Habit Stacking Template: Five Worked Examples for Real ADHD Days

You get the idea. You just can’t think of stacks that fit your messy day. Here are five, filled in, with the reasoning shown.

Anirudh Sharma

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1 hour ago

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You understand the theory. Pick something you already do, bolt a new habit onto it, repeat. But when you sit down to write your own, your mind goes blank, or every idea falls apart against your actual day: the kids, the late starts, the afternoons that vanish.

A note on how this was made: drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources listed at the end.

Sometimes the fastest way to learn a format is to see it filled in. This habit stacking template comes with five worked examples for the moments ADHD days tend to go wrong, and each one shows why the anchor was chosen. Copy one, change the details, and you have your first stack by tonight.

Quick answer: A habit stacking template has three parts: an anchor you already do daily (“After I…”), one small new action (“I will…”), and a payoff or next step (“then…”). Good examples use physical, fixed-place anchors, like turning off an alarm or closing a laptop. Start with one stack, track it for two weeks, then add the next.

How to read a stack: anchor, habit, payoff

Each example below has four parts:

• Anchor: something that already happens every day, in one place. This is the cue.
• New habit: one action, small enough to do on a bad day.
• Then: a payoff or the natural next step, so the stack has an ending.
• Why it works: the reasoning, so you can judge your own version.

The structure is a version of if-then planning. A 2025 meta-analysis of 642 tests of implementation intentions found these “if X, then Y” plans improve goal outcomes, with stronger effects for the if-then format and when people rehearse the plan. Reading your stack aloud once a day counts as rehearsal.

Five example stacks for ADHD days

1. Morning medication

After I turn off my phone alarm, I will take the pills from the organizer sitting next to my phone charger, then I can check messages.

Why it works: the alarm happens every day, in bed, and the pills are right where the anchor happens. Checking messages is the reward you were going to have anyway. This stack is about remembering, not timing: take medication exactly as prescribed, and ask your prescriber about timing. The National Institute of Mental Health advises talking to a provider before stopping or changing a prescribed medication.

2. Leaving the house

After I put my shoes on, I will touch my pocket for keys, phone and wallet, then I open the door.

Why it works: shoes are a must-do step before leaving, and the touch check takes three seconds. It turns “did I forget something?” into a physical move.

3. Starting work

After I sit down at my desk and open my laptop, I will write one task on a sticky note, then I set a two-minute timer and start it.

Why it works: opening the laptop has a clear edge. Writing one task (not a list) gets past the “where do I even begin” stall.

4. Evening reset

After I load the last dish into the dishwasher or rack, I will clear one surface for ten minutes, then I sit down for the evening.

Why it works: the last dish is a natural end-of-kitchen moment. A ten-minute limit keeps it from turning into a three-hour cleaning spiral.

5. Bedtime

After I plug my phone in to charge, I will write tomorrow’s first task on a card, then I leave the phone where I can’t reach it from bed.

Why it works: plugging in is a nightly must-do. Writing the first task means the morning starts with a decision already made.

Wood and Rünger’s review of habit research describes a similar idea for unwanted habits: tying a plan to the cue that sets off the old behavior, such as planning a swap for after dinner. Stack 5 does that for late-night scrolling.

Writing your own: the habit stacking template

Copy these four columns into a notebook or notes app and fill in one row:

• After I… (the anchor)
• I will… (one small action)
• Then… (the payoff or next step)
• Anchor test: daily? one place? unavoidable? (all three should be yes)

Some guidelines as you fill it in:

1. Write the anchor as an action, not a time. “After I close the car door” beats “at 6 pm”.
2. Shrink the new habit until it feels almost silly. “Floss one tooth” is a real starting point.
3. Keep the action the same each day. The British Journal of General Practice review advises keeping the behavior consistent rather than varying it, because consistent repetition in the same context is what builds automaticity.
4. Put any object you need where the anchor happens. Pills by the charger. Card and pen by the bed.

If you’d rather work from a printed page, EF Complete has a habit stacking builder with five pre-filled example stacks, six rows for your own stacks with a held-two-weeks tick, and a two-week stack tracker.

A two-week tracker so you know it held

A stack you don’t track is a stack you’ll misjudge. On a good day you’ll feel it’s automatic; after a bad day you’ll feel it never worked. A tick sheet settles it.

The BJGP review recommends exactly this: a daily tick-sheet plus a weekly check on how automatic the habit feels. Make one row per stack and fourteen boxes, one for each day of the two weeks. For example, a bedtime-card stack ticked on 12 of the 14 days.

Twelve out of fourteen is a stack that’s holding. If you’re under about half, the anchor is probably the problem. Swap it and run another two weeks.

Adding the next stack

When a stack has held for two weeks, you can add another. A few rules keep the system from tipping over:

• One new stack at a time. Two new stacks in the same week makes it hard to tell which one failed.
• Chain only after the first link is solid. Once “plug in phone, write card” holds, you can add “then put out tomorrow’s clothes”. Not before.
• Cap it. As a rule of thumb, three to five daily stacks is plenty. Beyond that, the list itself becomes a chore.
• Retire stacks that become automatic. If you no longer think about it, stop tracking it and free the space.

FAQ

What are good habit stacking examples?

Good examples use a daily, physical anchor and a tiny action: “After I turn off my alarm, I take my pills from beside the charger” or “After I put my shoes on, I touch my pocket for keys, phone and wallet.” The best ones put any needed object right where the anchor happens.

How many habits can you stack?

Start with one stack and hold it for two weeks before adding another. Once a stack is solid, you can chain one more action onto it. As a rule of thumb, three to five daily stacks is enough before the system gets heavy.

Is there a printable habit stacking template?

You can copy the four columns above into a notebook: anchor, new action, payoff, and anchor test. Printable versions also exist; the habit stacking builder in EF Complete includes example stacks, your own rows and a two-week tracker.

The takeaway

Borrow a worked example, swap in your own anchor, and track it for two weeks before adding another. Small, boring and physical beats clever. The builder and tracker are part of EF Complete.

Related: Habit Stacking With ADHD: Why the Anchor Matters More Than the Habit

I make the EF Complete system; this article stands on its own whether or not you use it. Skills education, not therapy or medical advice; take medication only as prescribed. General information, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor.

Sources

• Making health habitual: the psychology of ‘habit-formation’ and general practice (Gardner, Lally, Wardle, British Journal of General Practice 2012), PubMed Central
• Psychology of Habit (Wood & Rünger, Annual Review of Psychology 67, 2016), University of Southern California
• The when and how of planning: Meta-analysis of the scope and components of implementation intentions in 642 tests (Sheeran, Listrom, Gollwitzer, European Review of Social Psychology 2025), University of Konstanz KOPS
• Mental Health Medications, National Institute of Mental Health