an image of a brain, there are four highlighted sections, with arrows pointing towards different devices. Pink is pointing to a computer, yellow to a tablet, green to a tv, and blue to a cell phone

NotiFRIED 😵‍💫: Take Action on Distraction

Too many notifications destroy our attention and mood and make our important notifications invisible. Some people now get dozens of news alerts a day—no wonder “alert fatigue” is rising.

How many notifications is too many? Ask yourself:

Am I missing alerts that could be useful?
Do I have any items that have been in Notifications for over a week?
How many non-actionable items are in my notifications?

Why notifications matter

After an interruption, workers take about 23 minutes to truly get back on task. Classic stat, context varies, point stands. Gloria Mark Q&A (Gallup)
Even just hearing a buzz can hurt performance—without touching the phone. HBR summary of Stothart et al., 2015
Batching notifications ~3×/day improves reported focus, mood, and productivity. Peer-reviewed study (plain-English summary: Springer Nature blog)

Your attention is valuable. It's your self-care duty to guard it.

Download the Notifications Audit Download Tool:

https://conquer.consulting/blog/notifications-and-adhd

The 15-minute Notifications Audit

1) Hard cuts (3-5 min).
Turn off notifications for news, promos, games, “engagement” pings. Anything that can send you down a rabbit hole (or that you just don't need!)

2) Batch anything non-urgent (3–4 min).

iPhone: Settings → Notifications → Scheduled Summary → Turn on → choose non-urgent apps; schedule 2–3 drops/day.
Android: Go to the app's notification settings → "Scheduled digest" option → set your desired delivery time.

3) Focus/DND presets (3–4 min).

Create a Focus Mode (or Android rule) that allows calendar + Reminders + VIP humans and mutes the rest. Optional emergency back-door: “Allow repeated calls” (2 calls in 3 minutes).

4) Badge / Notification Dot Detox (5 min).

Badges are anxiety sprinkles. Turn them off for anything non-critical.

A flyer of Brittanys TADDTALK, which shows an image of Brittany and the title, "NotiFRIED: take action on distractions" then has the date 11/05

Check out my talk on Notifications - ADDA's TADD Talks

October is ADHD Awareness Month--and what's more ADHD than talking about it in November? Check out my ADDA TADD talk this year: NotiFRIED 😵‍💫: Take Action on Distraction:https://add.org/tadd-talks-podcast/tadd-2025-brittany-smith/

What's a TADD Talk? Think TED Talk… but shorter (just 9-ish minutes!) and laser-focused on the lived experience of ADHD in adulthood. I'm thrilled to be one of this year's featured speakers, alongside an incredible lineup that includes Linda Roggli, Dr. Ari Tuckman, Nikki Kinzer, David Giwerc, Dr. Eliza Barach, Inger Shaye Colzie, Dr. Tamara Rosier, Dr. Daniella Karidi, Monica Hassell, Dr. Michael Lenz, Dylan Alter, Dr. Mark Bertin, Dr. Sharon Saline, Dr. Roberto Olivardia, Alan P. Brown, and many more!

These audio-only episodes are packed with science-backed strategies, personal insights, and motivation you can put to use immediately.