Read more on jimlivingstone.com.au

The Year You Stop Fighting Your Brain

Picture this:

You're in the best shape you've been in years. Your finances are under control. You stayed on track. You've built habits you actually kept, and you're surrounded by people who understand and support you, not criticise you.

That's not fantasy. That's your 2026 if you follow this system.

Step 1: Crystal Clear Clarity

Most ADHD adults fail because they try to do everything at once. Instead, you need crystal clear clarity.

Make sure they are YOUR goals, not your family's, your friends or societies.

Select ONE big personal goal and ONE big professional goal. Not ten. Not five. ONE each.

Pick the ONE with the biggest impact. The ONE project that, if you don't get anything else done, will unlock the vision you want for your life.

Our ADHD brains thrive on this kind of singular focus when we commit to it.

Take that ONE project and break it into daily actions.

Now create your vision board. Our minds don't think in words, they think in pictures. Take or create a picture of that ONE big goal and put it everywhere: on your phone wallpaper, laptop background, and bathroom mirror. Force yourself to see it every single day.

Forget SMART Goals. Use SIMPLE Goals Instead:

Standards: What level are you operating at? This isn't about perfection, it's about the baseline you refuse to drop below.

Identity: Who are you becoming through this goal? ADHD success is about identity shift, not willpower.

Momentum: What's the smallest next action that builds unstoppable forward motion? For us, momentum is everything.

Planning: What's the dead-simple plan? Complexity kills ADHD execution.

Leverage: What systems, people, or tools multiply your effort? This is where ADHD brains excel.

Environment: What needs to change around you to make this inevitable? Your environment determines your success more than your willpower ever will.

Step 2: Daily Actions That Actually Work

Schedule 90 minutes for YOU each day. Ideally, in 30-minute blocks, if possible, throughout the day. Protect this time: no email, no social media, no meetings, no interruptions. This is your power hour and a half.

Each evening, ask yourself one question: What's the most important next step to move that project forward tomorrow? Write it down. Put it in your calendar. Make it your first action.

But here's what most people miss: you also need to define what you have to stop doing. Do a time and energy audit. Know what tasks, projects, people, and events give you energy and what drain it.

All that busy work that doesn't move your life forward needs to go. Delete it, dump it, or delegate it. Use leverage to create the time and energy to focus on your ONE big goal.

Step 3: Build Systems That Run on Autopilot

Systems beat motivation every single time. Big goals are built on small, consistent wins, and systems remove the decision fatigue that kills our progress.

Create systems to get everything out of your head and into a digital form that's shareable and repeatable. Protect your block times. Plan tomorrow morning, the day before, with your three key tasks ready to go.

Designate an evening shutdown routine: At ? PM, write down tomorrow's top three tasks in your calendar. If it's in your calendar, it's off your mind.  Shut down your laptop, clear your desk, and you're done. This allows your mind and body to recover, recharge, and reset.

Sunday, plan your week. Know that if you get those three things done each day, your day's a success. Everything else is a bonus.

Step 4: Success is a Team Sport 

Ask for help. What you need is a personal board of mentors and advisors. Surround yourself with people who are where you want to go. They can be in-person or virtual. Books, YouTube, AI, and other resources are unlimited. Your network truly is your net worth.

And speaking of AI: it's brilliant for ADHD. Use it as your personal executive function. This is one of our strengths - recognising tools that multiply our effectiveness.

Become a Director, instead of a Doer. Use leverage.

Build intentional connections that match where you want to be, not where you are. And here's the hard truth: if keeping someone in your life isn't a hell yes, it's an easy no.

Ask yourself, are they energy amplifiers or energy vampires? Set your boundaries and protect your physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

Next, identify your strengths and limitations.

Here's the key:

What holds your attention is a Strength.

What bores you is a Limitation.

For your strengths, lean into hyperfocus, high energy, pattern recognition, problem-solving, creative solutions, idea generation, enthusiasm, and risk-taking.

For your limitations, whether that's sales, health, mindset, finances, or relationships, get help. Delegate. Find mentors. Build systems.

Step 5: Stay on Track

You need to measure. What you measure gets managed. Keep the score simple: black and white, yes or no. No grey area for our ADHD brains to negotiate with.

You need accountability. I create this through partnerships, systems, and commitments to my goals. This keeps motivation high when executive function is low.

Create non-negotiable white lines: no sugar or alcohol, save $50 every week, walk 10,000 steps four days a week or 6,000 steps daily. Make a commitment, a personal promise to stay consistent. Then honour those self-promises. This is where identity shift happens.

Find a metric for your North Star and track it daily. Use Google Calendar or similar tools to set recurring checkpoints and milestones. Make tracking automatic so your brain doesn't have to remember.

Simplicity Beats Inspiration

Most people don't start because they lack a clear vision of their ONE major personal and ONE major professional goal. Pick the ONE outcome that will make the biggest impact on your life. Keep it simple.

I know this might feel overwhelming. But here's what you need to understand: if you can take just the ONE goal, break it down into projects.

Identify the most important next step and have clarity on those steps. That's better than waiting for motivation to do its thing.

The discipline of consistent execution is the bridge that turns vision into reality. How you get there will change, but not the outcome.

Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing.

Grab your copy of the SIMPLE Worksheet

Your best year starts now.

Focus on what matters. 

Jim

PS. Have a Safe and Amazing 2026

Download your complimentary PDF of the first two chapters.

Download your complimentary PDF of the first couple of chapters.

Or, if you want to buy a copy. 

Want to share this newsletter issue via text, social media, or email? Just copy and paste this link: https://jims-newsletter-51b782.beehiiv.com/p/88510921-5e17-41ac-aabe-fbeec9dae202?draft=true

Expect the Best,

If you’ve got a second, I would love to hear your thoughts and comments. [email protected]  I reply to every email.

This site is not intended to provide and does not constitute medical, legal, or other professional advice. The content in this newsletter is designed to support, not replace, medical or psychiatric treatment. Please seek professional help if you believe you may have Mental Health Issues.