Hopefully by now you’ve considered or created your New Year’s Theme. So often ADDers focus on what they did wrong, or what didn’t go well. I think that many people in society think that way but it seems that many ADDers seem to be more likely to focus on what they did wrong than what they did right.

I’m not suggesting you be stupidly optimistic and pretend you never did anything wrong, or that you shouldn’t look at your mistakes to try and learn from them.

I am suggesting that balance is important. Give some equal time to what you did right. Do some self inquiry to find out what you did do right in different areas of your life and some of the reasons for it. Are there any patterns there? Any hidden strengths or talents you noticed in the process? How could you build on your successes? How can you do right more often?

Then and only then should you examine the other side of the equation. What were some of the mistakes you made and why were they made? What sort of things could you do and who could you be to reduce those mistakes.

Make sure you do this from the point of curiosity and learning, not from the point of view of self condemnation and self flagellation. Intelligent regret is not a problem. But beating yourself up is an easy out, it allows you to avoid responsibility, avoid really thinking about the situation fully, and avoid taking action. This of course will increase the odds of you making the same type of mistake again, and the guilt blame hopeless cycle perpetuates.

What were some of the things you did right last year?

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No, not my words, on of my ADD coaching clients. One of the many benefits of being an adult ADD coach is that you get to decide who you will and won’t coach (i.e. I don’t coach rude people) and one result of that is that I coach some pretty cool, creative people.

I thought it was a brilliant idea behind the words and reframed it as “I was able to enough to figure out the smartest, easiest most efficient way to do it” or words to that effect.

One of the advantages (or negatives depending on the context) of ADD is that we are often impatient. That is when we want to get something done and are not procrastinating in doing so, we want it done quickly and efficiently so we can get on to more interesting and exciting things.

One of the many reasons I use a Mac instead of windows is I don’t want to have to slow my mind down to do a task in 8 steps when I can do it in 2. It takes a lot of talent to simplify things, making things more complex is easy.

The characteristics of people with ADD can be a strength or a weakness depending on how skilled you are at using those characteristics and in what context you use them.

People with ADD tend to be good at being creative at figuring out how to do things quickly with the least amount of steps possible, especially if it’s something that they’re interested in. My guess is that’s probably the combination of impatience, being able to see things from multiple angles (one advantage of not filtering incoming sensations as much as other people do), and acting impulsively by being willing to try different methods and take risks.

That’s one reason why ADDers often don’t do well in large, conservative bureaucratic organizations or companies where they often have the mentality of “that’s the way we’ve always done it so it should be good enough for you”.

My response to that is that frequently “that’s the way you’ve always done it, is because you weren’t:

A) smart enough

B) creative enough

C) or had enough initiative to come up with an easier and more effective way of doing it”

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Went to my first Barcamp Vancouver yesterday, and followed the 8th rule of Barcamp, by doing a presentation, Attention Surplus Condition in Technology. The competitive advantages and challenges associated with having ADHD in the tech sector.

It went pretty well despite a bit of lack of sleep (I’m not a morning person) and had to be there at 9 to pitch it after staying out at the party the night before. So the tea hadn’t kicked in by pitch time so my brain was still waking up. Fortunately Vancouver fashion photographer and blogger Kris Krug put in a good word for me.

I thought the turnout would be low because my session was at the same time as 2 other good ones that I wanted to see, John Biehler’s Hacking the iPhone in Canada, and James Sherrett’s DIY Ads 0-30 Sec.

So was pleasantly surprised to have a full room. Lots of good questions from the participants including questions on how to deal with colleagues that have ADHD. I probably should do a blog post on that topic. I really enjoyed doing it. Thanks to those who participated.

Here’s some links to some of the handouts for those who didn’t get them.

Adult ADHD Screener Test

Top Ten Advantages of Having ADD in a High Tech Career

ADHD Treatment – Technology

Succeeding with ADHD in the Workplace

Here’s a few other links relating to ADHD at work

ADD at work articles

ADDA’s ADHD at work section

ADHD on the Job 

I had a great time there, and would recommend attending next years event.

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Since we don’t have as much dopmaine floating around in our brain as non ADDers, and are consequently understimulated, ADD adults seek out jobs that will give them extra stimulation either consciously or unconsciously. If they don’t find a highly stimulating job, they risk self medicating in unhealthy ways to boost their levels of dopamine, i.e., through tobacco, alcohol, drugs, gambling, impulsive spending which all raise dopamine levels in the brain.

This

gives an example of what might be the perfect job for many understimulated  ADD Adults.
Can you think of a more stimulating job for an ADD adult?

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I was recently quoted in an article on adult ADD in The Telegram, Newfoundland and Labrador’s largest daily newspaper based in the capital St. John’s. The Telegram’s been around for a while, 128 years. Reporter Tara Mullowney wrote the article and I’m reproducing it in full with permission here. I don’t have any listing of ADD support groups in Newfoundland yet in my list of Canadian ADD support groups by province, (here’s my international ADD suppport group list) so if anyone knows of any there please email me with the details.

Adults deal with ADD
The Telegram (St. John’s)
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Page: A1
Section: Front
Byline: Tara Mullowney
Source: The Telegram

Like many children, Andrea (not her real name) always dreaded report card time as a child.

It wasn’t the marks she was afraid to see, since she usually did well – it was the comments the teachers made alongside them.

“It would always say, ‘She is not working to her full potential,’ or, ‘Daydreams too much,’ or, ‘Talks too much to other students during class time,” Andrea explained.

Now 25 and a student at College of the North Atlantic in St. John’s, Andrea was diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) about a year ago.

ADD is characterized by a reduced ability to concentrate and focus on specific tasks, combined with a high potential for distraction. Symptoms range from restlessness and disorganization to mood swings and hyperactivity. ADD was long thought of as a childhood disorder and associated with mischievous or underachieving behaviour, but successful adults being diagnosed with ADD is becoming more and more common.

“When I was young and in school, I would try and force myself to stay focused in class,” Andrea said, “but I would soon find myself drifting away. If I had an assignment to do, a hundred different things would pop in my head that I absolutely had to do first, and it was normal for me to have five or six different projects on the go at one time.

“I was in swimming, ballet, music lessons – I had to keep busy or else I was too idle.”

However, Andrea said, she made her way through school by putting in an extreme effort. Creative subjects like art and English were her forte.

It wasn’t until she was being treated for anxiety that her diagnosis of ADD was made.

“I had never even thought of the possibility that I could have ADD, because I was 24, and I had always done well in school,” she said. “But when I look at the characteristics, I fit right in.”

Commonly inherited

Pete Quily is an ADD coach based in Vancouver, who runs a detailed website on the disorder, www.addcoach4u.com. He has ADD.

Quily said that, after height, ADD is the most commonly inherited genetic condition, with about eight per cent of children and five per cent of adults in Canada having the disorder.

“Personally, I think that if a child has ADD, unless he’s adopted, the parents should be automatically screened for ADD, if not for their own good, for the sake of their child,” Quily told The Telegram.

Because it’s perceived as a childhood illness – and because it is quite often portrayed negatively – between 80 and 85 per cent of adults with ADD don’t know they have it, Quily said. While there are theories suggesting people can develop ADD as an adult, he said most adults who are diagnosed with it actually suffered from it as a child.

There are three main types of ADD, he said: the hyperactive- compulsive impulsive type, the inattentive type, and a combination of both. Ninety per cent of men with ADD have the hyperactive-compulsive impulsive type, while 80 to 90 per cent of women have the inattentive form of the disorder.

People who suffer from ADD are also more likely to have conditions like depression, anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder, Quily explained. They are also more likely to self-medicate with alcohol or drugs if left untreated, and statistically have higher rates of divorce and unemployment.

Successful sufferers

However, even brilliant, successful high-achievers can suffer from ADD.

“I can’t tell you how many stories I’ve heard where people have been told, ‘You can’t have ADD, you did well in school,” Quily said, noting famous successful people with ADD include two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Clarence Page and Jet Blue Airlines founder David Neelman. “If you get diagnosed and you can start treating it, it’s actually a diagnosis that you want, because things get better.”

Treatment for ADD often includes prescription medications like atomoxetine (Strattera) and methylphenidate (Ritalin), which Quily said are generally very useful once the right dosage is found.

However, he said, pills are not a complete solution.

“They won’t teach you self-awareness, they won’t teach you skills, but they will put you in a better position to – whether through coaching, therapy or something else – develop the self-awareness and skills (to overcome the disorder),” he said.

“Statistically, the best way to deal with ADD is what they call multimodal, so in multiple ways like medication, coaching, therapy, support groups, diet, exercise and that kind of thing.”

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Yahoo news item talking about CIA recruitment

“Tom McCluskey, the CIA’s chief of hiring and employee development …the CIA is after the generation that has grown up on the Web. “They were born with ear buds in their ears. They are ADD and it is contagious,” he said, referring to attention deficit disorder. “We need that kind of talent here.”

Check out the CIA personality quiz

Actually I’d agree. People with Attention Deficit Disorder thrive on stimulation and are often hyper aware of their environment, since we don’t filter info as much as other people, we actually take more info in than non adders, and notice things that others do not i.e. potential dangerous situations, people or things out of place, etc

That’s why if you want to by a spy, or a cop or a soldier, having Attention Deficit Disorder can be an advantage, since in many (not all) jobs in those three areas. Here are a few reasons.

High stress can be highly stimulating to an ADD adrenaline junkies.

We thrive in chaotic situations (and sometimes create them) where others might panic and lose their heads.

Impulsivity=quick to react to changing situations without calling a committee meeting to determine if it’s ok to proceed, oops he got away.

Risk takers= Seize opportunities, take chances others might shy away from

Highly creative= able to think of new and innovative practical solutions in the field. We’re natural brainstormers.

Here is one CIA job that someone with Attention Deficit Disorder would probably not thrive very well on.

Canadians could try CSIS. One advantage working at CSIS over the CIA is we don’t (so far at least) torture people.

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I don’t usually put such long items by others on this blog (my own are often long enough!) but this one by Thom Hartmann, that I read a long time ago, I just came across again in doing some research for a event tomorow How Giftedness Can Cause Learning Challenges with Drs. Brock and Fernette Eide
that I’ll be a panel on. Thom’s latest book is Screwed: The Undeclared War On the Middle Class and What We Can Do About It.

Thom has written several books on ADD and other topics, and is a former psychotherapist and founder of a school for children with ADD, has his own national radio show, and has done a wide variety of other things.

I was in India in 1993 to help manage a community for orphans and blind children on behalf of a German charity. During the monsoon season, the week of the big Hyderabad earthquake, I took an all-day train ride almost all the way across the subcontinent (from Bombay through Hyderabad to Rajamundri) to visit an obscure town near the Bay of Bengal. In the train compartment with me were several Indian businessmen and a physician, and we had plenty of time to talk as the countryside flew by from sunrise to sunset.

Curious about how they viewed our children diagnosed as having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), I asked, “Are you familiar with those types of people who seem to crave stimulation, yet have a hard time staying with any one focus for a period of time? They may hop from career to career and sometimes even from relationship to relationship, never seeming to settle into one job or into a life with one person — but the whole time they remain incredibly creative and inventive.”

“Ah, we know this type well,” one of the men said, the other three nodding in agreement.

“What do you call this personality type?” I asked.

“Very holy,” he said. “These are old souls, near the end of their karmic cycle.”

Again, the other three nodded agreement, perhaps a bit more vigorously in response to my startled look.

“Old souls?” I questioned, thinking that a very odd description for those whom American psychiatrists have diagnosed as having a particular disorder.

“Yes,” the physician said. “In our religion, we believe that the purpose of reincarnation is to eventually free oneself from worldly entanglement and desire. In each lifetime we experience certain lessons, until finally we are free of this earth and can merge into the oneness of God. When a soul is very close to the end of those thousands of incarnations, he must take a few lifetimes to do many, many things — to clean up the little threads left over from his previous lives.”

“This is a man very close to becoming enlightened,” a businessman added. “We have great respect for such individuals, although their lives may be difficult.”

Another businessman raised a finger and interjected. “But it is through the difficulties of such lives that the soul is purified.”

The others nodded agreement.

“In America they consider this behavior indicative of a psychiatric disorder,” I said.

All three looked startled, then laughed.

“In America you consider our most holy men, our yogis and swamis, to be crazy people as well,” said the physician with a touch of sadness in his voice. “So it is with different cultures. We live in different worlds.”

We in our Western world have such “holy” and nearly enlightened people among us and we say they must be mad. But as we’re about to see, they may instead be our most creative individuals, our most extraordinary thinkers, our most brilliant inventors and pioneers. The children among us whom our teachers and psychiatrists say are “disordered” may, in fact, carry a set of abilities — a skill set — that was necessary for the survival of humanity in the past, that has created much of what we treasure in our present “quality of life,” and that will be critical to the survival of the human race in the future.

I could say quite a lot about this, but beside saying I strongly agree I thought I’d leave this one as a stand alone.

What are your thoughts on this article?

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I and my co speaker at the Navigating ADHD presentation for ADD Awareness day, Diane Sugars, Executive Director of the Learning Disabilities Assn of Vancouver were interviewed on CBC Radio’s Open line show BC Almanac by host Mark Forsythe on the topic of Adult ADD the day before ADD Awareness day. I’ve listened to Mark for a long time on CBC and have always enjoyed his program. He was a good interviewer and knew how to handle the callers and the guests very skillfully. If you have a chance to go on his show, I’d highly recommend it.

Here’s the podcast of our BC Almanac experience

Pete Quily & Diane Sugars interviewed on Adult ADD on CBC Radio’s BC Almanac

I really enjoyed it. 25 minutes goes by pretty fast on live radio. I like the fast pace and the unpredictability of radio, where you never know what’s coming next, good for an ADHD adult who has a low boredom threshold like me:) I’ve only been on two other radio programs, twice on CFUN 1410 AM , and once on Evolution 107.9 FM , but I’ve had good experiences on all, really enjoyed doing them and want to do some more.

My co-author of Pills Don’t Teach Skills, Jeff Hamilton was also interviewed on CFUN too. He seemed to enjoy it too.

Don’t know if Mark has it, but I think it’s a competitive advantage to have ADD and be a radio talk show host. I wrote a blog post called The Advantages of having ADD as a Radio Talk Show Host giving 8 reasons why.

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Update: For those of you interested, my interview on CBC Radio’s BC Almanac with Diane Sugars is up on their website in real audio for 1 week. See the Openline Archives 9/19/2006
Adults living with ADD: Pete Quily and Diane Sugars. Had a good time, Mark’s a good interviewer. Will podcast it later.

Today is ADD Awareness Day. Here’s a few ideas for your consideration.

Read over my way’s to deal with the people who think ADD doesn’t exist Part 1 and part 2 so you’re better prepared to deal with the flat earth people.

Check out ADDA’s free ADD teleclasses this week

Drums and Whistles have a few ideas and links for you, and info about the free ADHD Experts on Call today.

Positives of ADD

151 Advantages of ADD

Top 10 Advantages of having ADD in a high tech career.

Read a blog post from the ADD Strengths category of my blog. If it has a link, check out the linked ADD blog or website for more inspiration, and if you like it share it with your friends.

Take Action

Decide to pick one of your ADD related strengths and spend the rest of the week noticing, appreciating and developing it.

Decide to pick one of your ADD related challenges, learn one new way of better managing this specific challenge (get more specific than “get organized”) from this blog, my ADD website or the many other ADD blogs and websites (see some links in my blogroll on the side) and forums (ADD Forums, ADHD News ) or the ADD teleclasses today. Then spend the rest of the week creatively applying this new method/technique to the 1 challenge (only 1).

If you’re not doing something for ADD awareness day, read over ADDA’s suggestions for the day and think of something you or they people you know with ADD can do next year to make an impact.

If you’re a Canadian, read this page on why we need to create a Canadian ADD Awareness day and think of what you might do to help create a Canadian ADD awareness day next year. Contact CHADD Canada and CADDAC to help them make it happen. In helping encourage them to make it happen, let them know they’ll be getting help, otherwise it won’t happen. They’re both volunteer organizations and the people involved are usually overworked and overloaded.

Volunteer sometime to help out your local ADD support group or consider putting a notice in your local community paper to see if there are people willing to help create an ADD support group.

And if you’re in the Vancouver area check out the Navigating ADHD event my Vancouver Adult ADD Support group is putting on tonight at 6.30. I’ll be talking about Adult ADD and Diane Sugars of the Learning Disabilities Association of Vancouver will be talking about kids with ADD

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Brad Williams at Small Business Branding has a great post on how ADDers can be brilliant entrepreneurs. Via Adult ADD and Money
As an ADD entrepreneur, I can definitely relate to all of them.

Because for many entrepreneurs and marketers, their creative energy is fueled by this so-called “DISORDER.” You must realize that some of the most phenomenal business concepts, and marketing strategies, have been created by “ADHDers”.

Yes… There are many people who have negative experiences with ADHD. But for those of us who are running our own businesses, it might do us a bit of good to consider APPRECIATING this diagnosis that has been stereotyped as a “disorder.” Without it, you might lose your greatest superpower… The ability to create and manage businesses.

Some of the points echo my Top 10 Advantages of Having ADD in a High Tech Career post. I’ve noticed when I’ve gone to entrepreneur related business events and I mention I’m an Adult ADD coach, I have a lot of people come up to me to say that they might or do have ADD. Of course there’s also the two ADD billionare’s who think that having ADD is a competitive advantage

Here’s a summary of his main reasons

ADHDers Have An Insane Amount Of Energy

ADHDers Are Phenomenal At Multitasking

ADHDers Can Make The World Disappear

ADHDers, Literally, Experience “Brain Storms”

ADHDers Invented The Concept Of “Thinking Outside Of The Box”

ADHDers Love To Learn

ADHDers Are Info-Addicts

ADHDers Are Human Radars

Check them out in detail here

What do you think are some advantages to having ADD as an entrepreneur?

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