ADHD: The Entrepreneur Superpower

During Lockdown, Jenny Rossiter, one of the UK’s leading Leadership Coaches, experienced a startling personal moment. Despite a highly successful business career, in August 2020, at the age of 51, she was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) – a neurodiverse condition characterized by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. The label of ADHD actually released her shame and low self-esteem and unlocked her entrepreneur superpower.

Not only did this revelation give her fresh insights into the work she does as a leadership coach – but she realized the condition of ADHD was the key to her superpower. The traits of creativity and risk-taking are also the gifts of ADHD. With 12 successful years of running an Ltd business – she discovered it was only possible because of her ADHD, grit, and ability to jump off a cliff!

Through Jenny’s incredible story, she detoxifies the label and uncovers the inherent positives of how this entrepreneurial “superpower’ of boundless energy, innovative thinking, and risk-taking, made her so successful. The studies highlighting ADHD as an entrepreneurial trait are arriving, but not fast enough. Not fast enough to release the stigma and unlock the true gifts that ADHD brings. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352673416300178

ADHD: Entrepreneur trait or Leadership Superpower?

Dr. Edward Hallowell, is a leading authority in the field of ADHD. He has found in his studies and research that it is common for entrepreneurs to have ADHD, and the disorder could be renamed ‘the entrepreneur’s trait.’ The parts of ADHD that don’t get talked about, the positive parts, are the leadership superpowers he explains. https://10xtalk.com/the-entrepreneurial-mind-ned-hallowell/

ADHD: 9 Entrepreneur superpowers

Possibility thinking – Endless Ideas & nothing is off-limits.
Creative flair- Think outside the box
Strategic linking – A brain that links it all together into nice sparkly chunks
Risk-taking and Jumping off a cliff – Don’t care if it flops or dies – not afraid of failure
Eat adversity for breakfast – Dealing with chaos is like eating cornflakes for breakfast
Trust their gut – Highly sensitive and follow tap inter their feeling
Mission, goals & dreams led – Inspirational leader
Grit and nerves of steel – Persistent and passionate
Relentless drive – High achieving

The Freedom bus – Dare to discover your superpower

Jenny’s discovery of ADHD then prompted her to embark on chronicling her story. memoir and book, The Freedom Bus: a journey from Adoption to True Self. https://www.feelgoodleadership.co.uk/project/the-freedom-bus/After a hugely successful launch in December 2021, she is on a mission to spread the word

Through this personal inquiry in midlife, she has been empowered to be her true self. This book is about the freedom self-discovery brings.

You might be a wonderful mother, a busy CEO, an adoptee, or even an adoptee with ADHD like Jenny. You may well be successful and have a reasonably happy life, but you might just be itching to have a more meaningful life.

So many people have achieved a lot, but your life feels like a slog and you’ve lost sight of the point. It’s easy to have an average life, but imagine what freedom would be?

You might feel trapped in a job with no time to play, stuck in a role that is more like a hamster wheel than a profession. You might have lost meaning or just feel as flat as a pancake. Life is restricting and a hard place to be.

Regardless of our circumstances, none of us are immune from the pain of being human or the desire to just be true to you.

We have to be ourselves, otherwise, we drown in the chaos of being the person that others want us to be.

The Freedom Bus Roadshow & 1:1 Leadership Coaching programmes

Jenny is traveling around the UK/online on the Freedom bus roadshow in 2022 https://www.feelgoodleadership.co.uk/project/the-freedom-bus-roadshow/and is keen to jump on board and come to workplaces, events, (and even schools). Her story would make a compelling interview to raise awareness not only about ADHD but the courage it takes to dare to be different and never let go of your dreams.

Whatever shame or stigma you face, just remember, being different is your superpower – the freedom bus is waiting. Remember to always be yourself.

For further details on the 1:1 leadership coaching programmes Jenny runs https://www.feelgoodleadership.co.uk/project/11-leadership-coaching-programmes-2/ jenny runs please get in touch