When I do something very ADHD-coded, I like to say…
“…and the ADHD strikes again!”
So for example, this phrase comes out (or is muttered in my head) when I:
Lose my bike lock keys for the umpteenth time
Run out the door too late when I tried so hard to be ready early
Blurt out an answer to my daughter’s question before she finishes asking it
Forget events/appointments/birthdays
I used to be a lot harder on myself for doing things like this, before I was diagnosed with ADHD. It’s easy to blame and shame yourself when you feel like you’re failing on these tasks that “should be so simple.”
These days, I still might get frustrated and upset when things like those happen, but in general, I’m a lot more accepting of my brain and the way it works.
Part of that acceptance is thanks to cultivating an experimental mindset.
Basically, I’m treating my brain and the way it works like a science experiment. I know in general how ADHD affects my brain, so I’m able to zoom out a bit and identify what went wrong.
Take, for example, my bike lock keys. I have lost them for months at a time because I left them in a different bag, in shorts pockets, or in a different drawer. My brain is busy and impulsive and ready to get on to whatever is next when I get home, so I’m not paying attention when I take my keys out of my pocket or leave them in whatever bag I was using.
I know (now, post-diagnosis) that this isn’t a moral failing! It’s just the way my brain is wired. However, that doesn’t mean there’s nothing I can do to make the situation better.
Enter: the tiny experiment. It’s time to ask “what if.”
What if there are only two places where my bike keys are allowed to go when I arrive home - hooked in my backpack or in the little cup on my nightstand? What if, as soon as I feel them in my pocket, I go put them in the cup?
So far, this tiny experiment is working for me.
Why Tiny Experiments Work for ADHD Brains
When was the last time you made some sort of grand goal for your year/month/life and actually followed up consistently to meet that goal?
Guys, I forget my New Years resolutions by February. They’re often too big, amorphous, and not grounded in reality. They just don’t work for me.
In fact, big goals can be difficult to meet for a lot of people with ADHD. Our nervous systems run on things like interest, challenge, novelty, urgency, and passion, and big goals tend to lack those conditions.
To infuse those conditions into the changes you need to make, try breaking them way down and treating them like tiny experiments.
In 2025, a wonderful neuroscientist named Anne-Laure Le Cunff coined the term “Tiny Experiments” and published a book about it. Although I still haven’t read the book, I’ve gotten the gist through a lot of Le Cunff’s newsletters and videos.
In general, her message is all about getting curious and working with that curiosity to set a tiny experiment.
When something isn’t working or needs improvement, get curious. What is it exactly that isn’t working? What small change could potentially make it better? What would happen if you tried it this way or that way?
Le Cunff says:
And it turns out you can bring that same sense of forward momentum to your everyday life by distilling your own experiments down to just two essential elements. Just like a scientist who needs to know, first, what they’re going to try, and second, the trial period. You can choose a specific action to experiment with for a specific duration. I call these tiny experiments, and they follow a very simple formula. It’s like a mini protocol where you just say: I will [action] for [duration].
That’s it. This is not a habit. You’re not committing to this for the rest of your life. This is not a goal either. You’re not trying to get to a specific outcome. This is just an experiment. No targets, no success metrics, no illusion of certainty, just the courage to be curious for a moment and to step outside the story you’ve been telling yourself about who you need to be.
Tiny experiments work better for ADHD brains because they’re built around interest and novelty instead of demanding we run on pure willpower. They’re easier for our brains to remember, small enough to not be overwhelming, and don’t lead to failure. A tiny experiment can work or not work, but there’s no failure involved.
So in the case of my bike lock keys, I thought: What if, the next few times I ride my bike, I put my keys directly into the cup (if they’re in my pocket) or leave them clipped into my backpack clip (if they’re already there)?
For me, the tiny experiment led to me not losing my bike lock keys again (at least…not yet).
In my last newsletter, I wrote about wanting to write for fun more often. A tiny experiment for that could be “what if I write for at least 10 minutes every day in the AM for the next 7 days?”
Running Tiny Experiments, ADHD Style
While Le Cunff’s protocol for running tiny experiments is very ADHD friendly, there are still a few aspects that can make them difficult. Like…
Remembering to do them
Working memory is not an ADHDer’s strong suit. Tiny experiments are easy to set, but harder to remember! Make a very prominent visual cue, like a sticky note on your monitor, a calendar reminder, or an alarm on your phone.
Trying one at a time
When ADHDers get excited about something, we tend to jump in a smidge too hard.
But tiny experiments will work the best if you run them one at a time. Do one thing, focus on it, decide on the outcome, then move on to the next.
Taking notes
I don’t know that it’s the same for all ADHDers, but here’s what happens to me when I experiment and try something new:
I try a thing. I like the thing. I decide to keep doing the thing.
I really like doing the thing and am into it for a while. Sometimes weeks.
One day, I can’t get to doing the thing because I’m busy.
The next day, I forget to do the thing.
I am now completely off the thing and, although it may pop into my brain once in a while, I keep forgetting about it and it just fades out of my memory altogether.
If you, like me, tend to follow a “love and and do it but then forget all about it” kind of pattern, it can help to keep a page in your notebook dedicated to your experiments. Put big stars next to ones that worked, or just keep notes for yourself that you come back to from time to time to refresh your memory on what works for your brain.
That’s it for the chatty part of this newsletter! On to the recs we go 💃🏼
