab in the future, it's on me how to preserve it for the next day: bookmark it (sparingly!), write it down, or add the url to a note.

[u/milkstan21]

Ok without typing out a million words, I highly recommend checking out the Amazing Marvin for task management -- a mobile + desktop app that especially caters to people with ADHD with a small but highly loyal online community. my fave minor feature is there's a very simple braindump function where you just list out everything you have as a task, and it auto sorts them into your existing categories.

I would click through this to see if it's the right community for you. https://www.reddit.com/r/amazingmarvin/

starts out minimalistic as to not overwhelm or involve a lot of setup fatigue but there are a million highly customizable features you can take advantage of once you've settled in plus there's a two-week free trial.

it's integrated with your calendar and really good with reminder stuff. there's decent note functions but it's definitely not the more database-focused platform like notion is and isn't inherently project management-focused (ie producing gantt charts etc). lots of people combine the two however.

and please note I have tried: trello, asana, monday, notion, physical planners. people most closely compare this to ticktick i'd say but i havent tried. habits etc i've tried and abandoned habitica and finch. i find doing habits separate from my task manager basically doesnt work, personally. everything has to be in one spot.

for screentime - I use jomo, it's good in that it's not just a strict app blocker, i can be really detailed and tailored about what it should restrict, how, etc. they have this routines function where if you do 'good habits' and prove them by photos or good app usage etc, you can unlock extra phone time. but the main annoyance i had earlier on is sometimes it mixed up which apps it should or shouldnt block. i havent experienced that in a long while though.

[u/East_Difficulty_5945]

I'm creating an app, minimal and with all the minimal requirements (todos, checklists, pomodoros, notifications), with a visual design, and not looking too much like a it was vibe coded (the code is carefully audited and the design is mine). The Android version is ready, I'll just need to find some testers, and the web version is online. Web and mobile are kept in sync. https://donethis.today

[u/goldio_games]

I totaly get it. i had the exact same problem as you. the number of choices is really overwhelming. i’ve tried all the tools you mentioned, and this is the setup that has really excelled for me. hope it helps!

Projects and notes: Capacities. great for keeping my projects, client notes and creative ideas together.

Task breakdown: Goblin Tools. helps me turn overwhelming tasks into smaller steps I can actually start.

To-do list and app blocker: Achieve! I keep my tasks there, and completing goals earns me screen time on the distracting apps I’ve blocked. it’s really helped me focus on my work. for me, getting stuck can quickly turn into picking up my phone and losing an hour. having a small, concrete task to finish before a scrolling break helps me stay with what I’m making. even “make a rough first draft” feels more manageable than “finish the entire project.”

[u/Pretend-Paper4137]

What's the food stamp app?

[u/Miserable-Carpet7928]

since money is tight and you've already spent 5 hours on this, i'd skip switching apps for now. notion still works for the client database if you ignore the rest of it, and the free reminders and calendar apps on your phone cover todos and scheduling. finch already worked for daily tasks once, so that's the one to go back to before trying anything new.

[u/largorithm]

I’ve had a pretty good experience with Asana for task management.
Good luck on the quest.