Have you ever noticed that something you have been putting off suddenly feels easier when somebody else is there?
You might happily tackle your accounts while someone works beside you. Clear your inbox while you’re on a video call. Or finally sort out that cupboard you’ve been avoiding while chatting to someone on the phone.
There is a name for this: body doubling.
👥 What is body doubling?
Body doubling simply means doing a task while another person is present.
They don’t need to be doing the same thing. In fact, they don’t necessarily need to help you at all.
You might both be working quietly on completely different things. You could be in the same room or connected virtually.
The important part is that you’re no longer doing it entirely on your own.
Body doubling is particularly well known as a strategy used by people with ADHD, where getting started, maintaining focus or finishing a task can sometimes be difficult. It may be strongly associated with ADHD but isn’t exclusive to ADHD.
If the presence of another person makes it easier for you to start or stick with something, it may be worth trying.
📝 What can you use body doubling for?
Almost anything.
It could be work that requires some concentrated thinking, such as:
✍️ writing a proposal
📋 planning a project
🧾 working through your accounts
📧 dealing with emails
🗂️ completing some overdue admin
But it can equally be the really boring stuff.
Filing. Sorting paperwork. Tidying your office. Clearing out a cupboard. Putting the washing away.
Sometimes the task itself isn’t particularly difficult. The friction is in starting it, staying with it or getting it finished.
That’s where having somebody else there can help.
🎯 What actually happens on a body doubling call?
It doesn’t need to be complicated.
At the beginning, decide what you’re going to work on.
That might be:
“I’m going to get the first draft of this proposal finished.”
Or simply:
“I’m going to clear this pile of paperwork.”
You’ve now made your intention visible to somebody else, which creates a degree of accountability.
Then you get on with it.
When I’m hosting a body doubling session, I’ll usually check in occasionally. Not to supervise, but to make sure you’re still working on what you intended to do and haven’t disappeared down an entirely different rabbit hole. 🐇
💬 Body doubling can be more than silent company
This is where the way I use body doubling with clients can be slightly different.
Sometimes the work they’re doing during a session is something we’ve already planned together.
I’m there while they do it, which provides accountability, but I’m also available when they hit a small sticking point.
“Am I overthinking this?”
“Does this make sense?”
“Which of these would you prioritise?”
Sometimes a quick external perspective is enough to remove the Business Friction and allow them to carry on.
I use body doubling myself in much the same way. When I’m working alongside other people, we sometimes ask each other a quick question or use the group as a sounding board.
The aim isn’t to turn the session into a meeting.
It’s to prevent a five-minute uncertainty becoming a 45-minute detour.
🔎 Does body doubling actually work?
For some people, yes. For others, it may make little difference.
Body doubling is widely discussed within the ADHD community and many people report finding it helpful, but research into its effectiveness is still limited.
So I wouldn’t describe it as a scientifically proven solution.
What I can say is that I’ve experienced its value personally, I’ve seen it work for others, and I’ve had clients find that they make progress on work during body doubling sessions that they had struggled to move forward alone.
That doesn’t mean everybody needs it.
It means it’s another option.
And sometimes the most useful support isn’t somebody telling you what to do.
It’s simply having somebody there while you do what you already know needs doing.