Diagnosed with ADHD at 59 #lifechanging

For years, my husband described me, very kindly, as a thoroughbred in a pony stable. My apologies to anyone offended. He was not talking about "my" teams of amazing fundraisers, he was talking about the leadership teams I participated in that couldn’t seem to grasp the importance of things like team building, collaboration, breaking down siloes, building relationships, accountability, clear job delineation and shared goals. 

At best, these teams participated in the occasional off-site event. There was almost never a continuous effort to create high functioning teams. Only once in 30 years did an organization have a real, on-going leadership team development program . It was brilliant. At least while we were in our bi-weekly sessions. 

When we left the meeting room, everything changed. The vast gap between what we said in the group activities and the way in which we functioned day-to-day was shocking. And no one seemed to care. Politics, ego, checking off the list, and career planning were what mattered – not the team.

I was lucky at the outset of my career to spend eight years working for a fantastic leader and with a great team. To this day, I love every one of them. Though we don’t connect as often as we once did, four of the five are now retired or semi-retired, I still remember our time together with great fondness. One became a best friend on this life journey. We put in the time and effort to really know each other, support each other and accomplish things together.

A diagnosis of ADHD this late in life has made sense of many things. 

• The feedback from a staff member that I often seemed distracted in our one-on-one meetings. (I tried harder.) 
• The ability to juggle multiple priorities very well. (Remember the plate spinner on the Ed Sullivan show? That’s me.)
• My willingness to move on quickly from jobs that didn’t stimulate or where relationships were seemingly impossible to make. (I thought I had an issue with loyalty.) 
• My creativity and ability to envision the end result of significant projects and events, see the path forward, and be grateful that others were handling execution and details. 
• My sensitivity, intuitiveness and empathy – always on overdrive. 
• The ability to quickly diagnose an issue and see many potential "right" answers.

Neurodiversity is both a gift and a challenge. It requires us to find leaders and workplaces that allow you to express your full self. Who turn your strengths into superpowers and tackle challenges with curiosity and compassion. 

Most of all, be kind. You never know what someone else is dealing with. Sometimes they don't know either. #adhd

#kerrmudgeon #compassion #healthishealth #neurodiversity #mentalhealth #psychologicalsafety #workplacesafety #bullied2