Positive Aspects of ADHD

[David Baxter PhD]

No One Talks About the Positives of ADHD ? So I Found Some
by Devon Frye, ADDitude
November 10, 2017

When I got my diagnosis, I knew nothing about ADHD. I read up on the condition. I was baffled by the fact that there were 10,000 stories written about how bad ADHD is. Only a handful told about the positive aspects (slideshow) of it.

So I did my own study, interviewing people with ADHD who operated their own businesses. Everybody said, ?I would rather be the way I am and have the diagnosis than not have it.? Many people said, ?I could not imagine working for somebody else.?

I began to think about ADHD in terms of my being a very tall person. I?m 6 feet, 7 inches. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? It depends. It?s bad if I?m flying across the Atlantic. It?s pretty darn good if I?m in a big crowd.

It?s the same with ADHD traits. They are largely negative, and they sometimes lead to problems. But when you?re running your own business, you can adapt ADHD traits to your own personal needs.

I found that those with ADHD symptoms have higher entrepreneurial intention. They are intuitively more attracted to starting a business than other people.

 

[David Baxter PhD]

Commentary

One positive thing about ADHD that I've noticed over the years is the ability of many people diagnosed with ADHD to hyperfocus:

[A] symptom that some people with ADHD demonstrate is known as hyperfocus. Hyperfocus is the experience of deep and intense concentration in some people with ADHD. ADHD is not necessarily a deficit of attention, but rather a problem with regulating one’s attention span to desired tasks. So, while mundane tasks may be difficult to focus on, others may be completely absorbing. An individual with ADHD who may not be able to complete homework assignments or work projects may instead be able to focus for hours on video games, sports, or reading.

People with ADHD may immerse themselves so completely in an activity that they want to do or enjoy doing to the point that they become oblivious to everything around them. This concentration can be so intense that an individual loses track of time, other chores, or the surrounding environment. While this level of intensity can be channeled into difficult tasks, such as work or homework, the downside is that ADHD individuals can become immersed in unproductive activities while ignoring pressing responsibilities. ~ source: What Is Hyperfocus and How Does It Affect Kids and Adults?

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For example, my own observations have told me that ADHD may be overrepresented in certain professions, especially in IT (information technology, programming, web design) and law. These are examples of professions where the ability to hyperfocus and to zone in on details is a significant advantage. It seems to me that some individuals with ADHD are drawn to these and similar professions precisely because of their ability to hyperfocus. Being able to focus on the task at hand while blocking out anything and everything not related to that task makes it less likely that important or critical details will not be overlooked, just as with a challenging video game, where many individuals with ADHD seem to excel.

It's worth re-emphasizing point like this for anyone with mental health issues or conditions: Sometimes it really isn't all bad.

Find the positives and exploit them. That's called adaptation. And it can be a recipe for great success.