I found myself crying last week during a business owner check-in with my trusted friend Holly Hurley Feather.
"I'm surrounded by all these La Croix cans, and they're all half full," I explained to her tearfully. "I open the cans, I forget about them, and then I find them once the carbonation is gone. And then I just feel awful that I wasted another can of La Croix."
And then, with the wisdom of a thousand centuries, she calmly responded:
"Is your job managing the opening of La Croix cans? Or do your clients pay you to make incredible courses?"
This, dear readers, is the bizarre reality of my adult ADHD.
I remember a family member asking me years ago how it could be possible that I was managing hospital service lines yet couldn't figure out how to do my dishes. Prior to learning about ADHD, I really didn't know the answer either.
I felt like a walking conundrum: I was simultaneously lazy and driven. An idiot and an aspiring genius. The only thing I knew for sure is I was kind of a hoot.
Yet, when I became self-employed, the pieces started coming together. There was an inextricable connectedness between finding myself as an entrepreneur and finding myself as a neurodivergent human.
While I'm gearing up for public speaking on the power of ADHD in creative entrepreneurship (more to come soon!), that's just not where I was last week. Sometimes it's really hard to struggle with the basics.
Fortunately for me, I never feel fully alone. Many of the freelancers I've hired have also self-reported having ADHD.
(Note- when you're looking for self-employed, rapid learners who are effortlessly "out of the box," you may just get blessed with some neurodivergent rock stars.)
While people's experiences with ADHD vary greatly, I thought it might be interesting to share some of my lessons and "life hacks" as a business owner with ADHD who also works with other folks with ADHD.
Here are my top three tips for making a work environment that's a little more inclusive.
1. Talk about time.
When I first started hiring freelancers, I always paid by the hour. It seemed to me to be the fairest, cleanest way to compensate others. However, I later realized that while I don't personally struggle with time awareness, some of my freelancers do. Asking them to estimate time or remember to repeatedly turn on and off a time tracker became a major stressor. (Can I hit the undo button, please?!)
Now, I more explicitly ask about the best way to track work completion. If I'm unsure what to offer as a fixed price, I encourage freelancers to do one initial time study as a pilot. Then, we can hopefully get to an estimate that feels fair on both ends.
2. Facilitate body doubling.
While I truly enjoy the bulk of what I do, there are some administrative tasks that are not particularly fascinating. Sometimes I need to delegate said boring tasks to others, as well.
While most people don't enjoy monotonous work, it can be especially hard for us dopamine-seeking ADHD-ers.
Maybe you've seen my post on trying to inject novelty into the dull? Bear in mind, that can be done in a number of different ways that don't involve staying alone in a creepy cabin. (Where's that undo button again?)
Another strategy that can really help is "body doubling," or doing boring stuff alongside someone else. I've begun offering this to folks on my team when we just don't feel like doing the thing.
What does this look like logistically, especially in a remote team? I offer to set up a teleconferencing appointment for both of us. Then, we work independently, knowing our buddy is on the other end, doing the same.
For tasks that can't be delegated, I also sometimes pay people to watch my boring work as I do it. As a friend recently told me, "that could be viewed as a little 'extra.'" However, I know I can be prone to errors when I'm not super interested. So, this helps ensure I not only get these tasks done but also do them well. Additionally, it reduces my procrastination time, which I can then repurpose for revenue-generating work.
3. Just pay the ADHD tax upfront.
Speaking of paying for things that might appear "extra," let's talk about "ADHD tax."
ADHD tax refers to the extra money folks with ADHD often need to spend because of having ADHD. A few examples from my personal life include:
- Extra high grocery bills from frequently needing to replace expired food (even when I remember I have fresh produce, I often lack the executive function to cook; thus, delivery services own me)
- Extra high utility bills from having to wash my clothes multiple times (I often forget to move loads to the dryer)
What I've come to accept- in business and in life- is that I have to pay extra money to be a human. So, I've started paying the ADHD tax upfront whenever possible.
For instance, I pay a little extra for pre-chopped fruits and veggies. I'm looking into the possibility of laundry service. And, if I can foresee that my ADHD might cost my company later (i.e. missing business opportunities because of administrative responsibilities), I try to proactively hire other people to stay on top of those tasks.
Even if I'm drowning in flat La Croix, I take comfort in this:
Teamwork really can make this [neurodivergent] dream work.
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