Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 108
 Finally!! December 28, 2003
Candace K. Rushing (Pasadena, CA United States)
599 out of 606 found this review helpful
I have read 7 or 8 books on ADD, all of which promised to suggest organizing strategies that someone with ADD can implement and maintain. Those books spent 95% of the time defining the problem, and the other 5% on general advice like, "you need lots of structure." I learned more about ADD in general from this book than any other, and I recognized several traits that I'd always struggled with, but hadn't realized were common among ADDers. This book gave me practical, useable advice on HOW to simplify and structure my life, so that I can achieve and maintain order and reach my goals without becoming overwhelmed and giving up in frustration. By implementing the maintenance strategies first, I now feel that I can tackle the chaos and clutter a little at a time, and get out from under. I can feel my depression lifting, and I feel hopeful for the first time in a long while. Great book!
What I've been looking for January 2, 2003
Sarah Dreher (Amherst, MA USA)
179 out of 187 found this review helpful
This is an excellent book. I'm a clinical psychologist working with ADD clients, and I have ADD myself. This is the book I've been looking for. Have ordered several copies for my clients, and one for my professional organizer. Easy to read, holds your attention (a small miracle), written in ADD-friendly style, and full of useful information and suggestions. It's simply the best book on the subject around.
Who Knew? March 10, 2006
Trudy Shaw (Omaha, NE USA)
83 out of 84 found this review helpful
I was just diagnosed with ADD a few months ago. Since it was new to me (I wasn't self-diagnosed and knew very little about it), I came to Amazon to buy a book that had been recommended to me. "ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life" was the other half of a "better together" offer with that one, so I went ahead and bought it. I just finished writing a 3-star review of that recommended book. I've learned more about ADD in general from this one, to say nothing of organizing.
Okay, I have two post-graduate degrees and work in research, so you'd think I could figure these things out by myself... But if the only ideas I retain from this book are to organize on shelves instead of in drawers and vertically rather than horizontally, it will have been a savior. Reading the sentence "Retire your dresser" was a eureka moment! Who knew that something like that could make such a difference? I now have shelves in the closet for my clothes and actually put them away after I do laundry. At the office, I've grabbed an abandoned metal magazine rack from the supply room so I can keep current projects vertical and in sight without having to put more on my desk than is already there. There are some suggestions in the book that seem counterintuitive, or contradict common advice on organization, but as soon as I read them I knew they were just what I needed. Whether there really is something about the "ADD brain" that makes these off-beat suggestions work, I have no idea, but I don't really care.
My closest match in the book chapters was "Chaos," and I have a long way to go, believe me. I think the fact that the person presented in that chapter was single was a big help to me. As some others have said, I can't use all the suggestions in the book for using outside resources, and not all of the chapters fit my situation, but the suggestions I can use are more than worth the price and the time. Something that made the book even more useful is that it doesn't cover just home, or just work, or just any other part of life, but has ideas that can be integrated into the whole.
I'd read the reviews here before I bought the book, and wondered if I'd find it "dumbed down" in wording or format, but it doesn't seem that way to me. Maybe it's because I spend a lot of time online and reading technical material, but I'm so used to reading things with bullets, and charts, and lists, that it just seems natural. It may not be great literature, but it's not meant to be. It is the most helpful material I've ever read on organizing my life.
The best organizing book I've found for those of us with ADD February 11, 2004
B-Man (Orlando, FL)
107 out of 110 found this review helpful
For most of my life, I have known that I don't quite organize my things or thoughts etcetera like most people and all of the "Get your life organized" or traditional methods detailed in organizational books never seemed to help me.Then, perhaps a year ago, I picked up this book and what a transformation. Even the structure of the book is to capitalize on the attention span of those with ADD as each chapter is broken up into short pieces to make its point and then move on to the next one. Like anyone with ADD, I find that while doing some of the work on my own has been helpful, I definitely need to follow up with some of the "other support people" that the book describes. I might carry through one day or even for a string of days, but can quickly slip back into old, inefficient patterns (that often have been habit forming over a lifetime of being disorganized). I find that this book is very positive and makes you feel like having ADD can be a strength rather than a weakness. I hope you find it helpful.
Much more than how to organize your stacks of stuff October 5, 2005
M. Stewart (Texas, USA)
77 out of 79 found this review helpful
I bought this book hoping it would help me sort my stacks of papers that constantly threaten to topple off my desk, kitchen table, etc. And it has, but it is so much more. It gives hints on how to organize all aspects of your life to make living with ADD easier. I've highlighted and dog-eared it up, and have started applying a lot of things from the book; something that I can't say for other books I've read.
And unlike a lot of so-called ADD-friendly books, this one is easy to stay in tune with almost all the time.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 108
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