Context Filters: The ADHD Superpower Hiding in GTD
Imagine you are trying to read a book, but every 30 seconds, someone shouts a random word at you. "Laundry!" "Taxes!" "Groceries!" "Dentist!"
You would never finish a sentence. This is what it feels like to have ADHD. Your brain is constantly serving up irrelevant reminders at the wrong time.
But for many of us, our to-do lists make this worse, not better.
The Noise of the Infinite List
When you open a standard to-do list, you see everything you need to do in your entire life. You see "Draft Q4 Strategy" right next to "Buy Cat Food."
If you are at the office, seeing "Buy Cat Food" is not helpful. It is noise. It forces your brain to look at it, process it, decide "I can't do that now," and inhibit the impulse to worry about it.
This micro-decision drains your executive function battery. If you do it 50 times a day, you are exhausted by noon.
Contexts: Digital Blinders
In Getting Things Done, David Allen introduced the concept of "Contexts." The idea is simple: only show tasks that can be done in your current location or situation.
- @work: Only things I can do at the office.
- @home: Only things I can do at home.
- @errands: Things to do when I'm out.
- @waiting: Things I can't do until someone replies.
For an ADHD brain, contexts act like blinders on a racehorse. They block out the distractions so you can focus on what's in front of you.
How Tali Handles Context
Tali is built around this concept. When you chat with Tali, you can set your current mode.
If you text "I'm at work," Tali will filter your list. It will hide "Laundry" and "Call Mom." It will only show you "Email Boss" and "Finish Report."
When you text "I'm heading out," Tali switches to @errands mode. Suddenly, "Buy Milk" and "Drop off package" appear.
By filtering out the impossible tasks, the possible ones become much less overwhelming.