The latest articles on DEV Community by Daniel Wedding (@doctornovus). https://dev.to/doctornovus https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3833111%2Fd36763e9-9f56-482e-be60-2d7f1647672b.jpg https://dev.to/doctornovus en Daniel Wedding Thu, 19 Mar 2026 04:58:11 +0000 https://dev.to/doctornovus/i-have-adhd-and-i-kept-abandoning-every-planner-app-so-i-built-my-own-18b7 https://dev.to/doctornovus/i-have-adhd-and-i-kept-abandoning-every-planner-app-so-i-built-my-own-18b7 <p>I have ADHD. I've tried dozens of planner and task management apps. Most of them made things worse.</p> <p>Not because they were bad apps. Because they were built for a brain that can sit down, sort 47 tasks into folders, assign priorities, and follow through on a rigid daily schedule. That's not my brain.</p> <p>Here's what kept happening:</p> <ul> <li>I'd spend 20 minutes setting up a system instead of doing the task</li> <li>I'd miss one day of a streak and feel like the whole system was broken</li> <li>Reminders would stack up and become background noise I felt guilty about</li> <li>The app would assume I had the energy to organize before I could even start</li> </ul> <p>So I built TidalTask.</p> <h2> What it does </h2> <p>TidalTask is a planner app specifically for ADHD. It focuses on three things:</p> <ol> <li><p><strong>Quick capture.</strong> One tap, type the task, done. No folder selection, no priority matrix, no tagging. Get it out of your head before it disappears.</p></li> <li><p><strong>Flexible routines.</strong> Recurring tasks stay visible without streak counters. Miss a day? Nothing breaks. No shame UI. No broken chain graphic.</p></li> <li><p><strong>Gentle reminders.</strong> Nudges that help you re-enter your day, not ones that pile up and make your phone feel hostile.</p></li> </ol> <h2> What it doesn't do </h2> <p>No Gantt charts. No Eisenhower matrices. No nested subtask trees. No AI auto-scheduling your entire week.</p> <p>If you need deep project management, this isn't the tool. TidalTask is a planning layer, not a productivity suite.</p> <h2> Tech stack </h2> <ul> <li>Swift/SwiftUI (iOS, iPadOS, visionOS)</li> <li>Next.js + TailwindCSS (web dashboard and marketing site)</li> <li>Cross-platform sync across phone, iPad, desktop web, and visionOS</li> </ul> <h2> It's free </h2> <p>No paywall, no trial timer, no premium tier.</p> <p>I built this through my small web agency, Ottegi. It's not VC-backed. There's no growth team optimizing for engagement metrics. It's just an app I needed that didn't exist.</p> <p>If you have ADHD (or suspect you do), I'd genuinely appreciate feedback on what works, what doesn't, and what friction you still hit when planning your day.</p> <p><a href="https://tidaltask.app" rel="noopener noreferrer">tidaltask.app</a><br> <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/sequenced-adhd-manager/id6478198104" rel="noopener noreferrer">App Store</a><br> <a href="https://dashboard.tidaltask.app/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Desktop Dashboard</a></p> productivity audhd showdev webdev