Examples of ADHD success stories
The key lessons to take from these success stories
How to turn your knowledge into action
Some tips on how to help people with ADHD achieve success
In this module, you will learn:
Examples of ADHD success stories
The key lessons to take from these success stories
How to turn your knowledge into action
Some tips on how to help people with ADHD achieve success
Success Stories – 5m47s
14.1 Examples of ADHD Success Stories
The aim of this module is to provide people who have the condition with some examples of
positive achievements by others like them - this can help if people sometimes feel defeated
by ADHD.
We will look at some success stories of people with ADHD, to act as examples of how it is possible
for an individual to overcome their difficulties and have a wonderful life and career.
It is worth remembering that people who have other significant conditions such as dyslexia or
autism, and also have difficulties with everyday life, have gone on to become leaders of business,
actors, musicians, sports people and hold positions of power. Why should this be any different for
someone with ADHD?
Ty Pennington
We mentioned Ty Pennington in an earlier module, but we will mention him again here. He was
diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 17, but now, more than 30 years after his diagnosis, he has
established a great career as an interior designer and TV presenter, as well as having his own
furniture range, and working as a male model, travelling the world.
His ADHD hyperfocus was used to his advantage, as he had a passion for carpentry and is known to
have built his own tree house as a teenager. This passion of his, which was also his strength, was
one area where he clearly was able to concentrate and focus. By applying his strengths and talent,
he was able to create an extremely successful future for himself.
Peter Shankman
Peter Shankman is a successful businessman and entrepreneur, who had the typical early life of a
child with ADHD. He accepts that at school he was forever being taken to the head teacher, due to
disruption in class, and his academic achievement suffered due to his behaviour. However, he has
since gone on to be a major success within his field and industry.
In his case, the insistence of his teachers that he was a slow learner was able to spark a fire within
him to prove them wrong. The irritation and agitation that he was feeling in response to those
accusations were then put to good use - and ultimately led to him receiving his degree in journalism.
Furthermore, he is not afraid to share his personal difficulties in order to raise awareness of ADHD
and to demonstrate what is possible. Aside from being a success on a personal level, he is also a
respected keynote speaker and advocate for neurodiversity in the workplace.
Robin Black
The reason why we are using the story of Robin Black as an example is because this novelist from
Philadelphia was diagnosed with ADHD later in life. Until that point, she had always understood that
she was struggling with so many different issues and aspects of life - and yet there appeared to be
no real explanation for this.
She herself notes how she was always viewed as being one of the 'weird kids' who stood out,
apparently, for the wrong reasons. As a child, Robin Black was forever getting into trouble for her
bedroom being a mess. She also talks about the way in which hyperactivity and her lack of impulse
control were also something that plagued her, even well into adulthood, making work and married
life extremely difficult to cope with.
However, she maintains that her diagnosis made a huge difference to her life and the way in which
she was able to understand why she acted in certain ways or thought along certain lines. Being
prescribed Ritalin and working closely with a psychiatrist who helped her with the impact of her late
diagnosis, have supported her in becoming a successful novelist.
In actual fact, she has taken her sense of hypersensitivity and has used it to her advantage; her
novels are recognised for their emotional astuteness – and understanding the novelist's background
makes readers fully appreciate her work. This in itself is a wonderful example of how you can take
aspects of the condition that used to be troubling - and make life difficult - and turn them into a
positive.
Robin Black’s story is a prime example of how there are many challenges associated with ADHD, but
they can be made more manageable by using coping strategies and accepting professional help.
Dave Farrow
The story of Dave Farrow is certainly an interesting one when looking at what is possible with a
diagnosis of ADHD. There is often the belief that this diagnosis means that the individual will find it
hard to stay focused and their concentration levels will be poor. However, when you discover that
Dave Farrow has twice been in the Guinness Book of World Records because of his amazing
memory, then you will see how this is not always the case.
As with the others, he was told that he was a slow learner, and this led to him developing a desire to
prove people wrong. He was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 14 and instead of feeling that this
would confine him to a restricted life, it actually led to him deciding that he had to find something
that could be a goal for him to attain, in order to prove people wrong about ADHD.
For him, the problem was concentrating in the classroom due to the various distractions, but he did
discover that he was able to concentrate in the library where it was quiet and he could keep his
thoughts under more control. He was also aware that his levels of concentration could dip, so he
created his own solution, which involved learning how to speed learn and speed read, so he could
absorb as much information as possible, in the shortest period of time.
After this, he then worked on his own memory system, in order to retain all the information he was
learning and to ensure that this transferred to his long-term memory. This eventually led to him
achieving his records, which would be achievement enough for anyone, but for someone with the
inattentive form of ADHD, it was a major accomplishment.
His approach was to avoid the more common issues - fatigue and losing focus - which are difficulties
for anyone when studying for an extended period of time. This is especially difficult for an individual
with ADHD, so creating a shorter, high-intensity study schedule meant that he effectively removed
this obstacle.
From his story, we are able to see the importance of understanding your needs and finding a
strategy that works for you. This is about being intelligent in your approach and also spending time
getting to grips with the way in which the condition affects you, so you are then better placed to deal
with difficulties.
Below, we list several people with ADHD who are famous for being highly successful in
their specialist fields. You might be surprised by some of them!
Bill Gates
Justin Timberlake
Jamie Oliver (who focuses on diet to help combat the symptoms)
Will Smith
Michael Phelps (Olympian swimmer who proves the theory that sport and exercise help)
Jim Carrey (Actor who used his energy to turn it into comedy)
Richard Branson (individuals with ADHD are 300% more likely to be their own boss)
Paris Hilton
Emma Watson
Mel B
Louise Mensch
Caitlyn Jenner
Trudie Styler
As you can see, there are a number of very successful individuals who have gone on to have
magnificent careers, even though they have ADHD. These include top musicians, top actors,
businessmen - and the list goes on and on.
It is important to understand the key lessons from our success stories and use them to recognise the
strengths in every person with ADHD. By identifying and harnessing their key strengths, it’s possible
to create their own success story.
FACT
The Black Eyed Peas star Will.I.Am has ADHD - but revealed he thinks it works well for when he
needs to be creative.
Source: capitalfm.com
14.2 The Key Lessons to Take From the Success Stories
So what do we take from these success stories and how can we pass that knowledge on to
those individuals who have the condition itself?
As we work through the different stories above, the one thing that really does come across loud and
clear is that either the individual or their family spent the time getting to know the condition and
sought to use different parts of it to their advantage. They looked at how they could use their
strengths to move forward in a more positive way.
We all have a duty to adjust our way of thinking so that people with chronic conditions such as
ADHD have the same opportunities - through reasonable adjustments - to a successful and happy
life. The lessons identified in our success stories can be applicable to many people with ADHD –
please read on to discover how.
Having the self-belief and desire to prove others wrong
In more than one story, the individual in question wanted to prove people wrong and prove that they
were not a slow learner. This is something that not everybody is going to be able to do, simply
because it does take a great deal of self-confidence and determination. It should be noted that this
does not have to just apply to school, but can be used in every aspect of life.
Having the courage to seek a strength and develop it
Another common thread is the way in which a strength is identified, either by the person with the
condition or somebody close to them. This strength is then utilised to its fullest, even leading them
to be able to build an entire career around it – for example, Ty Pennington’s passion for carpentry.
The lesson from this is that it is important to recognise what the person is good at and then develop
these skills and take them further. However, you need to make sure that the correct help is in place,
to make this a reality.
Having the tenacity to find a solution and plan ahead
Another important lesson to be taken from the stories is that people with ADHD are able to identify a
solution that is workable and can be put into action – for example, Dave Farrow’s innovative study
schedule. It’s worth noting that for this to work, there is often a need to plan ahead carefully, along
with sometimes getting support from others.
Accepting that a weakness can be worked on
When you consider that it sounds almost impossible for an individual with ADHD to become a world
record holder in memorising facts, the reality demonstrates how having this disorder or any other
condition does not actually exclude future possibilities. Indeed, as Dave Farrow spent time trying to
come to terms with the condition and tackle his major weakness head-on, it shows how perseverance
can achieve results. We all have weaknesses, yet it is the desire to change things that then drives
people to turn them into strengths.
Accepting that age is no barrier to improvement
In the stories that we mentioned above, you may have noticed that we are talking about a wide
range of ages and this, in itself, is an important lesson for anybody with the condition. No matter the
age when they are diagnosed, there will still be ample opportunities for people to achieve in life. It is
accepted that change may be harder to achieve for people who have been diagnosed later in life, but
it is certainly not impossible. A good example of this is Robin Black: if you can be diagnosed aged 42
and then go on to become a successful novelist, then it shows you that age really is no barrier.
We are sure that as people read the different stories, they will be able to take various lessons from
them - and yet, it is essential to understand how those lessons can then be put to good use, as there
is no point in learning them if no action can be taken.
No matter if you are an individual with the condition or are trying to learn more about it to help
others, there are some straightforward ways to put the lessons learned into practice.
14.3 How to Turn Your Knowledge into Action
80% of people with ADHD become entrepreneurs and like working for themselves.
Sir Richard Branson, Ingvar Kamprad (IKEA Owner) and David Neelman (founder of JetBlue) were
all diagnosed with ADHD. These super-achievers laughingly tell people that they were successful
because of their ADHD and not despite it, as we may believe.
It's worth noting that ADHD's most notorious traits - hyperactivity, high energy levels, risk-taking
and multi-tasking - are all strengths when it comes to the art of entrepreneurship. Many high
achievers are beginning to embrace their singular ADHD traits and attribute their success to their
ADHD personalities.
For example:
A low boredom threshold is a common trait of ADHD and may apply to sitting still in a classroom or
office for eight hours straight. However, this is often the precursor for thinking of innovative, novel
and exciting ideas for business. A very useful ADHD characteristic is to look for new and better ways
to do things.
There are a number of lessons that can be taken from looking at the success stories of other
individuals with ADHD - but how can they be put into action?
Understand how the condition affects the individual
The first thing here is to make sure that you know how the individuals in question are affected by
the condition – that is, what subtype of ADHD they have and what their key symptoms are. This is
the only way in which you’ll be able to provide some useful assistance and guide them towards a
better future, as well as help them to overcome the various problems linked to ADHD. Failing to get
a grasp of the condition and their lives will only lead to a misguided and ineffective approach.
Understanding how the condition affects the person will aid in the identification of key strengths and
weaknesses to work on. For example, Dave Farrow knew that poor concentration and lack of focus
affected him, so he chose to work on those weaknesses in an innovative way.
Agree on manageable goals and plan for their success
If you are supporting someone with ADHD, you can only help the person if you work with them
towards an agreed goal and, likewise, if you’re the person with ADHD it’s helpful to have a clear
aim. Plans and solutions can only succeed if the individual concerned is the driving force of the
strategy, so it’s important to identify meaningful, manageable goals.
Careful planning may be required for any strategy to succeed, and it should be adhered to
consistently. To use the example of Dave Farrow again, his goal was to improve his concentration
levels, and he realised he could do this if he studied in shorter, high-intensity sessions. By sticking to
this plan of action he was able to transform his ability to focus.
See it as a work in progress
If you explore the stories noted above in more detail, you will see that another common theme is that
people understand they are a 'work in progress'. They see that they have taken steps forward in
some areas, but they still struggle to focus, be organised - or whatever else it may be. Peter
Shankman is a good example of this, as he is consistently open about sharing his ongoing difficulties
with ADHD.
It is important for people with ADHD to be shown that it is possible to continue to use their
strengths to overcome areas of difficulty and that they shouldn’t give up. In many ways, this applies
to all people, regardless of ADHD or any other condition.
14.4 Some Tips on How to Help People with ADHD Achieve
Success
Finally, in this module, we are going to look at how you can help those individuals with
ADHD progress in life so that they can follow their own ambitions and goals.
To do this, we recommend following the suggestions below. Please note that you may have to adjust
things slightly depending on the individual and the circumstances that they are facing, as no two
people will be facing the exact same challenges.
Listen to the individual and their problems
This may sound obvious, but you should always be directed by the individual and you should address
their concerns, as this is the only way in which anything can be resolved. Never just guess at what
you think should happen, as this will always end up in failure. You can never generalise about
people, rather you can learn from the person with ADHD. Finally, you should never try to force your
own agenda on them or to ‘fix’ a symptom that only you think is important.
Discuss a plan and never just guess at it
Having a plan is the only way that things can move forward, but at the same time, a plan also
requires a certain degree of organisation. This is something that some people are generally going to
find difficult when dealing with ADHD, so sit down with them and talk it over, before any plan is
finalised. Ensure that the plan involves goals and strategies which the person agrees are achievable.
Tell them that it is fine to make mistakes
The potential for disappointment is often a trigger for an individual with this condition, so preparing
them to make mistakes will make life easier. Mistakes happen - what is important is how these are
dealt with, hopefully in a positive way.
Use reminders and have goals
Goals vary, can change, and can be achieved by all. In addition, you can also spend time reminding
the individual what they are aiming for, in order to help keep them stay on track - as you have to
accept that they may be finding it difficult to maintain focus. Reminders can vary depending on the
individual. For example, a child might find a reminder chart useful, but an adult might find
automatic phone alert reminders more beneficial.
Reward them for their achievements
As each step or goal is achieved, if appropriate, it is important to reward the individual for sticking
to the plan. Also, you should help the person be in control of the plan, although you can be there to
support them. There are enough instances where the person with ADHD will feel alienated, so you
do not want to add to it.
Show them what other people have done as inspiration
Although you must be careful not to seem patronising, it may be useful to refer to the famous people
above and discuss their difficulties and achievements. You show them what people have achieved so
that it works as inspiration. Being inspired can make a difference to the person, especially when it is
somebody that they have heard about - and even better is if they have something in common. If you
feel it might help, you can discuss the achievements of those with ADHD above to let them know that
ADHD is not a barrier to success.
SUMMARY
In this module, we have focused primarily on looking at those individuals who have demonstrated
that being diagnosed with ADHD can also be a part of their success.
The famous people discussed above have taken their diagnosis and changed their lives - and they
have done so in a variety of different ways. We identified some common themes and key lessons to
take away from their success stories.
It is always possible for people with ADHD to make what they want of their life - and the idea that
they are severely limited is unhelpful and incorrect.
In the next and final module, we are going to recap the most important lessons that you should learn
regarding ADHD.
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