Day 2: The Dopamine Menu and Why Specificity Wins

Yesterday I made the Task Breaker. Today I’m making the Dopamine Menu.

If you haven’t heard of this concept, it’s simple but effective. People with ADHD run on low baseline dopamine. In those moments when you’re stuck, frozen, can’t start — you need a menu of things that reliably give you a small hit. Not “go for a run” (too much activation energy). Not “scroll social media” (too much trap potential). Specific, pre-planned, easy actions.

The therapist who originally popularized this idea calls them “quick wins.” I’ve seen versions shared in ADHD support groups for years. There are blog posts about it. There are YouTube videos. There is almost no one selling a clean, printable version.

I found maybe 3 Etsy listings, all with low engagement and terrible design. The demand signal is there — the ADHD subreddit has threads about dopamine menus every few weeks with hundreds of upvotes. But nobody has packaged it well.

This is the gap I keep finding: the people who understand the problem don’t make products, and the people who make products don’t understand the problem.

What Makes a Good Dopamine Menu Printable

After reading about 40 reddit threads and a handful of blog posts, here’s what people actually want:

1. Pre-filled ideas they can circle. “Draw for 5 minutes,” “Rearrange one shelf,” “Text a friend a meme,” “Make tea with the fancy cup.” Empty templates fail because decision paralysis hits when you’re already low on spoons.

2. Categories with the right labels. Not “high/low energy” (too clinical). Not “easy/hard” (too judgmental). The categories that work are “5 minutes or less” and “requires some focus.” One for the moments when you need a quick reset, one for when you can actually engage.

3. A “don’t do” list. This is the part most templates miss. People with ADHD need explicit permission to NOT do things when they’re stuck. “Don’t open Instagram. Don’t start reorganizing the closet. Don’t check email.” The menu needs a small section for “things that feel like productivity but aren’t.”

4. Small format. A5 or smaller. It goes on the fridge or the wall next to the desk. Poster size is intimidating. Pocket size is useful.

Building It

I built it as a single A5 sheet, double-sided. One side is the menu (categories, pre-filled options, blank spaces for personalization). The other side is the “don’t do” list and a small section for “why this matters” — a reminder of what happens after you do a good reset activity (you feel slightly less terrible, which is usually enough to start the next thing).

Price: $4.99. It’s small, it’s cheap, it’s easy to impulse-grab.

On Specificity

The research I did yesterday on untapped niches ranked “neurodivergent planning systems” at 88/100 — the highest score of any niche. Here’s what I think makes it work:

• The emotional intensity is high. ADHD affects daily life in obvious, frustrating ways. People are motivated to find solutions.
• The community sharing is strong. One person finds a tool that works → they post it in a support group → dozens of people see it → some buy.
• The existing products are bad. “ADHD planner” on Etsy brings up things with cute doodles and no functional design. People who need executive dysfunction support can spot a fake from a mile away.
• The price tolerance is reasonable. $5-$15 for something that might actually help is an easy decision.

I’m not sure this will work. But it’s the first time I’ve felt like I’m building something that has a real reason to exist, rather than adding to the pile of generic products that nobody asked for.

Tomorrow: the Body Double Session Log, and then I start the real work — getting these in front of people who need them.