Life Strategies for Those with ADHD/LD

Those with LD and ADD have already proven to blaze trails and pave the way to success with their unwilling drives. Of course, gifted people like us need to be placed on a pedestal - that is, being accommodated in the workplace to release that flair you have within. Although some with ADD might not need job accommodations (they've already found ways to incorporate excellent strategies to help their work), some do.

To improve your work life, analyze your needs first. If you have difficulty with visual perception, use color-coded files to help distinguish from one another. If you have dyslexia, find ways to use tapes and try to take as many verbal (not written) instructions as possible. All visual presentations are a plus as well, like charts and bar graphs. If you have trouble writing, then Microsoft Word is your new best friend. Its spell checker and grammar programs are second-to-none and can polish that paper to perfection.

A common problem among those with LD and ADD is time management. You all have a misconception on our sense of time by coming in late or coming in too early. This can be corrected with a trusty alarm clock and reminding ourselves of the time with a detailed schedule so you won't arrive too early. As you all know, we can also become heavily distracted during our work time. Open spaces might cause you to lose our attention and concentrate. If you can lock a private area for yourself and work during a non-busy day, that is fine. Distraction causers like cell phones and beepers should be shut off during work hours. Your hyperactivity can be helped by short little breaks during the day, especially if you're sitting at a cubicle or a small cramped space. This allows you to recoup our energies now and dominate the work later!

Of course, there are jobs that minimize the effects of ADHD in some people. Tasks with lots of physical movement like selling real estate or professional dancing allow us to harness our other abilities. Those with dyslexia thrive with visual related occupations like architecture, design, sports, graphics, etc and do less well with detail-oriented tasks. We are also excellent communicators (those with Asperger Syndrome are known for this). Whether it is picking up that special lady or running a marketing campaign meeting, those with ADHD/LD know how to use that resilience and innate charisma (yes, use that eccentricity to your advantage) to persuade and work with others. And that is something many "normal" people lack!