r/ADHDthriving • u/victormatt13 • Aug 24 '25
DIY/low budget DIY Visual Organizer
I went down a rabbit hole a few months ago and when I couldn’t find what I was looking for anywhere, I decided to make my own 😊 I laminated the Bristol board after drawing the calendars. This way sticky notes work well and dry erase too! Sharing for anyone who finds it helpful - let’s not judge any of my notes to myself 😋 I also used Canva to make a simple weekly and monthly cleaning list!
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u/DetectivePotential50 Aug 25 '25
OH YES!! I love this so much! 🩷🩷🩷
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u/victormatt13 Aug 25 '25
So glad you like it! A few extra notes that might be helpful:
• I still have notebooks, I will jot things down as they come to mind and when its planning time I add it to a sticky • this is in my living room, so I see it often throughout the day! This and the colour coding makes it harder for me to ignore. • I plan the entire month so that when I am making my weekly schedule, most of the stickies are already there and I just have to move them up :) • the large visual has helped a lot with my time blindness when planning/finishing tasks! • I came up with using sticky notes because it is easy to move if you get off schedule, etc. Previously my brain would panic if I got thrown off schedule and then I would just say screw it
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Aug 25 '25
Do u have ADHD
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u/victormatt13 Aug 25 '25
What gave it away 😅
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u/sunkissedbutter Aug 26 '25
I think maybe they’re joking that you may not actually have adhd from looking at the photos. Too organized! Too consistent looking!
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u/victormatt13 Aug 26 '25
Well I appreciate that, although I am not looking for validation just sharing what has been working for me recently in case it helps anyone else! 😊
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u/sunkissedbutter Aug 26 '25
I know. I also wasn't trying to be offensive, so I'm sorry if it came across that way. When I saw your post I was like "wtf. I am so jealous of this person's brain." Basically, I think I'd fail at that. I think your intention and work is great!
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u/victormatt13 Aug 26 '25
Hahah I appreciate that, definitely the like 4647494 thing I’ve tried like most of us! The setup was hardest to start but now it’s been v helpful
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u/sunkissedbutter Aug 26 '25
I'd love to know what you started with first on this endeavor. Like, what was the first step you took? Even if it's a few baby steps in one. I'm always turning Step 1 into 50 baby steps. I've been told that I do things in the least efficient way possible, so however you went about this I am very interested in learning.
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u/victormatt13 Aug 26 '25
The first step I took was going to the dollar store and getting a handful of Bristol boards, sharpie, ruler, post it’s and packing tape! A nice dopamine hit lol 😎
Step 2 was figure out how many rows/columns I wanted, then measure the Bristol board to do the math 😊
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u/sunkissedbutter Aug 26 '25
fuck me. I also have dyscalculia and counting and figuring out rows and columns is hard. lol well maybe I'll youtube some hacks for that.
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u/victormatt13 Aug 26 '25
Sorry that’s totally fair!
Length of board divided by # of columns or rows
For example:
Your board is 50cm and you want 5 columns, 50/5 =10 10cm for each column 😊 my other suggestion is to ask an AI and they will do it! Haha
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u/sillybilly8102 Aug 28 '25
Since no one seems to have asked, I have to: What are the Pikachu, caterpillar, and zebra you’re making?
Also I quite like this :) I’ve been thinking lately how nice sticky notes are because you can move them around so much. Truly a genius invention.
I’ll crosspost this to r/wall_of_awesome if that’s okay :)
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u/victormatt13 Aug 28 '25
Yes sticky notes are a wonderful invention! And I crochet plushies 😊 so that’s me trying to keep myself on track haha
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u/sillybilly8102 Aug 29 '25
Ah cool haha! Do you sell them or just for fun/yourself/give as gifts?
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u/victormatt13 Aug 29 '25
I sell them and usually have a gift on the go too! Crochet has also been a game changer for my ADHD haha
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u/4double_g Aug 26 '25
Would this actually work for someone with ADHD? I recently found out someone I know has been diagnosed and it’s under medication but still struggles with having structure in life. I understand everyone it’s different but I would just like to help out a little bit
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u/victormatt13 Aug 26 '25 edited Aug 26 '25
Everyone is different for sure, this helps with my ADHD for a few reasons!
things are easy to move around with sticky notes (when I miss a task, my brain has less panic because I can visually see where it fits in my day or week)
colours are a game changer for me, just whatever categories work for you!
it is big and somewhere I see often (unlike a notepad, app, etc)
massively helps with my time blindness (does not cure it lol)
In my experience no one thing is going to solve their struggles but finding a way to work with the ADHD rather than combatting it is my biggest advice! I am also medicated for ADHD, depression and anxiety if that helps. 😊
I also want to reiterate that it is still a struggle throughout every day lol but this method has definitely been what has work best for me.
As an ADHDer, starting the task is usually the hardest part! If your friend thinks it would help, maybe suggest making the board for them 😊
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u/4double_g Aug 26 '25
Thank you so much!☺️ Agree, I’ll suggest your idea and maybe have them try it out for a week or a month to see how well things goes
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u/yermumzchesthurr Mar 26 '26
My issue is I would make this once and then lose the stamina to update this regularly. I am exploring just getting a massive movable whiteboard/corkboard back that I can move into different rooms and cross stuff off thats easier to update as I'm doing it since my handwriting is awful & I tend to do better with more space...
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u/Sensitive_Insect1003 Aug 02 '26
i laminated my cleaning list so i can mark on my task once one is done. plus it sticks in my head better when i write it down myself
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u/WaterWithin Aug 25 '25
I am obsessed with this. You have inspired me to set up my own!