When considering individuals with ADHD, it's crucial to acknowledge their creative, empathetic, and passionate nature. While attention struggles may arise, their hyperactivity can serve as an asset when focused on a task. Collaborating with professionals who have ADHD can greatly benefit workplace dynamics. Despite common misconceptions surrounding neurodivergent individuals, those with ADHD possess unlimited potential. Noteworthy achievements by individuals with ADHD, such as leading Fortune 500 companies, producing Oscar-winning films, and venturing into space, demonstrate their capabilities. The ability to hyperfocus can be a valuable advantage professionally.
Understanding ADHD, a neurodevelopmental disorder typically diagnosed in childhood, is essential. Individuals with ADHD may exhibit impulsive actions, interruptions, and difficulty maintaining focus, but also showcase bursts of energy that spark innovative ideas. It's important to recognize the various types of ADHD, including predominantly inattentive, predominantly hyperactive, and combined type. Unfortunately, ADHD is often misunderstood in social and professional contexts, leading to misconceptions from childhood into the workplace. Despite these challenges, individuals with ADHD can excel in various career paths. While they can succeed in any field, here are five recommended career options for individuals with ADHD.
Top 5 Jobs For People With ADHD
Real Estate Agent
Being a real estate agent is a great career choice for someone with ADHD. Hyperactivity is a common side effect of having ADHD. People will get sudden bursts of energy which can be extremely beneficial as a real estate agent. Real estate agents are expected to be full of energy especially when showcasing homes. Some real estate agents will showcase several homes a day and need more than a few cups of coffee to keep going.
If a real estate agent has ADHD they are more likely to keep that energy going. Also, real estate agents need to love talking. While working in real estate you are expected to mingle with potential clients, show people homes, and have an engaging social media presence. For people with predominantly hyperactive ADHD real estate is the perfect career path.
Sales Representative
Similarly to real estate agents, sales representatives engage with other people all day. Professionals who work in sales are selling something and that sale depends partially on their personality, not just the product. Think about going shopping. When someone helps you find a dressing room or assists you in finding something, you are more likely to purchase clothes from that store because of the good customer service.
The same goes for sales. A grumpy or rude sales representative could make a potential sale go south. However many people with ADHD are very bubbly and social. One side effect of ADHD is being overly talkative. The gift of gab will help a sales representative immensely.
Executive Leader
So many executives have ADHD. That is because a lot of people with ADHD are creative problem solvers. Historically prominent executives have been diagnosed with ADHD including JetBlue founder David Neeleman and IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad. Like several other careers listed here, hyperactivity in ADHDers is helpful in executive leadership. Let’s say you’re running a Fortune 500 company.
You have meetings back to back every day starting as early as 6 a.m. You don’t have the space to run out of energy or ideas. ADHD can help with both of those things. In recent years, there has been more discussion surrounding neurodivergent executives like Elon Musk, Bill Gross, and Richard Branson.
Breaking News Reporter
This is a fitting career path for people with ADHD who don’t struggle with attention to detail. Being a breaking news reporter requires meeting deadlines, and if you aren’t good at paying attention for long periods, reporting is not for you. Breaking news is the fastest-paced type of journalism. Some breaking news reporters write more than five stories a day.
Others are expected to be the first to break news in the country, if not the world. If someone has ADHD and is more of a people person, that can be an asset when building trust with sources. Many people do not trust talking to reporters, but a good reporter can gain trust in a matter of minutes. And someone with ADHD who is hyperactive will be really good at coming up with impromptu questions mid-interview.
Food Industry Worker
For ADHDers with social anxiety, working in front of a restaurant can be overwhelming. That’s why more shy ADHDers would do well working in kitchens. However, being a food industry worker needs the most attention to detail out of any other job on this list. A restaurant can get shut down easily, and business owners and chefs do not mess around when it comes to following rules and regulations. For creative ADHDers being a chef can be incredible. Many ADHDers like to get lost in an activity or topic that fascinates them. Cooking is an example of something ADHDers often thrive in due to their creative and spontaneous nature.
But not everyone can handle the heat. ADHDers who are dual diagnosis should think hard when considering a job in the food industry. Does your combined ADHD and another diagnosis cause you to grapple with anxiety? Would the loud noises and constant talking in a kitchen trigger you or make you get distracted from doing your job? For people with ADHD where that is the case, it’s better to pursue less intense careers.
And now you know a few recommended careers for people with ADHD. Although I mentioned some reasons these careers are a good fit for ADHDers, that does not mean anyone with ADHD should limit themselves. People with ADHD are capable of doing any and all kinds of jobs. From running for president to running military bases, people with ADHD can do even more than what is mentioned on this list. To those with ADHD always remember that your ADHD isn’t a setback, it’s a superpower.