How does an attorney with ADHD succeed?  Long before I became an ADHD coach, I observed that successful attorneys with ADHD shared two things in common. They were in the right job, working with the right people. Today, I would add a third element to this success formula: awareness of their ADHD challenges and their impact and knowing how to manage them.

What is the right job for an Attorney with ADHD?

Attorneys with ADHD succeed when they have the right job.  The right job for an attorney with ADHD depends a lot on the individual attorney. I have seen attorneys with ADHD thrive in many settings.  Those settings include trial work, Big Law Litigation Departments, in trusts and estates and even in tax law. It all depends on what the individual attorney finds to be interesting and challenging, AND, that aligns with their values. For some, those values relate to serving marginalized populations, and for others, it can be providing financial security for their families, or serving our country, or just an intellectual love of the law. Whatever it is that you value, it is important that your job align with your values. A job that checks all of those boxes will fuel your ADHD brain. This dopamine boost will give you the energy to tackle the complex (and sometimes tedious) tasks that attorneys handle on a day-to-day basis.

What is a supportive environment?

Attorneys with ADHD succeed when their environment supports them.  A supportive environment is where people around you know and understand your challenges and are willing to support you in overcoming them. Notice that I said the “people around you” instead of saying the people you work with. Ideally, you should be surrounded by people who support you both at home and at work, but that is not always possible. Home is often easier because the people who surround you love and care for you.

Work is more difficult because the emphasis on the billable hour may get in the way.  When the time isn’t billable, supervisors and colleagues are less likely to provide the necessary support that neurodiverse attorneys need.   The support I am referring to can include mentoring, planning meetings, regular feedback and creating standardized practices and procedures.  Partner Up offers Individual and Group Coaching and Body Doubling sessions to help fill this gap.  Coaching can provide lawyers with ADHD support from a professional ADHD coach/attorney and, in the group setting, other practicing attorneys facing the same challenges.

What would a supportive workplace look like?

There are many workplace attributes that can feel supportive to attorneys with ADHD. The best case scenario is a workplace where you can disclose your ADHD and your colleagues are open to learning more about ADHD. Equipped with this knowledge your colleagues understand how they can support you, and you can feel safe identifying those needs. (Partner Up offers CLE training on this.)

Here are some accommodations I have seen that helped others:

• deadlines on all projects;
• 8 hour email/texting blackout at night to enable sleep;
• support staff providing daily billing reminders;
• IT assistance in creating billing shortcuts,
• mentoring about setting priorities and the unwritten rules of the workplace;
• active affinity groups;
• weekly meetings with supervisors or colleagues to see how assignments are going, to ask questions and to plan next steps; and
• meetings with agendas and follow up messaging about assigned tasks.

How do I become aware of my ADHD challenges and how to manage them?

Coaching either individualized or in a group setting is a great way to learn about how your ADHD impacts you and to develop strategies to deal with it. Click here to set up an introductory talk with a Partner Up coach.

Reading books and articles from trusted sources works for some people. Two highly reliable websites are ADDA and CHADD.

• Some books that you might find helpful include:
  The driven to distraction books by Edward Hallowell
  Anti Planner –Dani Donovan https://anti-planner.com/shop/
  Your Brain’s not Broken by Tamara Rosier, PhD https://adhdcenterofwestmichigan.com/book-your-brains-not-broken/
  How to ADHD by Jessica McCabe https://www.amazon.com/How-ADHD-Insiders-Working-Against/dp/0593578945
• My favorite podcast is ADDitude’s Expert podcast.
• Finally, my other blogs contain good information for attorneys with ADHD.

Remember that the ABA Grit and Mindset study noted that the two traits that drive success in the legal profession were grit and an open mindset. You have the grit, i.e., the determination to succeed even when the going is tough. Now, it’s time to open your mind to new knowledge about yourself and your ADHD.