Jobs for people with ADHD

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You've got to get around or through the pain of mid-level work. As others have said, once you get high up enough you can access resources (I have an assistant that manages my calendar completely and an assistant director that manages all operations and processes). It was painful to get here. Basically, I forced myself to hyperfocus on the goal of career advancement and being on top. Same way I got through two hours of grad school when classes were boring. Change the goal. ADHD brains are really great at goal oriented tasks even if there are many. For my kid who shares the diagnosis I make being the top student the goal not the actual work sheet, test, or even content acquisition, etc. Basically, if she's not naturally interested, there's no way to cause natural interest so you have to pivot.

It's a way to trick your brain, essentially. I also often procrastinate on major projects that are boring because the adrenaline rush of having to deliver something awesome on an abridged timeline really works for me. The flip side is that you have to KNOW you can deliver and not drop the ball. I have no problem working 14-18 hrs straight and my attention to detail under those conditions is phenomenal. I also work in a high stakes field with lots of highly political stakeholders so this makes me naturally attentive to detail because not being wrong when recommending a path and being highly trusted with millions of dollars is dopamine producing, particularly on the spot or with many contingencies in place.

These are all tricks though. If I had to do it over again I'd be an emergency room doc., paramedic, forensic scientist, disaster relief, humanitarian/crisis work no person. I'm at my best in a crisis remembering and managing 100 things at once. I don't enjoy long-term supervision of people. Good luck. It's hard but you can hack it!

I have ADHD and often procrastinate only to do my best work under pressure. I'm a standout at my job because I can juggle 100 things at once and deal with the constant crisis mode. I never thought about the adrenaline rush/dopamine rush from operating that way. I love/hate it- I'm in a constant state of stress, yet it seems I crave it.

[Anonymous]

I have ADD inattentive and I’ve never liked desk jobs, too boring and my mind wanders. I chose a field that isn’t a desk job and where the work is very short term which I prefer to long term. I also work only part time. When I worked full time I could not handle work plus taking care of the house. So basically a part time job that’s not a desk job and where the work is short term and where there’s a lot of variety, works for me. I’m a case manager and love the variety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Retail or something equally mind numbing and repetitive like Amazon procurement (just shuffle around boxes, tape up box flaps, let the scanners and computers do the rest).

No! That is the worst type of job for someone with ADHD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have ADD inattentive and I’ve never liked desk jobs, too boring and my mind wanders. I chose a field that isn’t a desk job and where the work is very short term which I prefer to long term. I also work only part time. When I worked full time I could not handle work plus taking care of the house. So basically a part time job that’s not a desk job and where the work is short term and where there’s a lot of variety, works for me. I’m a case manager and love the variety.

Would you please explain what you do as a case manager?

[Anonymous]

Op, what do you enjoy doing? What kind of hobbies do you have? What is an activity that you look forward to doing? Also, what level of intensity are you looking for?

In general I would suggest following your passion

[Anonymous]

My ADHD was diagnosed quite late (30s) as I was an excellent student and the problems didn’t catch up with me until more and more was piled on. (Though although excellent at academics other areas suffered - my college room was such a mess my friends didn’t want me to live with them sophomore year.) By the time I was diagnosed I was in my office job. Some aspects work - we have 6-8 month projects and then move to completely new topics and I like the novelty. Interim deadlines help with focus. Other areas are harder including office distractions and sitting at a desk all day. After years of feedback (especially pre-diagnosis) about efficiency or project planning etc a mentor actually coached me on HOW to (a) decide work was good enough and pass it on sooner rather than the intense focus / need for perfection and (b) required me to make a project plan and repost on it to her regularly. This has been life changing (like almost immediate career advancement) so I make it work but I’m not sure I’d advise project planning / analysis work.

I’ve read that jobs on your feet work well - like nursing or teaching. I’m sure my brother has undiagnosed ADHD and he’s a very successful (both financially and in terms of enjoyment) realtor. He specializes in a particular type of properties and is rarely in his office. He knows his sector really well and has high energy and charisma and can channel the ADHD into juggling a lot of properties at once.

[Anonymous]

I suspect I have inattentive ADD but have never been diagnosed. I rely on novelty to get work done. I advanced quickly early in my career because I got to jump from project to project as the junior employee in training mode. Once I hit mid-level (GS-13), I stalled. I was expected to stay on and even lead projects for their entire duration, and I struggled mightily with the attention span and interest to do that. Memos that I should have been able to pound out in an hour took two or three days to write. Meanwhile, I'd get a million other unimportant tasks completed. It was super frustrating to see people with a fraction of the experience and knowledge get promoted over me.

Then I learned that people in my org get accommodation plans. Basically, they have official recognition of their diagnosis (anxiety, ADHD, dyslexia, etc) and have accommodations built around that. For example, if the requirement for your job is to give x number of presentations to senior folks, but you're officially on record for having anxiety and being incapable of giving presentations, then that's no longer a requirement for your performance evaluation. Meanwhile, the employees without that accommodation will be required to give x presentations and be judged harshly if they suck at it.

So, long way of saying, the best job for ADHD is a) anything that provides sufficient novelty for you to hyperfocus when it's new and intriguing, and then be able to move on quickly; or b) any type of work (government is good for this) that will accommodate you not actually doing your job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Retail or something equally mind numbing and repetitive like Amazon procurement (just shuffle around boxes, tape up box flaps, let the scanners and computers do the rest).

Mind-numbing, repetitive job are the absolute worst kind for people with ADHD.

I was going to say! Bartender would be better, if you're looking at that level of job. Quick projects, short bursts of social interaction.

My husband is a Restaurant manager. I think being on his feet and constantly moving helps him focus better.