Project Planning & Task management for ADHD: Trello vs. Leantime
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Running a successful project requires a deliberate approach to making plans, outlining the tasks and then sticking to it. Being organized can be a challenge for most people but for individuals with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), staying organized and managing projects can reach a new level of daunting.
Fortunately, technology offers a range of project planning apps designed to assist with productivity and task management. In this article, we will compare two popular options: Trello and Leantime. We will explore their features, benefits, and how they can support individuals with ADHD on their search for the best organizational tools.
Leantime for project & task management with ADHD
Leantime is a project management tool designed to support people with ADHD by making project management simple. While one might say it provides a more structured approach to project management, it does so without feeling overbearing or complicated. The benefit of the structure is to make it obvious and clear what steps are involved in managing your tasks and projects.
Now, if you’re like me, setting up a project or task management tool is just another hurdle to actually getting something done. In Leantime, however, the goal is to bring you back to your goals and that’s what you’ll see in their welcome emails. Starting with your goals is setting a mark that you’re aiming to hit.
Studies support that dopamine is released on the way to the goal and not at the end. By creating the goals first, you set yourself up for a dopamine boost to actually get the tasks done.
Here are some of the key features to Leantime that make it a good option for ADHD task management:
Hybrid Project Management
Leantime combines methodologies such as agile, lean project management, and design thinking. You’ll see this in the lean approach to managing projects and then elements such as Kanban boards, sprints, and task prioritization.
The task management system takes task management to another level, though, by creating three primary views (depending on how your brain likes to sort information). For this, you’ll see a Kanban board, a table view list of tasks and a List view. These features make the tool flexible for multiple ways of thinking and all help individuals with ADHD stay focused on the most critical tasks.
Time Tracking and Analytics
Leantime offers built-in time tracking features, allowing users to monitor the time spent on each task. From the task itself, you click “Start work,” and a timer starts. From there, you can view the time spent on each of your tasks. This information can be leveraged for better resource planning, determining how much work can be handled, and for informing decision-making.
Idea Management
It may be my own bias, but people with ADHD are often creative and think out of the box. Managing your ideas is a great way to make sure that you don’t lose those moments of brilliance. It’s easy to jump from one subject to the next when multi-tasking and lose track of something that may have made a big impact.
Trello: Visual Simplicity for Enhanced Focus
Trello is a widely-used project management app that uses a visual board layout with lists and cards to help users organize their tasks. For many of us with ADHD, having our tasks visually clear can make it easier and quicker to know right away where the work is or what to work on next.
Trello’s primary features are a Kanban board that gives you lanes and columns to visually represent the work. By being so task focused, it makes it easy to get started quickly and has a simple interface. This can make it a great choice for individuals with ADHD who thrive on visual cues and simplicity.
Visual Task Management
Trello’s boards and cards allow users to create, prioritize, and categorize tasks. The visual aspect of Trello helps users maintain focus by providing a clear overview of their projects and progress.
Customizable Workflow
Users can create custom workflows with Trello’s lists and move cards across different stages of a project. This flexibility allows for personalized organization, adaptability, and easy tracking of progress. Unfortunately, many of these customizations come at additional costs.
Collaboration and Communication
In Trello, you’re able to invite users, assign tasks and even leave comments. This enables people to bring friends, family, or the team alongside the tasks needing to be done. This feature fosters effective communication, essential for successful project planning and execution.
Body doubling and accountability can be a great way to get motivated to manage your tasks when you’re just not feeling up to doing the work.
Leantime vs Trello: Feature Comparison
Features in Leantime will allow you to manage tasks, invite users, comment, and assign. You’ll find the same Kanban approach but a few other preset views in Leantime vs Trello.
If you search the internet, you’ll find the occasional comment describing Leantime as a “Trello on steroids.” The thought being that Leantime is as easy as Trello to use but with more features.
In Leantime, for example, the work is already pre-structured for you. This requires little thinking to get going. Trello can offer the same if you’re needing a pure task list, “Do, Doing, Done” approach.
If you’re looking to get on the dopamine train, however, it can be beneficial to have the goals and some fundamental plans before you. Having set expectations for how the work should go, being able to track the time on each task done and seeing the progress you’re making on your goals is just something that Trello can’t offer and for the things it can do, it can require more thought or more money to get set up to use.
Here are some considerations to help you make an informed decision:
- Visual vs. Structured Approach: Determine whether you thrive in a visual environment like Trello or prefer the structure and get-working approach to planning provided by Leantime.
- Collaboration Requirements: Assess whether you need robust collaboration features to work with a team
- Task Complexity: Evaluate the complexity of your projects and whether advanced features are needed.
When it comes to managing tasks and staying organized, both Trello and Leantime offer unique advantages for individuals with ADHD. Trello’s visual simplicity and intuitive interface provide a visually stimulating environment, allowing users to create, prioritize, and categorize tasks effortlessly. Its flexible workflow and collaboration features promote effective communication and teamwork.
On the other hand, Leantime’s structured planning approach, hybrid project management approaches, and advanced features like time tracking and idea management cater to individuals who thrive with more detailed plans.
The best & easiest to use ADHD organization tools
Both of these tools are among the best ADHD apps to use and they are definitely two of the easiest options.
Both Trello and Leantime offer valuable project planning features that can support individuals with ADHD in organizing and managing their tasks. Trello’s visual simplicity and intuitive interface make it a great choice for those who prefer a visually stimulating environment. On the other hand, Leantime’s simple and structured approach caters to individuals who require a more detailed approach to their project management & task management.
Ultimately, the choice between Trello and Leantime depends on personal preferences, the level of structure required, and the complexity of the tasks at hand. Both tools can significantly assist individuals with ADHD in managing tasks and staying on top of their projects.
No matter what tool you decide to use: be sure to assess your needs, preferences, and project requirements to ensure that you select the work planning app that best suits your ADHD and your work needs.
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Gloria Folaron
Gloria Folaron is the CEO and founder of Leantime. A Nurse first, she describes herself as an original non-project manager. Being diagnosed with ADHD later in life, she has hands on experience in navigating the world of project and product management and staying organized with ADHD.
