What is 'Body Doubling' for ADHD and How Can It Help Me Focus?

Introduction

Over the last few years the term 'Body Doubling' has been gaining some traction across the neurodiverse coaching space. Most people have never heard of Body Doubling, and on first hearing the name it can be super confusing as to what it actually means. Does someone do things for me? Is it a PA? Am I gonna get cloned? This article will clear all this up and teach you about the very valuable technique of Body Doubling, that can increase your focus and help you finish the tasks you started.

What is Body Doubling?

Body Doubling is a term to describe the act of working in the presence of other people, as a way of anchoring focus and attention to the task at hand. It brings a low level of accountability to keep you on task, just with the presence of other people. This works due to 'peer effects' which was proven via a German Study in 2006. The impact of working with peers proves even more effective on those that are the least productive. As we know, those with ADHD are not generally known for their ability to stay productive.

The way it works in practice is someone with ADHD wants to complete a task, let's say they want to open the doom pile of unopened mail. They join a virtual or in person session with another person(s) and start with an intention of what they want to achieve. Then for a predetermined amount of time, they will sit in silence with the other person and complete the task at hand.

What can body doubling be used for?

At Rule, our focus is on all money related activities, but really Body Doubling could be used for anything that requires you to sit and focus for a period of time to complete a task. It has grown very popular as a tool to use at work to help keep your productivity on track.

People who completed Body Doubling sessions within the Rule Community have completed the following tasks for example:

1. Opening post that was left forgotten for 6 months. This led to one person making a reclaim of money from British Gas that they didn't realise they were owed.
2. Opening an online account for a mortgage. This person was waiting 6 years to open an online account for their mortgage and managed to achieve it on a 30 minute body doubling session.
3. Unsubscribing from email lists. This habit of getting added to marketing lists was wreaking havoc on this person's impulsive nature.
4. Booking flights in advance. Leaving flights to the last minute can cost a fortune. Using this time to book in advance saved a lot of time and stress.

Where can I find Body Doubling?

Many ADHD coaches offer Body Doubling as part of their services to their clients, but this can often be an expensive option for a lot of people. There are a number of providers out there offering sessions for a variety of needs.

Workplace Body Doubling
If you want to use Body Doubling to help you at work with productivity, you can use a number of providers that specialise in this. The best part is it can be claimed as a part of "Access to Work" which makes it free for you. Here are two providers in no particular order:

1. Flown
   Flown offers Body Doubling sessions throughout the day with difference themes and formats. It can cost as little as £15 per month or alternatively if you live in the UK you can claim it via the UK Government's Access to Work Scheme.
2. Deepwrk
   Deepwrk is a Body doubling platform for adults with ADHD to focus, escape distractions, and do more together. The company is UK based but operates mainly in the US and pricing works out at $19 per month or $12 is paid annually.

Money related Body Doubling
If you struggle to get things done and that ends up costing you more money, this is a part of the ADHD Tax. The ADHD Tax shows that those with ADHD are on average £1,600 worse off vs the general population per year.

At Rule, our mission is to reduce the ADHD tax to £0. We run regular Body Doubling sessions within our community for a variety of money related admin tasks.

Join our ADHD and Money Community for free today to find out when the next Body Doubling session is and say hello to thousands of other people who share your common experiences.