If you have ADHD, what gifts or abilities do you think you have that stem from having it?

I received permission from the author of the answer to this question on Quora. I felt it fit me as well as many of my in home tutoring students here in Honolulu Hawaii.

As far as I’m concerned, ADHD isn’t a disorder, it’s a freaking superpower. Ok, I’m messy, disorganized, focus on entirely the wrong things and it wreaks havoc on my work, social life and interpersonal relations. Achieving anything at all, even getting out of bed sometimes, is worthy of a Nobel prize.

But…I genuinely don’t care. So, my brain works differently to so-called neurotypicals? And?

When you get down to it, I can be freaking godlike and it’s pretty much entirely down to the ADHD. Solve four problems at once? ADHD. Masses of creativity? ADHD. Laserlike focus on a mentally stupid goal like running for three days without a break? ADHD. Irrepressible (irritating) enthusiasm that infects my whole team? ADHD. Ability to tune out boring people? ADHD. What am I? Winning!!! (And modest, apparently 😆).

There is literally nothing that is impossible with the motivation it gives you once you harness it in the right way. If I fancy turning my hand to furniture painting or electrical engineering, its weird-ass obsessiveness pushes me to get there. And then drop it just as fast. 😁

There is a place in every friendship group and workplace for the scatty chatterbox. The enthusiastic airhead who can react to a crisis with insane levels of focus but can’t remember to file their timesheets on time.

One of those excruciating corporate personality tests my organization made me take in the name of team building once told me that I was a superb idea factory with bugger-all follow through. No prizes for stating the obvious there. However, it didn’t tell me that I needed to pull my socks up and knuckle down (to mix my metaphors there). It told me that I needed to partner with a detail oriented admin godlike a project manager for success. So. True.

I realized that my relationship was so successful because my other half is as consequences-anxious as I am oblivious, and he reins in some of my wilder ideas to make sure I finish the actual job that is required. Likewise, most of my friends have military levels of precision and timekeeping. Overall, they’re all really patient. Even at work, I preferred to be managed by people who didn’t let me take the mick, but who understood that I wasn’t trying to take the mick, I was just…a bit all over the place sometimes.

ADHD, even as severe as mine is, gives me so much that I wouldn’t want to ever ‘cure’ it. And with stimulants and plenty of support from family and friends, I do get to occasionally even be productive.

J. Richard Kirkham is the only in home tutor specializing in ADHD with ADHD. Honolulu Hawaii and all of Oahu text or call 808.224.1870


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J. Richard Kirkham B.Sc. is the only in home tutor on Oahu with ADHD specializing in students with ADHD. Honolulu Hawaii and all of Oahu text or call 808.224.1870

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