Redefining ADHD in the Workplace According to Human Design — Part 1
The majority of adults with ADHD are misunderstood at work. When in the workplace, they can be perceived by their employers as less productive than their peers. They’re often seen as lazy or not qualified enough for the job. As a result, many people with ADHD who work feel like they’ve failed in the workplace, even though these assumptions are untrue.
So what if we could reframe our thinking about what it means to have ADHD in the workplace? What if we could show that, in fact, people with ADHD can be incredibly successful in the workplace? Here are some tips on how to reframe your thoughts on ADHD and find success in the workforce.
What is ADHD?
First, it’s important to understand what ADHD actually is. ADHD is a learning disorder characterized by the difficulties of focusing and paying attention. If you have this disorder, your brain struggles to process things in a linear way, resulting in short attention spans. People with ADHD can spend a long time thinking about something, and then struggle to recall it after they’ve gotten distracted.
One psychologist recently made the claim that ADHD isn’t real, and the actual cause of ADHD is a combination of genetic and environmental factors. According to Michael Ruff, M.D., a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Indiana University, he believes that “DNA is just a part of the story. [He is convinced that] Some cases of ADHD are a byproduct of our fast-paced, stressed-out, consumer-driven lifestyles.” And as a reminder, even with as much research as we have today on ADD and ADHD, there still is no conclusive evidence on what truly causes ADHD. And according to the Human Design system, people are meant to function differently. With Human Design, we view these differences not as “disorders,” but as rather natural diversity in human behavior.
How Does Having ADHD Affect the Workplace?
People with ADHD are often misunderstood at work because others believe ADHD means someone isn’t capable of doing their job. When in fact, ADHD actually means a person’s brain is simply wired in a different way than others.
They are often known to be hyperactive or impulsive, but this means their brains process information extremely quickly. When they’re focused, they’re able to focus on the important tasks. Since people with ADHD tend to think in a different way than the general population, they’re able to come up with creative solutions to problems or find more ways to be efficient much faster than those without ADHD. Overall, ADHD is actually very useful in the workplace.
So why is there such a negative connotation to having ADHD in the workplace? This is largely due to the way society has framed the way we look at and understand ADHD.
Questioning the Mainstream Narrative Using the Human Design System
According to Human Design, there are 2 billion unique configurations (or personality differences) that impact our productivity. These are things such as the energy type, functions, decision-making strategies, environments, strengths, and individual traits, etc. And Human Design strives to amplify the importance of individuality in society. The unique differences that you are born with are celebrated, not condoned.
At first, it may seem easier to fit people into neat boxes that categorize them and then expect everyone to follow a specific “norm,” but then those who function differently or operate differently are labelled as having a disorder.
Society creates certain standards for what is acceptable behavior and patterns versus what’s not acceptable. Unfortunately, these collectively made-up standards are even more prominent in work environments with expectations of how work should be done. It seems that in today’s society, the way you complete something is just as important as the actual finished product. But if both ways create the same outcome, what’s the harm if the way someone gets to the same end result is different? The outcome produces the same result, so why is the way in which each person works best criticized?
Having these expectations of conformity in human behavior is to deny the nature of humanity itself. Humanity is made up of billions of uniquely different individuals that share similar genetic compounds. Meaning, we are the same (the end result), but we’re also entirely different people (the way we become ourselves). If we accept homogenization of humanity, are we not also stripping each human of their unique individuality?
Instead of making everyone loose their uniqueness, we could allow all forms of creativity, strengths, talents, and personal gifts to shine. And in this way, we would work together more harmoniously. Someone who lacks strength in one area could be supplemented by someone else’s strength in that same area. This would be the epitome of teamwork.
One example is that our current society has held the assumption that people with ADHD simply don’t have the mental ability and focus necessary to succeed in the workplace. For instance, society limits the way someone is productive or creative to certain hours or certain days of the week and in certain places like offices. But if we were to shift our perspective of what it means to be successful, how it happens, and how employees can be productive and creative, we’d be able to let every person shine with their abilities. And thus, instead of seeing people with ADHD as those having a deficit or a disorder, why not think of them as having a gift of a different modus operandi?
They are people who simply process thoughts and life differently. They see the world through a different lens, they see creative solutions in a different way, and they work more efficiently in different ways as well. Perhaps we can open our minds to see there are people who are not meant to have a rigid or nonlinear flow of work.
Closing
In reality, the people with ADHD are often highly motivated, incredibly analytical, hard-working, innovative, and entrepreneurial. They’re often great leaders, excel in cross-functional teams, and have experience in a variety of different work environments.
So how do work environments currently affect those with ADHD? And how can we change the work environment to support people with ADHD to help bring out their creative qualities?
These are the questions we’ll be answering in Part 2. Make sure to follow along for the breakdown of how to improve the workplace for those with ADHD — and those without it too.
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