Vacation Post: ADHD as a Gift vs a Superpower
I’ve gone fishing….literally.
Welcome to Tech Atypically 👋, your weekly blog that explores the intersection of ADHD, product management, and the complexities of a neurodiverse life. In each issue, I dive into the science, stories, and strategies that can help you navigate the challenges of ADHD and being a product manager.
I’m on vacation and resting
Hi friend I’m currently writing this to you from the hills of Red River, New Mexico. I orginally planned to publish something while I was on vacation. I told myself, “I should” be able to get this done and rest.
I was wrong.
Instead of trying to write I’m taking the week off to enjoy time with my family. I’ll be back next week with my orginally scheduled broadcast. Until then, enjoy this post I made on Linkedin recently about ADHD as gift vs a superpower.
ADHD as a gift vs a superpower
I've been recently trying to see my ADHD as a gift instead of a superpower.
I'm trying to move away from the "it's a superpower" mindset because it implies that having ADHD is something everyone should love to have. It's not, it has it's up and downs. I can't change though. So it's my gift, whether I like it or not, but I can choose what to do with it.
ADHD gives me the gift to learn new things quickly, be constantly curious, able to adapt to changes and new situations quickly. I have heightened empathy and connect with others very quickly (like engineers). It makes me a great horizontal PM in bigger companies where I have to negotiate with different teams constantly.
ADHD gives me the gift of anxiety and thinking almost everything I do will fail, so I shouldn’t start it. It’s also the gift that helps me come up with the edge cases in features because I have thought up all the ways I could fail.
ADHD gives me the gift of imposter syndrome where constantly feel like at any moment, everything I've done is going to fall apart and I'll be found out as a fraud. It’s also the gift that helps keep me motivated to continue to learn and grow. To be better tomorrow than I am today.
I can't change my gifts but I can accept them for what they are and learn as much as possible about them. It’s in my power to master my gifts so I can choose to use them when I need them most, or when don’t need them at all.
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⏭️Next Week
What is a product manager?