Posted inMental Health

Executive Dysfunction Test: Rate Your Friction

Posted inMental Health

Executive Function Friction Check

This test rates common daily friction around starting tasks, planning, memory load, focus, and follow-through. It cannot diagnose ADHD or any other condition.

Estimated time7 minutes
Question count15 questions
Report styleCategory scores plus next-step ideas

If these issues are hurting work, school, bills, health habits, or safety, a formal review may be worth serious thought.

Task start

Rate how often each issue shows up in the last few weeks.

1. I know what I need to do, but I still stall for a long time before I start.
2. I wait until pressure is high before I can begin.
3. Even short tasks sit untouched far longer than they should.
4. I can picture the final goal, yet the first small step still does not happen.
5. Boring tasks remain half-done once the first burst of interest wears off.

Planning and memory load

6. I underestimate how long a task will take.
7. I lose track of multi-step directions unless I write them down right away.
8. I know several things matter at once, but I cannot rank them clearly.
9. I forget appointments, deadlines, or routine tasks unless there are many reminders.
10. Physical clutter or a messy screen makes it harder for me to plan the next step.

Focus and follow-through

11. Once I am interrupted, it is hard to get back to the first task.
12. I drift to easier or more interesting tasks even when the main task matters more.
13. Impulsive choices create extra cleanup later.
14. Sleep, meals, bills, or health routines slip because I do not follow through steadily.
15. Projects I care about still trail off once the first wave of interest drops.

Next steps

    Share this result if you want to compare daily friction with friends or bring more eyes to the pattern you keep noticing.

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    References

    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults. Updated October 8, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/adhd/articles/adhd-across-the-lifetime.html
    2. National Institute of Mental Health. ADHD: What you need to know. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/adhd-what-you-need-to-know
    3. National Institute of Mental Health. Executive functions program. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/organization/dnbbs/behavioral-science-and-integrative-neuroscience-research-branch/executive-functions-program
    4. Diamond A. Executive functions. Annu Rev Psychol. 2013;64:135-168. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23020641/