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Since I’m ADHD and passionate about neurodiversity, I love to help amazing executives too.
Time management, focus and attention, decision making, communication, stress and memory issues all cause challenges for ADHD executives. I’ve been through all of this myself.
I can help you discover tools to help you move past these issues and make the most of your amazing neurodiverse brain throughout your corporate career.
It’s easy for ADHD executives to land corporate jobs; their enthusiastic personalities, creativity, intelligence and problem solving make them almost perfect for the roles.
ADHD brings a significant amount of benefits to executives which can be used to amazing effect, leading to huge success within your career.
However, some of the downsides can lead to a repeating and frustrating lack of success in some situations.
But there are times when it can be a challenge, such as in struggling to focus on dull tasks, impulsiveness and procrastination.
Every executive team should have some ADHD members because our problem solving abilities and imagination are astounding.
Overall though, I believe having neurodiverse people on the team can lead to huge corporate success since we’re able to connect dots that would be a huge challenge for neurotypical people.
When I was a senior project manager, I found myself wanting to do the more creative jobs rather than plan the projects.
I would be quite excited about creating a large project plan. My brain loved the achievement of doing this for the first time. But the second and third versions were boring.
This caused challenges since I effectively handed my job to an assistant, who was able to do the more admin tasks.
So, I took on an assistant project manager and gave this job to them, so I could concentrate on leading the team.
I was asked at one point “do you really want to do this job” and I didn’t know how to answer, because I had no awareness of my ADHD brain at that time.
However, the team ended up bypassing me because I found it so difficult to focus on some of the elements which I was supposed to in charge of. I felt both embarrassed and ashamed at my failure.
You’ve been through challenges too, I’m sure, but whatever they are we can solve this for you.
Used well, ADHD can be extremely effective, but no one is perfect, so here are some of the pain-points you’re likely facing.
Maintaining focus on tasks such as expenses, admin work and planning can be a challenge.
Have you been sat in meetings and started to drift off? Do you struggle with admin type tasks and always find reasons to do something new and interesting? That’s ADHD.
Since your working memory is poor, you might find yourself interrupting others.
People can find it rude when they’re interrupted, but this is a common trait with ADHD people. They find themselves blurting out what they need to say because they’re scared they’ll forget it.
Being a risk-taker can be an advantage for an executive, but left unchecked it can cause problems.
Impulsive spending, decision making and redirection can common with ADHD people, and while it can be beneficial, a balance must be found.
ADHD executives are likely to be disguising their challenges, causing frustration.
We’ve experienced significant negativity in our lives, and struggled to get some work done, and we often hide this, causing us to be negative and unkind toward ourselves, but also not allowing others to help us solve difficulties.
ADHD people often have deeper emotions than others, so stress and overwhelm are more common.
Since our emotions are heightened compared with neurotypical people, we can experience more stress when we’re in challenging situations, of which there are many in corporate life.
Typically ADHD people experience both under-stimulation and overwhelm. Here’s how to balance this.
Unlike neurotypical people, we experience both of these more often, and the gap between the two can be much smaller.
Getting the balance right is key to making the most of ADHD without suffering its negative effects.
It might be, for example, that you need an overall challenge and stimulation of between a 4 and 7. Below a 4 and you’re bored; above a 7 and you can’t cope any more.
Together we’ll discover how and when you are outside of your own unique sweet spot, so you can achieve the most with your time.
For many senior leaders, there’s an expectation that they’ll be naturally organised.
It stand to reason that you’ll note everything down, know where all your notes are, and remember where you were up to, right?
However, ADHD can make this incredibly tricky, with many preferring to work on something new.
Nothing could be further from the truth. A poorer working memory means you forget where you’re up to, but in a moment you choose not make notes because of your impulsivity and risk-taking approach to life.
Being honest about your lack of ability in this area can lead to effective solutions.
Success is right around the corner though, and it lives on the other side of honesty. This isn’t going to change, and masking it will only lead to frustration everywhere.
Our brains are highly effective, but can run too hot.
With so many demands, and a lower ability to handle the emotions of others, executive life can become difficult.
You have a huge amount to deal with, and stress levels can soar in tricky situations.
Focusing in on your own needs and ways to get those needs met both during the day and after work will lead to improved stress levels.
Let’s understand what you really need in those moments, and later, so you can get back and working effectively as soon as possible.
When you do become anxious though, we can develop a set of coping strategies that lead to a reduction for you, such as understanding what about the future worries you.
Anxiety is something of a special case; it’s based on imagined futures. When we unpick those visions that come from your highly creative mind, we can challenge their validity.
Being anxious is part of ADHD life, and nothing to be ashamed of. You’re human, not a robot.
Normalising feeling anxious can lead to a huge reduction in your stress levels itself.
Let’s treat you to an upgrade in your self-kindness.
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It can be difficult for ADHD people to keep everything in mind at once, since our working memory can be poorer compared with neurotypical people
Understanding this, I came up with ways to work that are effective and efficient for ADHD individuals.
MindMaps, used in a specific way, can cause executives to begin to hold larger amounts of information at once.
I can’t wait to show this to you!
Neurodiversity can make leadership and managing a team challenging.
Executives are often asked to lead in areas like visionary thinking, strategic planning, decision making, communication, team management, problem solving, financial management and innovation.
Your ADHD brain may be very natural in some of these areas, such as visionary thinking and innovation. Sometimes planning and often problem solving might be simple too.
Commonly though, leadership areas like team communication and management and financial management can be difficult.
Changing the way you work and paying careful attention to the areas that are a challenge for you will lead to improvements.
During out time together, we’ll be totally honest about what you find easy and what’s a challenge for you. With this honesty, we can find new solutions to those areas you’ve struggled in so far.
Let’s understand your strengths and weaknesses so we can make the most of what you do have, and either improve or work around what is more tricky.
In our sessions we do honesty. You might interrupt me. You might struggle to stay focused. You might find it hard to sit still.
These are OK with me. We’ll understand your ADHD traits and I’ll listen to how they impact your work life.
Building acceptance of your traits will lead to happiness and reduced stress.
Being totally OK that you might forget things, make impulsive decisions and be poor with time management can lead to reduced stress and increased happiness.
ADHD individuals can find time management tasks, like goal setting, prioritisation, planning, focus and concentration tricky.
Some of these skills are incredibly important expectations for executives and senior leaders.
Understanding your unique challenges will lead to improved working methods.
All ADHD people are unique though, and when we evaluate your situation, we can problem-solve and develop new options for you.
For example, prioritisation can be essential but difficult for people with impaired executive function, but taking a formulaic approach can help
Instead of trying to hold all of the information needed to prioritise in memory, a more visual and numeric approach can be a significant improvement.
Available online throughout the UK and internationally
➡️ Please note: ⬅️
This is only for people interested in coaching. No sales meetings.
Available online throughout the UK and internationally
➡️ Please note: ⬅️
This is only for people interested in coaching. No sales meetings.
Phil Drinkwater is a successful online business owner. Now a business coach, he supports amazing clients with practical guidance and coaching, focusing on small businesses, entrepreneurs & startups.
He has successfully completed coach training with The Coach House, a course accredited by the Association for Coaching in the UK.
PHIL@PHILDRINKWATER.COACH
83 DUCIE STREET, MANCHESTER, M1 2JQ
