Executive Function and Neurodivergence: The Orchestra Analogy
In our last post, we explored how your nervous system processes information differently in neurodivergent brains. But there's another layer: what happens when your brain needs to coordinate complex tasks, make plans, and stay focused?
Ever walked into a room and forgotten why? Or stared at a task list, unable to start? That's executive function—a specialized set of skills that builds on your nervous system.
How It Works: The Orchestra Analogy
When I was a youngster, I had the good fortune of being part of our school band. Starting at age 12, I learned not only to play an instrument (the flute!), but how to play in a group. Our teacher, Mr. Stern, had the patience of a saint as he tried to keep us on time and on track. It was not an easy task.
Imagine the brain as an orchestra. The musicians (brain regions connected by your nervous system) all have parts to play, but without a conductor, you'd just have chaotic noise—kinda like my sixth grade band class. Executive function is that conductor, housed in your prefrontal cortex.
When learning something new, your conductor works overtime. Once you've mastered a skill, it gets handed off to other brain regions that run it on autopilot—which is why overthinking can hurt performance.
Executive function is like the Conductor of your brain—it coordinates your mental processes to help you achieve goals. These mental skills help you plan, monitor, and complete tasks, including paying attention, remembering information while using it, controlling impulses, and switching between tasks.
The Three Core Skills
Research identifies three core executive functions that work together:
Inhibition (Self-Control): Resisting temptations, stopping automatic responses, and ignoring distractions—like focusing in a noisy office or not checking your phone during a meeting.
Working Memory: Holding and using information in your mind, like remembering a phone number long enough to dial it or tracking recipe steps.
Cognitive Flexibility: Thinking "outside the box," seeing different perspectives, and adapting when plans change.
From these three building blocks, more complex skills emerge—like planning, problem-solving, and reasoning.
The Neurodivergent Experience
We learned that neurodivergent nervous systems process sensory information differently. Now add this layer: the executive function "conductor" also coordinates differently.
Research shows that both children with autism and ADHD face challenges with attention, cognitive flexibility, working memory, processing speed, and impulse control. For people with ADHD, the brain regions responsible for executive functions tend to be smaller, less and later developed that peers of a similar age, or less active.
What This Looks Like in Real Life
Executive function challenges can show up in ways that others might not immediately recognize as neurological:
Task Initiation: The hardest part—just starting. This leads to reduced productivity and significant guilt.
Planning and Organization: Difficulty breaking down tasks, struggling with time management, or trouble completing to-do lists.
Impulse Control: Quick decisions without thinking through consequences, or getting into more arguments.
Emotional Regulation: Emotional reactions that seem stronger than the situation calls for.
Executive function difficulties are linked to lower quality of life and predict issues like anxiety or depression. But these aren't character flaws—they're neurological differences.
Remember: neurodivergent individuals already process the world differently at the nervous system level. When executive function also works differently, everyday tasks require significantly more mental energy.
Support Strategies
Several approaches can help strengthen executive function, and no two people will have the exact same mix that works for them. Some examples are:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Develops strategies and workarounds rigid thinking.
Medication: Particularly for ADHD, can improve executive function by regulating Dopamine levels.
Exercise: Physical activity engaging both body and brain strengthens executive skills
External tools and systems: Calendars, reminders, checklists, and accountability partners
The key is recognizing these challenges are biological differences, not personal failures.
Here's something to think about: If it takes more mental energy just to process everyday sensory information, how much harder must it be to also plan, organize, and execute complex tasks and how might this impact the neurodivergent person’s sense of self?
