Find a Career that "fits"

[Anonymous]

I have spent my life in and out of various jobs ranging from personal security to selling cars. It was only be pure accident that I landed where I am now and with some good timing and a lot of hard work I have dominated in my field.

I work in training, something I fell into by accident with a small company which eventually became part of a international multi-billion dollar company. I have been promoted 9 times in 8 years and without a shred of college to back up my resume I am now the Director of Training and Quality.

How did I do this? Easy, I put my ADHD to work in a field that it works in. Training is a dynamic and ever-changing thing…it is a living work in progress that is never finished. You can mold it, change it and let it stimulate your mind. It is the perfect career for someone with ADHD, particularly on the development side.

I am able to run circles around instructional designers with years of experience and masters degrees in their field because like most “normal” people, they can’t break from the mindset of 1950’s instructional design in order to see what is really working and what isn’t.

By being able to dream and be creative around issues dealing with training and learning and through applied use of ADHD hyperfocus, I have been able to assemble world class training curriculum that makes what the “educated” people do look like generic, ineffective garbage. Yeah, I know that is a strong opinion, but I have the data to back that up.

So what is my point, other than to pat myself on the back for being awesome? My point is, if you have rampant ADHD as I do, which is unmedicated other than caffeine by-the-way, you can be extremely successful. You just have to find a career path that is going to let you expand your mind, use all of that freight train worth of brain power and most of all, just be yourself. Those jobs exist, those companies are out there that will support you.

The key to it is finding the right boss, someone who can see your vision of the world and who is willing to work with you to capitalize on your wonderful gift of ADD/ADHD. Find the right work atmosphere and find a job that requires dynamic thinking and creativity.

Incidentally, I am 100% self-taught in instructional design. I read everything I could get my hands on, focusing specifically on what is new and interesting out there. I read articles in magazines like Fast Company, I read industry sites and I read the work of recent grad students which can easily be found online.

In short, you can be successful if you can put the negativity behind you and work towards that better you!

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