Need a unique way to motivate yourself to complete tasks you typically avoid? Or need to come up with a way to track your progress while also working toward a reward? Then, have I got a strategy for you!

Punch cards are the viral strategy on social media having people with and without ADHD manage their avoidance behaviors while accomplishing their goals. The premise is essentially like those reward cards at a coffee show. You know, you spend money on 10 coffees, and you earn a free one! Similar idea here except instead of spending money to earn your reward, you’re spending your energy on specific tasks you’re trying to complete. For example, you may want to read more books, so you’d create a punch card in which you’ll earn a reward of your choice (maybe purchasing a new book or buying a new Kindle cover) after reading X number of books (say, 5). This strategy helps with our interest-based system in our brains, in which we are motivated and energized to do tasks based on interest, novelty, challenge, or urgency, rather than an interest-based system like that of the non-ADHD brain. Not only is this strategy visual (which we tend to be), but new and exciting as well as challenging (“try to earn these as quickly as possible” “work hard and play hard”). Not to mention, punch cards are a great way to get our creative juices flowing, which can be a strength for many ADHDers.

Another reason this type of strategy works with ADHDers is that it doesn’t play into our perfectionist tendencies. ADHDers can be easily fall into all-or-nothing thinking, so if we set a date to complete something by and we don’t make it, we can feel discouraged and self-sabotage. Instead, with this method, you just achieve it when you achieve. There’s no right or wrong way to complete the punch cards, so if it takes you 3 months to get in 10 hikes, so be it. If you read 5 books in a week, great! There’s no race so you can ease up a bit on yourself and your unreasonable expectations.

Need some ideas?

Below are some ideas for punch card tasks to complete. You can be in charge of the rewards but remember to keep the reward proportionate to the accomplishment. You don’t want to work hard for weeks just “earn” yourself a pack of gum. Likewise, you don’t want to earn a $300 pair of boots after walking the dog once. (Well, you may want this but is this really sustainable or a helpful strategy at that point?)

• Go on 10 hikes
• Go the gym 20 times
• Donate 100 items
• Finish water bottle 15 times
• Read 10 books
• Meal plan 4 times
• Try 10 new dinner recipes
• Take vitamins 30 times
• Save $1,000 (maybe each “punch” is for when you save $100, ten times)

Would you try this strategy? Leave a comment below!