That said, there was a great article online that just came out, which talks about how some entrepreneurs consider their ADHD to be a superpower. It was in Smart Money, was called: “Why Some Entrepreneurs Call ADHD a “Superpower”" and it talks about some successful business people with ADHD.

How can these entrepreneurs consider their ADHD a superpower?

This article shares the positive, as well as some of the possible negatives associated with the condition, as seen in this quote:

On the plus side, people with ADHD often have an immense amount of energy, and they think outside the box — because their ideas could never fit inside one box. On the minus side, they have an inability to focus on what bores them, can make sloppy errors when rushing (which is almost always) and have a stronger-than-average tendency to put a foot in their mouth.

Some of the entrepreneurs mentioned include high profile business people with ADHD, including:

• Paul Orfalea: founder of Kinkos
• David Neeleman: Founder of JetBlue airlines
• Peter Shankman: angel investor and technology expert and principal of The Geek Factory

This article also discusses some smaller business owners – like Steve Ferree – who bought a franchise of Roto rooter, and found that his ADHD impacted some of his ability to manage his business.

It is important to do one task at a time – and not to multitask – especially if you have ADHD. My favorite example of this from the article is from Peter Shankman:

Shankman takes that concept to an extreme. Asked to write a book in two weeks, he reserved a business class flight to Tokyo. When he got there, he drank a few espressos in the lounge, turned around and came back. He finished the book in 30 hours. The trip cost $4,000 and was “worth every penny,” he says.

All in all, this article highlights how the ADHD brain can help people in business, and at the same time, it provides some balance… i.e. that ADHD can cause problems if the right strategies or treatments aren’t in place. I like this approach, because this is similar to the stance that I take in my book – that ADHD can have its strengths, but you do have to get the negative symptoms out of the way.

Please share your thoughts and comments below.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

You can read more about the campaign here.

One of the biggest concerns that people have around ADD and ADHD is stigma. And stigma interferes with people getting the right diagnosis, and the right treatment. When someone like Adam is willing to come forward and share his story, this paves the way to increase awareness, and it can make a difference for thousands of people’s lives.

Adam – I’m impressed! Keep up the great work to support people with ADHD.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

Technorati Tags: Adam Levine, ADHD, Famous people with ADHD, Maroon 5

He started to consider it after finding out that one of his young relatives had the condition. This is often how many adults come to learn that they have ADHD.

Bremner recently did a BBC special called: ADHD and me.

Although I don’t watch BBC (I’m in Canada), I really appreciate and admire Bremner for sharing his experience and diagnosis with the public. This helps others to realize that ADHD is real, and it helps to break down stigma.

You can read more about this story in this BBC article.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

Technorati Tags: ADHD, BBC, Rory Bremner

Does this mean that Lindsay has ADHD?

Most likely, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s unconfirmed.

It’s my hope that she can get good treatment for all of her current challenges, and get her life on track.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

Technorati Tags: ADHD, Adult ADD, Adult ADHD, Lindsay Lohan

I am happy to see that celebrities with ADHD are starting to step forward more readily. That is a good indication that we are moving toward less stigma with this condition – which will hopefully help people to get the help that they need, and break down many of the myths that are out there about this common condition.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

The list of celebrities with ADHD includes:

• Michael Phelps, Olympic Swimmer and Gold Medalist
• Solange Knowles, Singer
• Ty Pennington, host of Extreme Home Makeover
• Howie Mandel, host of Deal or No Deal
• James Carville, Political Consultant
• Christopher Knight, child actor on Brady Bunch
• Cammi Granato, US Olympic Hockey Gold Medalist

Be sure to check out this article/slideshow, and also share it with other people – to help to raise awareness of successful people who have ADD/ADHD. This will be especially helpful if you have a child or teen who has ADHD and looks up to one of these celebrities. If you do share this with your child or teen, please come back to this blog post and let us know how he/she responded to seeing this.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

Technorati Tags: ADHD, Celebrities, Howie Mandel, Michael Phelps, Solange Knowles, Ty Pennington

Matusow has revealed his story in his biography, called: Mike Matusow: Check-Raising the Devil In this book, Mike shares his life challenges. He hopes that this book helps others to understand him, and to learn from his life experiences. He was quoted as saying:

“I spent two years working on it and I wanted to make sure that it reaches people and I hope people can learn from it and enjoy it. I wrote it to help people and help younger poker players so they don’t go through the same problems and situations that I went through.”

You can read more of Mike’s interview here.

From my perspective, I’m encouraged to see that another celebrity is coming forward and sharing his personal stories with psychiatric issues – particularly ADHD. This is so important for kids and teens to realize what’s possible for them, even if they have ADHD.

So, if you know an ADHD child or teen who loves watching the World Series of Poker (WSOP), let them know that Mike Matusow has ADHD, and they may want to read about it in his book.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

Technorati Tags: ADHD, Bipolar, Mike Matusow, Poker, World Series of Poker, WSOP

This disclosure has come in a ’roundabout’ way. This relates to the reports that Mr. Mayfield was suspended from driving due to finding amphetamines in his urine during a random urine drug screen. Mr. Mayfield has explained that he takes Adderall medication for ADHD, as well as Claritin D. This issue is before the courts. You can read the news updates here.

While Mr. Mayfield is going through a rough time right now, I am happy to hear that he has openly disclosed his diagnosis of ADHD. This can lead to advocacy and support for the many kids diagnosed with ADD or ADHD each year.

I do wonder how many of the Nascar drivers have ADD or ADHD?

Although there is research which shows that people with untreated ADHD are at risk of more accidents while driving, my clinical experience in ADHD suggests that people with ADHD often excel at ‘extreme sports’. Whereas driving to the store at 40 miles per hour may be boring, driving on a Nascar track at speeds in excess of 200 mph can be exciting and can command one’s attention. And as Mr. Mayfield explains – he is taking an ADHD medication while driving.

I do hope that things work out well for Mr. Mayfield, and that he uses this situation as a springboard for advocacy for ADD/ADHD. I hope that he can be a role model for the thousands of boys (And girls!) diagnosed with ADD and ADHD each year.

What are your thoughts and experiences? Please share them below.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

Technorati Tags: ADD, Adderall, ADHD, Jeremy Mayfield, Medication, Nascar

Mr. Godin has been a creative thinker who has shared many innovative approaches and ideas. He also started up the site Squidoo, a web 2.0 company.

Recently, Mr. Godin revealed that he has ADHD. In a recent Business Week Article, Godin is quoted as saying: “I clearly have ADHD,” he says. “Lucky for me the world kind of organized around me rather than the other way around. It’s such an asset.”

Mr. Godin is another example of a successful, out of the box thinker who has ‘harnessed’ his ADHD to have it be a part of his success, rather than hampering it.

I want to thank Mr. Godin for being open about his ADHD, and sharing it with others. We need more people willing to do that.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

Technorati Tags: ADHD, ADD, Seth Godin

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.

So, members of Green Day have ADHD.

Cool! This help many more teens accept the diagnosis, as Green Day is a very popular band.

To read the original news story, click here.

To learn more about Green Day, visit their site here.

Tell your teen – and pass it along to support groups for teens with ADHD.

Best,

Dr. Kenny

Technorati Tags: ADHD, Green Day, Famous People with ADHD

©2012 ADD ADHD Blog.com. All Rights Reserved.