Managing The
ADD Dilemma
Inc. Magazine - by David Dent
Some eight
million Americans have attention deficit disorder. One of them may work for
you. Or be you.
In many ways, Dan seems like a perfect
employee. He’s energetic, full of ideas, and loves to brainstorm. “you put a
paper clip in front of me and I’ll come up with a tone of ideas about how we can
use it,” he boasts.
But Dan (who asked that his last name
not be used) admits that he can be a real pain for his managers. He’ll become
so enthusiastic that he interrupts his colleagues or fails to let them talk at
all. In a 20-year-carreer in marketing, he’s dazzled colleagues with proposals
for new products. But he’s always had problems following through. So a year
ago, a therapist suggested Dan get screened for attention deficit disorder. The
test came back positive.
An estimated eight million Americans
have ADD, and one of them might work for you – or, for that matter, be you (see
“The ADD-Small Biz Connection,” page 32). The condition is roughly where
depression was in the early 1990s: Awareness is mounting and the condition is
coming out of the closet. Indeed, when ADD emerged as a distinct condition in
the late 1980s, it wasn’t even considered a problem for adults; psychiatrists
believed adolescents would outgrow it once their brains matured. But according
to Edward N. Hallowell, author of Driven to Distraction, one of the first
books to document ADD in adults, 60% of children with ADD carry the condition
into adulthood – and into the workplace.
It’s not uncommon for corporate America,
where large human resources departments are the norm, to contract with coaches
and counselors to help workers with ADD. For the most part, smaller business
have yet to respond. But ignoring the problem is getting to be less and less of
an option. Attention deficit disorder is now covered by the Americans With
Disabilities Act. That means that firms with 15 or more employees are required
by federal guidelines to make “reasonable accommodations” for people with ADD,
just as they would for any other disability.
That does not have to be bad for your
business. Attention deficit disorder does not affect one’s cognitive
abilities. The brains of adults with ADD, according to the National Institute
of Mental Health, simply use less energy in the regions that regulate attention
and motor activity. As a result, those with ADD often find it difficult to
focus on mundane subjects for an extended period of time. They also tend to be
easily distracted, impulsive, and disorganized. On the other hand, people with
ADD often become hyper focused when working on matters of intense interest.
“I’ve worked with many people who, once they discover the disorder and put a
program in place, really discover their talents and soar,” says Frank Coppola, a
therapist and ADD coach in New York City.
Dan, who now works as a VP of business
development for a Santa Barbara design firm, says his won awareness of the
condition has changed everything. He now carries a digital tape recorder with
him at all times to record his ideas, which keeps him from pestering others. “I
listen back later,” he says. “Some of the ideas are great and I present them.”
He also has set up his computer to send reminders to keep him from getting
sidetracked. “it reminds me to get back on task if I am doodling or starting a
new project,” he says. Still, Dan remains in the closet. He works on his
condition in private, with a therapist. “Telling my boss,” he fears, “might
change the way he looks at me.”
In fact, penalizing or otherwise
stigmatizing an employee for having ADD could land you in legal trouble. And
accommodating ADD is neither difficult nor expensive. For Dick Bickford,
national sales manager at Fischer Connectors, a manufacturer of electronic
connectors for the medical and military industries, it was simply a matter of
asking for a flexible schedule. Rather than working the standard day, Bickford,
who was diagnosed with ADD 10 years ago, now works longer hours but takes
frequent breaks. “If you perform, a good boss should be open to helping you,”
he says.
The problem for employers is that even
if you see the tell-tale signs of ADD, you are restricted by law from asking
employees if they have the condition. According to the Americans With
Disabilities Act, it is the responsibility of the employee to inform you; then
it’s up to you to take steps to put “reasonable” accommodations in place.
What’s reasonable? A longer day so an employee can take frequent breaks is
common. So is flextime. Others invest in computer programs that send reminders
about meetings and deadlines.
Most adults with ADD remain
undiagnosed. “this puts the employer in a tough position,” says Dave Giwerc,
and ADD coach in Slingerlands, N.Y. (Business owners cannot be held responsible
for not aiding an employee who has not divulged the condition.) Even when they
have been diagnosed, problems can arise. Ed Macomb, owner of Global Contacts, a
New York City-based oil supply company, found himself in such a position. He
had hired an assistant who had ADD but did not reveal it. Macomb found that the
company was not receiving payments from many clients. He personally called a
few to complain and they all said the same thing: We never received your
invoice. Macomb reprimanded the assistant, who eventually resigned. A few
weeks later, Macomb ran into one of the assistant’s relatives, who told him she
had ADD but often failed to take her medication. “If I had known,” Macomb says,
“I might have been able to help her.” – David Dent
The ADD-Small Biz
Connection
Thomas Edison probably had it. So did
Walt Disney and Henry Ford. More recently, David Neeleman, CEO of JetBlue, has
publicly acknowledged his ADD. In fact, ADD often is associated with positive
traits that can make a good entrepreneur, says David Giwerc, who, after being
diagnosed with the condition 10 years ago, launched an ADD coaching business
that targets entrepreneurs. Giwerc, who also serves as president of the
Attention Deficit Disorder Association, spoke to Inc. about the link
between ADD and entrepreneurship. – D.D.
Q: Why are people with ADD
disproportionately drawn to owning their own business?
A: These are generally people who do
not work well in typical environments. But not only can people with ADD pay
attention, they can also hyper focus with super-intense levels of
concentration. At some point in the start of any business, you need someone
who can do that.
Q: But doesn’t any good business
require some kind of structure?
A: Entrepreneurs with ADD create a
structure and an environment that works the way they do. For example, I do a
lot of my thinking while I’m moving. So I’ve put a headset on and conducted
meetings while I’m on a treadmill. I couldn’t do that at a corporation. They
would think I was nuts.
Q: Does ADD make people better
entrepreneurs?
A: I don’t know if I can say better.
But I can say they can be very effective entrepreneurs – if they understand
their ADD. It can also make you a horrible entrepreneur – one that never gets
past first base – if you don’t understand it. If you’re in an environment
that is not supportive, ADD is not going to manifest in a good way.
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