“Admin Night” is Trending on TikTok… but I've Been Running a Version of this for a Year!
As someone who was picked on at school for standing out (and not in a good way!)… I never dreamt that one day I would not only be “on trend” but actually ahead of the game! So you can imagine my surprise when I was told that something called #AdminNight is trending - and it is an informal version of my co-working sessions! Finally I’m trendy!!!
The concept of #AdminNight is that friends gather with snacks, music, and their to-do lists to tackle their boring adulting tasks together. And, the aim is to make the boring paperwork feel less painful.
I absolutely LOVE that this is having a moment… because admin nights are so similar to my Co-Working Sessions, which work! It is when we use the concept of “body doubling” (working alongside someone else) to make impossible tasks feel manageable.
And, guess what…
I've been running therapeutic #AdminNights for bereaved and overwhelmed people since January 2025.
For once in my life I was onto something before it went viral, and before millions of people discovered what I already know… doing hard stuff together changes everything.
So if you're curious about #AdminNight, or if you love the concept and want something structured and therapeutic - here's what you need to know.
Why I Started Running #AdminNights…
This is a huge confession…
In 2024, I had my first stand at the Clean & Tidy show at ExCeL London promoting my Sadmin® course… a comprehensive set of modules guiding you through all the end-of-life paperwork people need to organise.
But, talking to all the visitors about getting organised, I felt like a complete imposter!
Because my own paperwork was in chaos…
There I was, teaching people how to sort their Sadmin, and I couldn't even manage my own!
I totally beat myself up about this…
How could I, an award-winning Wills & Probate solicitor… someone whose late husband used to tease her for being so particular and indexing, planning, and colour-coding everything… be drowning in my own admin?
But when my husband died of cancer at just 38 years old, leaving me a widowed solo parent to two young daughters, everything changed.
I’ve always said that all the energy he put into “dying well” became my emotional handrail, yet I was failing to even survive, let alone organise something similar for our girls in case something happened to me.
At the Clean & Tidy show back in 2024 I realised something else… I am SO passionate about this because I know how much I needed all the effort he put into organising and sorting his paperwork. And, I’ve since learnt that it doesn’t matter how amazing you used to be at sorting papers or how good your intentions are… grief can overwhelm us all, regardless of what professional credentials you might have.
So in January 2025, I created the support I desperately wished I'd had…
I started running online group Co-Working sessions!
These are run on zoom and they are for anyone who needs both practical support and people who understand why opening an envelope or sending an email can feel impossible.
And, I've been helping people have successful #AdminNights for over a year now… although I called it co-working!
Science behind why “#AdminNight works
This #AdminNight trend exists for a genuinely good reason… it's based on something called "body doubling."
Body doubling is when working with someone else makes it easier to focus and follow through on tasks. Even if you're working on completely different things, being alongside another person:
Keeps your brain more engaged
Creates gentle accountability
Reduces task-switching and distraction
Activates mirror neurons (you see them working, so you work too!)
This is especially powerful for:
ADHD brains (executive dysfunction makes starting impossibly hard)
Bereaved individuals (reduced capacity and emotional overwhelm)
Trauma survivors (safety in numbers and regulated nervous systems)
Body doubling turns isolating, boring tasks into something communal… it adds fun, treats and social connection to paperwork, which tricks your brain into associating admin with something positive.
Why #AdminNight needs more…
Although the TikTok trend #AdminNight is brilliant, when you gather friends together the structure can get wobbly! The reason that #AdminNight needs more is, although friends are wonderful, they also:
Understandably want to catch up and chat
Get distracted by gossip and tangents
May not understand why your specific admin feels so hard
Might accidentally minimise your struggles
Can turn productive time into purely social time
I’m a huge one for the importance of social connection and fun, but if you genuinely need to get the hard stuff done, this kind of friends night is likely to mean that good banter takes over and the admin gets left behind.
This is why Co-Working Sessions make all the difference!
What makes Co-Working Different…
The Co-Working Sessions are not just friends gathering around a table… they are professionally organised and run by me. Not only do I ensure that everyone keeps to time, I’m also a qualified integrative therapeutic counsellor, certified Grief Educator, and former award-winning Wills & Probate solicitor.
Here’s why my Co-Working Sessions are so successful:
1. Professional Guidance
Having done all the training, I understand the psychology behind why admin feels impossible. I know about nervous systems, attachment patterns, grief responses and ADHD executive dysfunction. This isn't just about “hanging out and doing paperwork"… it's trauma-informed and grief-aware support.
2. Virtual Access
All sessions are run online on zoom. So there is no need for childcare, travel time or even getting out of your pajamas if you don't want to! You can join from your sofa, your kitchen table or wherever feels safe. This is really important if you are overwhelmed, grieving and/or neurodivergent.
3. Structured Productivity
There is a structure that I follow every time… we have quick gentle check-ins and end-of-session celebrations, but the focus remains on the work. This means that the structure holds, even when your capacity wobbles, and you don’t have to rely on willpower alone… the session itself creates momentum.
4. Safe, Judgment-Free Space
As one of my participants said recently: "Everybody has horrible admin but nobody mentions it to their friends." In co-working we understand that we all have this stuff hidden away, so you can bring the shameful and avoided stuff and it is totally normal. Whether it’s an envelope you haven't opened in six months, a tax return you're dreading, or some Sadmin papers that activates your grief… nothing is "too much" or "too small."
5. Therapeutic Understanding
Another reason people have loved the sessions so far is that they feel that they can share anything with me. As one person said: "I tell you more than my counsellor, and this is just a paperwork session!" And, that's because I understand that admin is emotional, that paperwork can activate trauma, that avoiding tasks can create shame, and when you're grieving or neurodivergent, or both, everything takes more energy.
Why my Co-working is so Successful…
The science behind why Co-Working Sessions are so successful relates to the nervous system concept of the "Window of Tolerance". We all have a zone (within the window) where we can think clearly, make decisions, and get things done. However, life can tip us over the edge, and…
When you're above the Window (anxious, panicked, hypervigilant) people find that they can't focus.
When you're below the Window (shut down, depressed, numb), people find that they are numb and can't start.
When we experience a big life event… things like grief, neurodivergence, trauma and solo parenting… our Window of Tolerance is shrunk. And then we find that tasks that used to feel manageable (opening mail, filing paperwork, calling the bank) feel completely impossible.
Here’s where the Co-Working magic lies…
Co-Working Sessions rely on the body doubling concept, which helps regulate your nervous system back inside the Window of Tolerance!
Simply working alongside someone else… especially someone calm, regulated and non-judgmental… helps your brain and body to feel safer. And when you feel safe you are able to calmly tackle the thing from a place of logical thinking.
And there’s even more magic from being online…
For many people (especially those with ADHD, autism and/or social anxiety), virtual body doubling is actually better than in-person events. This is another reason why my Co-Working Sessions are so successful, because you can:
Control your environment (lighting, noise, comfort etc)
Stay in familiar safe spaces (no overstimulation)
Take breaks without social awkwardness
Work on sensitive paperwork privately
Show up even on low-capacity days
Sometimes I even find that clients have started their dreaded tasks before they even arrive online. Another one of my Co-Working clients said:
"I get so much done and it spurs me on leading up to the session, during the session and after! Such a life hack."
Who is Co-Working for?
The brilliant thing is that honestly Co-Working Sessions are for anyone struggling with their life admin. But it's especially powerful if you're:
Touched by grief (death, divorce, loss, life crisis - not just bereavement)
Neuro-spicy (diagnosed ADHD/ASD or you just know your brain works differently)
Overwhelmed by paperwork and it's affecting your wellbeing
Solo parenting and doing everything alone
Drowning in Sadmin (end-of-life paperwork after loss)
Procrastinating on important tasks (tax returns, wills, insurance)
If your Window of Tolerance has shrunk and you need accountability without shame, professional understanding of why it's hard, a community that doesn't look away and protected time to actually get it done… then my therapeutic Co-Working Sessions are for you!
How to Join Co-working Sessions
The general rule is that I run Co-Working Sessions on the first and third Tuesday of every month. There are two time options each day, because I know that for some people evenings are not suitable for many reasons. So you can choose to join us either lunchtime (12 noon - 1:30pm) or evening (7:30pm - 9pm) and the investment is just £20 for 90 minutes.
Each session includes:
Silent working time (we're all doing our own tasks)
Gentle check-ins (optional sharing)
Body-doubling accountability
Professional facilitation by me
Safe, judgment-free space
You can tackle ANY life admin… tax returns that desperately need doing, emotional Sadmin you've been avoiding, bills, forms, emails, that doom pile in the kitchen, and literally anything that's easier done together.
MORE INFORMATION ON CO-WORKING SESSIONS HERE
Final Thoughts…
I genuinely love that #AdminNight is trending because it validates what I've known for a year… tricky things are easier done together! The body doubling works because making boring tasks social changes everything… we were never meant to be sat on the floor surrounded by papers trying to cope alone.
If you need professional understanding of why grief makes paperwork impossible, virtual accessibility because childcare is impossible, and/or trauma-informed support that keeps the focus productive... please come and join the Co-Working sessions!
I was running #AdminNights before they went viral… not because I'm ahead of trends (truly I’m not, I’m still that quirky kid who was teased at 12 years old for looking and acting different!), but because I desperately needed this support myself. And now I'm here to offer it to you.
You do not have to do this alone anymore.
If you are ready to tackle your admin with support - book to join us here!
And, in case we haven’t met… here’s a bit about Me…
I'm a qualified integrative BACP counsellor, certified Grief Educator, and former award-winning Wills & Probate solicitor. I'm also a widow, solo parent to two neuro-spicy teenagers, and the creator of Sadmin® - the trademarked approach to end-of-life paperwork. I combine legal expertise, therapeutic training and lived experience to help people who are drowning in life admin, touched by grief and exhausted from doing it all alone.
I’m passionate about supporting you because I've been there… and, I know how much difference it makes to have both practical support and someone who understands.
If you have any questions please email me at emma@rainbowhunting.co.uk.