Here we go again…

[shutterbug55]

I am working a(nother) job which can be done by your average lobotomized chimpanzee. I started out a few months ago with people saying things like “we are so glad you are here”. … I started hearing this less and less as time went on and now I am hearing “I telling you this because I want you to be successful”… this is followed by ” and people are noticing you don’t pay very close attention to details.” Heard this one before? Yea me too. I hear it all the time. It usually leaves me wanting to shake these people and scream at them “ALL I **DO** IS PAY ATTENTION TO DETAILS!!!”

All my jobs end this way. and I know from the pattern that I will be around for another 3 months and I will be on the street looking for my next former place of employment.

The only difference now is I know why this happens and I care about this job. I can’t do anything about it, but I can see it coming. I guess this is a good thing, right? I can update my resume and get it out there, before I loose this job.

This time, I am going to go for broke… I am going to tell them about my ADD, my treatment, and what I want from them to keep my head from exploding with all the stupid demands on my time throughout the day. The ones that pull me off task.

What do I have to loose? The worst they can do is fire me sooner. We will see. They did say “We want you to be successful”. Well… its time they walk the walk.

Thank you for letting me vent.

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[mcfarlane]

Go for it. Your being trueful to them and yourself. Good employers are suppose to work with everybody. Every one gets help some time

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[Saffron]

To anyone in this situation: I would do this ONLY if your place of employment is unionized. Otherwise, expect the worst. You will be regarded as more trouble than you’re worth.

Having said that—Shutterbug, I’m very sorry you’re going through this. I know how hard it is on the spirit.

For anyone in this situation who sees the writing on the wall: If you’re going to turn your situation around, it’s very important to start such a meeting with “Here’s what I’m going to do to improve” FOLLOWED by “And here’s what I need from you.”

Whether or not you also disclose your ADD, humility and proactivity are your only chance.

As initiatives, you might list things such as:

– you will start using colour-coded files

– you will use a checklist (created and presented by you in the meeting) of often-missed details that you’ll be following from now on

– you will stay an extra 20 min. each day (without additional pay) to review your own work

– you will enlist a colleague to coach you or to review your work before it goes out

It’s crucial to keep your wording in this discussion revolving around what’s good for your employer rather than what would make your life easier.

DO mention your other assets as an employee and how these contribute to a better workplace or a higher bottom line.

DO ask for constructive criticism, and keep your body language receptive and positive when you hear it. Ask for specific examples and clarifications if you need them. Take notes and say thank you for the feedback. Say how you intend to act on it.

Employers, especially non-unionized ones, are NOT obligated to retain or provide extra support to anyone. They are also (at least where I live) not under any obligation to provide a good reason for letting someone go.

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[munchkin]

shutterbug – would you be willing to tell us what type of job it is?

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[shutterbug55]

Thank you all for the advise you all gave me. I will definitely alter my message. I would rather extend my employment than terminate it.

Where do I work?

Let’s just say I work for a large software firm in Redmond, Washington.

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[Anonymous]

Also, don’t tell them (or otherwise communicate) that you think their demands are stupid, beneath you, or an otherwise unnecessary distraction.

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[Anonymous]

shutterbug … best of luck, you sound angry .. that is not a surprise, anger and i are old chums ,,

but if your anger is evident in tone or word use when you talk to your employers, they will shut you down fast,,,

been there, done it a dozen times until someone finally pointed out that i was sabotaging myself …

try to write down what you want to say .. then edit and polish it to be your best sales pitch ..

if you want to keep the job, you need to say that, tell them why you like working there etc then

attempt to tell them in a very few words about your add and how you can use that to make your job better

if all they see is an angry guy with a handicap .. well, you have nothing to offer them that way.

offer a talented and committed professional with “issues of intention, not attention” as Barckley says

and then you are offering them something that they can want … nobody hires angry, pissy people … i know that one

best of luck … ps try this guy if you havent… i am finding out about tedx and it is interesting stuff

sigh,,, i keep promising not to sermonise …m comm skills suk im afraid

Subject: Fw: TEDxBloomington – Shawn Achor – “The Happiness Advantage: Linking Positive Brains to Performance” – YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXy__kBVq1M

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[wolfshades]

shutterbug: if the hint about where you work indicates what most of us in the IT industry would easily guess…..(read: if you work where I think you work)….you might be in luck. That particular company has a good record in accommodation, and you might be well advised to disclose your ADHD to them. Before doing so, you’ll need to do some research just to see what their track record is on accommodation. My guess: they do NOT want bad publicity following them anywhere, so they’ll do their utmost to hang on to you IF you disclose.

Normally, smaller companies would just as soon as soon get rid of you once you disclose your condition, just as Saffron said. But larger companies like this one – it’s quite the opposite. You might not get advancement as quickly as other people in the company, due to the personal perception and bias of managers, but I strongly feel there’s an excellent change they won’t get rid of you.

Good luck!

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[Robbo]

Excellent thread! Lot’s of compressed wisdom.

I’m making a new folder to file this one in. I’ll call it

Job Success coaching/solutions.

What a team, what a place, what a time!

TotallyADD

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[shutterbug55]

On another thread someone asked me if I resolved my issue at this job, and yes I did. I ended up leaving the company and found a position with another. It is closer to my home and the hours are very flexible. The team is small, so I get to try on lots of hats on my terms, and since there is always some fire that needs to be put out, I can work the issue at hand and move on to the next.

So there is a decent mix of planning/preparation and operational mayhem. It is just what this ADD brain needs to thrive. I have been working here for a couple months, so far so good.

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[Robbo]

Great!, I have a faint memory of wondering how this worked out. It may have been me tracking you down through your profile to ask you. I just don’t have time to check… what a freaky kind of deja vu.

LOL. I couldn’t resist!. Dang curiousity got me agen. That’s why so many of us got cats for Avatars probly. I checked back with my profile, I use my profile and other peoples kinda like the recent topics that Toofat talked about on the DEAR JIMI forum, where I posted last…

Now I gotta really hurry!!! Ack.

Glad your new job’s working out so well Shutter.

BBL mebby…

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[Anonymous]

Finally other ppl who get tired of there job after 6 mounth.

Am glad to know am not the only one here.

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[allan wallace]

Gee whiz, it takes 6 months for the novelty of a job to wear off, eh? In 27 years of being of an employable age I’ve had 1 job that lasted for 2 years, and the second longest was just over a year. My average tenure at a job would be between 2 and 3 months. My jobs have always been shitty ones though, and I’ve never had any position which was in a supervisory capacity. I think that I just sought jobs that didn’t demand too much of me, and where I wouldn’t be causing too much grief when I inevitably stuffed something up.

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[Anonymous]

I finally feel like im not alone all this time i’ve been going through job after job not knowing when it would end. Now sitting here jobless again going to countless interviews and being asked you never stay at a job long enough. But I dont want that anymore I just want to lead a normal existence where i dont feel ashamed that I have adhd Id like to be able to finally make something work. Its just so nice to know your not alone and that other ppl are feeling the same way I am.

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[allan wallace]

Heh, it is weird knowing that so many people struggle with the things that we’ve struggled to conceal and disguise over a lifetime, and that there is a reason for being a bit of a freak 😆 I’m unemployed again too…my last gig lasted 3 days, and I quit that one, for apart from a variety of other reasons there was too much potential for me to stuff something up…anyway, it is perversely comforting knowing that other people wrestle with similar demons, no? Procrastination, indecision, chaos, mayhem, bad choices, addictive behaviour, the geyser that shoots the never ending volleys of thoughts into one’s mind etc etc. Welcome to the club! 😆

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