If you are following my YouTube channel, you know that I am currently writing a book. This project is unique because, in writing my previous books, I had the opportunity to write in a different way that I am writing now. My early books were written by giving myself a word count for each day and writing until I hit my daily word count. My latest books (The Reset ADHD Trilogy of Books) were written using my blog posts. This time, I am trying to write a book while running a business. So, how do I go about this?

Once per month, Reset ADHD offers “Improv for ADHD” play sessions. These sessions are an opportunity to have fun and grow in your ADHD management skills. Improv is a huge part of my life, and I love sharing it with others. But, why do I love it so much? Well, there are many reasons. I will detail why it is so special to me below.

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending the 2023 Applied Improvisation Network Conference. I arrived at the Improv Centre in Vancouver for registration, got my badge, got the lay of the land, and then walked outside. There, sitting on a bench, was one of the keynote speakers, Colin Mochrie of Whose Line Is It Anyway? fame. I was able to sit next to him and tell him how much he meant to me as an improv performer and practitioner of applied improvisation. Reflecting on my encounter with Mochrie and learning more about his life and career has led me to wonder how he can help those of us with ADHD.

As longtime readers of this blog may have surmised, I am a giant nerd. I have previously written blogs about what ADHDers can learn from some of my favorite fictional stories and characters. One glaring omission from this series of blog posts is my second-favorite fictional character, Sherlock Holmes. While Holmes probably does not have ADHD, he nevertheless can be a neurodiverse icon, with it being incredibly likely that he is on the spectrum. I believe the character illustrates many ideas that the ADHDer might do well to consider.

I was recently interviewed by someone, and I was asked about what message I would like to give my younger self. I was not ready for that question, but my response was: “You are where you are meant to be.” As I think about that statement, it occurs to me that it, not only makes sense for myself at younger ages, but it also applies to all of us at any age. Where we are in life is preparing us for where we are going. If there are struggles in our lives, they are making us stronger and ready for what is to come in our lives. In short, we are where we are meant to be.

In May of 2018, I was trying to decide what to do with my life. I knew I needed a career and that substitute teaching was not it. I hated being a substitute teacher, so I decided it was time to move on. However, I could not decide on what I wanted for a career. I had thought a couple of times about being an ADHD coach, but I was too afraid to take the plunge. Then, I did something that made my path clear. I applied to be a proofreader at a label-making company. Soon after applying, they scheduled an interview with me.

The other day, I told my coach that I was overwhelmed with all the things I wanted to do. He got curious about what I was feeling and started exploring. Through his questions and observations, I came to realize I was not overwhelmed. I was just looking at things incorrectly. I needed to reframe how I was looking at all of the projects I have on my plate right now.

Last week, I wrote about what makes Reset ADHD unique. In that blog post, I said I would probably write a follow up about what else makes my coaching practice unique. While thinking about how to follow up with that, I wondered if I ever told the story of why I decided to become an ADHD coach. I thought I had, but as it turns out, I have not written that story down. What I thought was the story of why I became a coach was, in fact, a letter to myself about why I am a coach, in case I ever doubt myself and my chosen career. If you want to read more about my why for being a coach, give it a read. However, if you are simply interested in a story version of why I am a coach, this is the blog post for you!

One day, I was sitting in my third-grade classroom, and we were working on a worksheet as a class. The teacher was bouncing around the room, having different students answer the questions. This was taking too slow for me, so I started to work ahead. While working ahead, I tried to keep tabs on where the rest of the class was so that, if called upon, I could answer the question without anyone knowing I was working ahead. The split second I lost where they were, I got called on. I answered the one I thought they were on, and my teacher goes, “We just did that one. You’re not paying attention. You can pull a card.”

When I was younger, I could never fall asleep in a timely manner at night, no matter how tired I was. I would lie on my bed with thoughts swirling around my head, unable to calm them down and lull myself to sleep. For me, nighttime has always been a time to think, especially about serious topics. It may be due to my ADHD or the fact that, at a young age, I had to deal with the very adult situation of my parents’ divorce.

If you pulled up this blog post hoping for ADHD tips, I am sorry to report I have none this week. So, if you were only hoping to gain some ADHD wisdom, you may stop reading at this point and wait for next week. If, however, you are willing to read on, I will share something personal going on in my life.

On Tuesday, Mar 29, 2022, I brought my dog, Charlie, to the vet. Charlie was not due for a checkup until May, but Charlie was struggling. I could rattle off a long list of what he was dealing with, but to save time, I will just say that he was struggling. After the vet examined him, it was determined that it was time to say goodbye. Reset ADHD had to say goodbye to its “Senior Nap Specialist,” and I had to say goodbye to my best friend.

When I was in junior high and high school, I wanted desperately to fit in. So, what did I do? I did what I thought was expected of me. I said the things I thought I was supposed to say. I acted the way I thought others wanted me to act. Did it work? No. I had very few friends in junior high and high school. I bounced around from friend group to friend group, not really feeling comfortable anywhere. By the time high school ended, I felt alone and desperately wanted a new start.

The first time I attended the International Conference on ADHD, I felt very alone when I first arrived. Sure, I was able to talk to some of my classmates from the ADD Coach Academy, but I am an introvert with social anxiety. So, I was awkward and uncomfortable. Then, at one of the keynote addresses, I sat down and heard a voice behind me say, “Oh good, it’s you.”

I cannot remember how old I was when I first thought that I might possibly have ADHD. But, I do remember the first time I asked someone if it was possible that I had ADHD. I was rebuffed. That was that. However, I continued to underperform in school.

The summer before my junior year of high school, I was forced to read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain for the AP English class I would be taking that school year. I hated these summer reading assignments, but this one I actually enjoyed. Twain’s writing style and the story intrigued me.

One of the parts I enjoyed the most was Tom Sawyer’s sudden arrival into the story. When Tom Sawyer arrives, he and Huckleberry Finn get into all sorts of mischief, mayhem, and adventures.

We ADHDers tend to have a history of messing up. When you have not yet learned how your brain works best, you mess up a lot. This can lead to a lack of confidence, even in areas where we are naturally gifted. Unfortunately, we become prone to experiencing a great deal of fear, anxiety, and nervousness. However, that does not mean we have to be slaves to this fear. Instead, we can escape its deadly grasp and take back control of our life. This is something I learned through my experience in the theater.

I am an introvert. Small talk is the worst. Meeting new people is excruciating. However, ever since I have started this job, meeting new people has become easier. Instead of feeling nervous about what to say, I yearn to be asked what I do for a living because I love talking about ADHD and my job. I have found that meeting someone I have never met for coaching does not give me the same uncomfortable uneasiness it once did. I find it exciting now.

The struggles an ADHDer faces on a daily basis can take a toll on their mental health. When you mess up as much as an ADHDer does, you start to believe the negative messages you hear both from internal and external sources. This is especially relevant if the ADHD diagnosis does not happen early in childhood. The longer one goes without an ADHD diagnosis, the more one wonders, “What is wrong with me? I must lazy and/or dumb.”