The answer lies in adjusting the two key components of mindfulness: attention and attitude. We bring our attention to the present moment and take on an attitude of openness and curiosity.

While reasons for being scattered may be different, the antidote is learning to pause and shift your attention—this time in a purposeful way—to the present moment.

The difference in the brightness and readiness of your attention is a difference in alerting.

Mindfulness puts you in the driver’s seat, directing your attention where you want it to go. Much of our daily experience is just the other way around.

Describing with awareness.

Dr. Russell Barkley, a prominent psychologist and an expert in the ADHD field, in fact calls ADHD “the disorder of self-regulation.”

With ADHD, the feeling of boredom and craving for novelty can come up often and easily. Tuning in to your five senses is one way to bring interest and novelty to every moment of your life—even mundane activities can feel new and interesting.

Practice being kind to yourself. Don’t judge your experience as good or bad; simply be curious about how your mind works. At the end of this meditation, offer yourself some appreciation for taking the time to pause, for training your attention and awareness, and for connecting more fully with yourself in the present moment.

These short-term memory difficulties are related to working memory, a component of executive function.