Determination and persistence are two qualities that all successful people have. But if you have ADD, these could be very difficult to maintain.
Let's start with determination.
Answers.com shows many meanings for the term, but the one we want to focus on today is: "firmness of purpose or resolve." This kind of determination leads to motivation, and when you add that to persistence, you have success. It's a simple formula! And here is the point where ADD hyperfocus comes into play. If you are determined to achieve something, you visualize it and make it real. When that happens, you need to persist until you get what you want and ignore everything else.
That's not to say that you ignore personal hygiene or food or any of the things that you need to do or have just to survive, but you really need to take your work day or whatever time you have to devote to achieving your dream and use that hyperfocus, until your dream is reality. See your target. See your reward. Try to maintain that ADD hyperfocus until you get what you want.
Some ADD people are quite good at doing just that. But let's face it. When you have ADD, it's very easy to be distracted, and these distractions come at you in insidious ways, if you allow them.
If your partner or maybe a parent is a negative type who thinks that everything you come up with is "pie in the sky"? Well, you either have to find a way to ignore them completely, or you have to keep your project to yourself. This can be difficult because your enthusiasm will have you bursting to tell everyone, but just keep the goal to yourself until you've hit it. How much sweeter will it be when you've achieved something they never thought you could do or maybe hope that you couldn't do because they could never do it themselves?
Forget the word can't. You can do anything you set your mind to, and if you have ADD, you undoubtedly have the intelligence and creativity to do what many other people can't do. Just don't listen to negativity.
Interruptions are also distracting, especially for people with ADD. So, you need to set some ground rules with friends and family. Tell them not to call you during the time you'll be working on your project every day (and you should make a set time to work in). Tell them you're working on something important and can't be disturbed.
Or, maybe you have kids and worry that calls are about them. So, use caller I.D., if you're the only one who can take calls. Then, decide whether or not it's the school or the daycare center and don't answer anything else. No, a call from an old friend does not take precedence over your project.
Forget all those other distractions, too, like reading email or playing mindless computer games. It's really easy to distract ourselves without anyone else being involved. So, get an accountability partner, someone who understands that the dream is very important to you, and who will kick your butt back into gear when you are stalled or doing things you shouldn't be doing. Ask them to check in with you every 15 minutes, if you have to.
Just don't be down on yourself when you are distracted. If you have instantaddsuccess.com/" target="_blank ADD, it's just inevitable. From the time you get that first scintilla of an idea, when it grows and grows in your mind, until it becomes a "burning desire," you have to learn to either keep it to yourself or don't let anyone, no matter who they are, tell you that your dream is impossible. You can do anything you want to do. Use your ADD hyperfocus. Remove the distractions that you can. And when your accountability person comes to push you, just visualize that goal. Think about the reward you'll feel from achieving it, and get it done!
Tellman Knudson is CEO of OvercomeEverything, Inc. and a certified hypnotherapist and NLP practitioner who has helped many clients achieve instantaddsuccess.comADD Success. Visit his comprehensive library of ADD information and join the forum at InstantADDSuccess.com ( instantaddsuccess.com instantaddsuccess.com)