You may be trying your best but still not achieving your goals. Maybe you are too slow, inconsistent, or forgetful. You worry that something is wrong, but you don’t know what. In the past, you had trouble paying attention or completing tasks, but you made up for it. Now your work responsibilities are increasing, and you are falling behind.

Such are the situations of a medical resident who flunked her specialty boards, an entrepreneur building a social media company, an attorney at a boutique firm, and an assistant professor seeking promotion. Although these individuals are smart, well-trained, and motivated, they are seriously underperforming. This confuses and frustrates them and those who supervise them. Standard methods for providing assistance, including on-site mentoring, have not proved sufficient.

Under such conditions, a series of evaluations is necessary. First, visit a physician to rule out an illness—for example, fatigue caused by sleep apnea or a hormonal problem, such as thyroid dysfunction. In addition, a physician might administer screening for emotional conditions like anxiety or depression. Sometimes therapy or medications are prescribed.

However, if problems persist, then it’s time to dig deeper. Consider a psychological or neuropsychological evaluation to understand how your brain works and your strengths and weaknesses, in light of your job or position requirements.

What is a psychological evaluation?

A standard psychological assessment typically evaluates general thinking and personality functioning.

A psychologist administers tests individually. Psychologists use the results to evaluate intellectual potential and diagnose possible psychiatric conditions. Such tests can help a psychologist determine whether a client has issues with anger management, interpersonal skills, or personality traits that contribute to the problem. “Other tests evaluate whether clients are experiencing emotional difficulties such as general anxiety disorder or depression.”

These tests often reveal cognitive discrepancies. For example, a person may have high learning potential or be able to connect the dots, but need a lot of time to process an idea. A standard assessment can diagnose a condition such as ADHD (based on behavior and some test scores), but it lacks the specificity to understand what underlying neurological process is causing the symptoms and therefore cannot provide customized recommendations for treatment. To get that information requires a neuropsychological evaluation.

Another person may have excellent math and technical skills, but their executive function operates at a less sophisticated level. They have a hard time managing executive function on the test.

What is a neuropsychological evaluation?

It’s a comprehensive battery of tests that provides a detailed picture of a person’s aptitude, achievement, and social and emotional status compared with others at the same developmental stage. It answers the question, “How is the brain functioning?”

Only a trained neuropsychologist can administer such assessments. Like a psychological evaluation, a neuropsychological assessment includes a clinical history and interview, plus standardized checklists, paper-and-pencil tasks, hands-on activities, and computer-based tasks.

For people who aren’t performing at a level commensurate with their potential and known abilities, educators, psychologists, and physicians recommend a neuropsychological evaluation when other assessment tools don't clearly explain the performance gap. Neuropsychological testing helps identify the origin and development of a disorder, and guides customized recommendations.

People with achievement problems feel confused and frustrated because their difficulties don’t make sense. For example, a bright professional who fails a licensing test or doesn’t finish reports may attribute poor performance to laziness or incompetence and may not consider other explanations. Often, only a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation can uncover the subtle yet complex issues causing performance problems. Additionally, many people who are intellectually gifted have several disabilities that coexist (e.g., ADHD, learning disabilities, and depression). Only an in-depth evaluation of special areas, including attention, learning, memory, visual-spatial skills, organization, and emotional status, can identify such problems.

How Can the Results Help?

The results can assist you in several important ways—for example, by:

• Providing a differential diagnosis. (Is it an attention, learning or emotional difficulty?)

• Recommending appropriate accommodations or remediation.

• Providing references and resources.

Once people understand how the findings may account for the difficulties they have experienced, they can move toward:

• Understanding reasons for work or test-taking problems.

• Establishing a framework for collaboration with work personnel (and family).

• Dealing with longstanding, complex and difficult problems.

• Reducing anxiety about performance problems and developing realistic expectations.

What Are Attitudinal Barriers to Evaluations?

Some people react negatively to the idea of being evaluated. The following are comments people often make and some responses to them:

I’ve never heard of it.

Just because you haven’t heard of an evaluation doesn’t mean it isn’t valuable.

I don’t want to find out that something is wrong.

It is not uncommon to want to avoid “bad news.” But you will also receive good news about your strengths, along with recommendations for coping and improvement.

I already know what’s wrong.

You might know something is wrong, but you probably don’t know how severe these difficulties are or whether you meet guidelines for accommodations at work or school. Studies have shown that individuals are unreliable reporters of the intensity of their own performance difficulties. In addition, you lack the tools to take the positive next steps. An in-depth evaluation gives you the information you need to develop an effective action plan.

It won’t make any difference in the long run.

Having an evaluation does make a difference. You sit with an expert and become aware of your strengths, why problems occur, and how to manage your difficulties more effectively. Hope becomes a reality.

The testing is too expensive.

First, an evaluation is often covered. Second, not knowing the causes of failure or frustration costs you time and energy. The money is well spent when you discover ways to save your career and optimize your potential.

Failing or underperforming professionals may have subtle but pervasive problems that hold them back. Because of their intellectual or creative talents, they may attain sought-after positions, but undocumented difficulties or disabilities keep them from meeting the high demands of their jobs.

When failure or underperformance can’t be explained, psychological or neuropsychological evaluations can reveal the reasons and lead to great success and life satisfaction.

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Greg is not as productive as he needs to be during the rapid growth of the venture capital business he manages. He’s slow at reading and completing reports. He’s not following up, forgetting or missing details, and losing opportunities. He feels overwhelmed and frustrated. In addition, he has no sleep routine. He’s up half the night finishing reports and then fatigued and grouchy during the day.

Some people think Greg is resting on his laurels since he had a few big deals and earned his MBA from a highly competitive university. Disappointed in his productivity, they feel he’s lazy or arrogant or uncommunicative or uncaring. In short, he has some kind of personality deficit.

However, Greg’s lagging productivity stems from performance gaps related to a hidden disability. Although very bright, he is slow to write and process information. He is considered twice exceptional in that he has intellectual gifts and learning disabilities.

Previously, he depended on his strong verbal skills and had the time and energy to complete school papers and projects. He circumvented his hidden disabilities.

Currently, his skills and talents are not sufficient to handle a stressful, fast-paced leadership position; Greg doesn’t have the time to finish his own work, let alone attend to management responsibilities. This is not an unusual situation for a rising leader who has not needed to confront his vulnerabilities.

Reading and math problems are hidden learning disabilities that can exist independently or coexist with ADHD. When they are severe, they may significantly impede work and life productivity. Their existence influences how others evaluate a person’s work/life activities

When evaluating performance in performance reviews, instead of assuming poor productivity or performance stems from negligence, a poor attitude, or laziness, could an undiagnosed “hidden” disability be at the root of the problem? Here’s a possible scenario:

What are examples of learning disabilities?

When you have difficulty accurately hearing, understanding, or remembering verbal messages, the term auditory processing disorder is used. In a work situation, a person would have trouble “getting it” when conversations are rapid, meetings include multiple speakers, or accurate memory is required.

Other learning disabilities may involve an inability to read, calculate, speak, listen, or move as would be expected based on normal growth and intelligence. For example, dyslexia is a specific learning disability that impairs decoding, reading comprehension, spelling, and rate of reading.

When difficulties affect the ability to understand numbers, learn math facts, and tell time, the term is dyscalculia; when difficulties affect handwriting and fine motor skills, the term is dysgraphia.

How many adults have hidden learning disabilities?

The number of adults affected by learning disabilities and disorders is in the 15% to 20% range. These disabilities involve processing problems that make reading, writing, and math challenging. In addition, they may interfere with higher cognitive skills including abstract reasoning, long- or short-term memory, organization, and time planning. Generally, people with learning disabilities have average or above-average intelligence. For these people, a gap exists between their potential and actual achievement. Learning disabilities are confusing and frustrating since the discrepancies don’t make sense. For example, others ask, “How could you be smart or have advanced degrees, and be so slow at finishing tasks?”

Learning or attention disabilities are hidden. However, other talents and gifts help people overcome these challenges. For example, here are a few famous entertainers who dealt with and overcame the disabling effects of dyslexia: Keira Knightley, Anderson Cooper, Jay Leno, Whoopi Goldberg, Tom Cruise, Cher, Steven Spielberg, and Walt Disney.

What are some indicators of learning disabilities?

Difficulties association with learning disabilities may include one or more of the following:

• Understanding and following spoken directions

• Remembering information from one day to the next

• Understanding what is read, especially if the material is boring

• Slow reading rate

• Sloppy writing

• Poor spelling or difficulty sounding out words,

• Reversals of letters or numbers

• Difficulty sequencing tasks

• Lack of flow in conversations

What should you do if you suspect your performance is faltering due to a hidden learning disability?

Like Greg, while in college or graduate school, you may have experienced hidden learning disabilities, but denied, ignored, or worked around. However, if symptoms begin to interfere with job success, then it is time to investigate the roots of the problem. Rather than “shaming and blaming” yourself for what you can’t do, find out the reasons for the difficulty.

Here are 10 tips to begin dealing with your questions about a hidden learning disability

• Focus on your strengths, interests and passions—and how they contributed to your accomplishments.

• List the strategies that you have employed to work around your vulnerabilities.

• Identify the conditions under which you perform best and when performance gaps occur

• Remember that your performance gaps don’t mean you are “stupid,” they are the result of an uneven learning profile.

• Gain information about learning disabilities. Read or listen to audio books and articles

• Join support groups such as Learning Disabilities Association

• Contact an expert for screening. For example, contact a psychologist, educational psychologist, teacher consultant, or social worker. Discover if others in the family have similar problems.

• Consider getting tested to diagnose the nature and extent of the learning disability

• Understand there are a wide variety of strategies to cope with and manage aspects of a disability. For example, if you have difficulty listening and writing simultaneously, speech recognition software allows you to dictate into a digital recorder and have it transcribed.

• Decide if you want to disclose your disability at work or need to arrange for reasonable accommodations. For example, if you are especially sensitive to noise, you might use noise cancelling headphones or ear plugs to help you focus on reading.

When dealing with a hidden learning disability, the goal is to:

• Identify your strengths and vulnerabilities

• Use (and enjoy) your strengths

• Work around the disabling conditions

• Enjoy greater productivity and less stress

• Enjoy the support of experts and others

Jim taps his pencil on the desk during his one-and-a-half-hour chemistry class. He daydreams and doodles. He just can’t pay attention, listen, or take notes. He gets bored and begins to fool around. He forgets his assignments. He was an A/B student in middle school, but now his grades are lower because he fails to hand in homework and misses directions on tests. He’s too embarrassed to ask for additional directions. He’s miserable, and no one seems to understand.

What Are Teen ADHD Symptoms?

ADHD Teens experience more pronounced symptoms of hyperactivity, inattentiveness, and impulsivity due to hormonal changes and rapid growth spurts. School life also becomes more complex. There is higher competition, less structure, and greater expectations for independent behavior. ADHD teens have difficulty when:

• Planning

• Taking the initiative

• Completing and handing in homework

• Working with several different teachers or assignments

• Creating new relationships

ADHD teens may not recognize social signals of teachers or peers and feel left out of activities. They may have low self-esteem, difficulty with peers, and lack self-discipline. They may be bullied. Parents may be concerned but sometimes in the dark.

At the same time, ADHD teens experience the typical characteristics of adolescence including:

• Issues of personal identity: “Who am I and what will I be?”

• Peer relationships: “How do I make or keep friends? Why don’t they like me?”

• Testing boundaries: “If I’m old enough to drive, why can’t I stay out as late as other kids?” “You can’t tell me what to do!”

• Gaining independence: “Leave me alone, I can do it myself.”

ADHD is a complex medical condition. Like children and adults, ADHD adolescents differ significantly in the number, combination, and severity of their ADHD problems. Although they share the same label, every student with ADHD has different strengths, weaknesses, and interests.

Undiagnosed Teens with ADHD

For the undiagnosed, the situation becomes more difficult. Once in high school, the pace and cognitive load increase, and students (and their parents) are baffled. Students with ADHD have trouble maintaining their attention and listening. They may miss or misunderstand directions and refuse to ask the teacher for help. They may also feel ashamed and act defensively when they misplace assignments, miss appointments, and lose keys, glasses, phones, and jackets.

When school becomes increasingly more difficult, undiagnosed ADHD teens can become sad, angry, anxious, frustrated, and confused. The world doesn’t make sense. They say:

• “I feel as smart as others, but I can’t seem to do the work.”

• “Why is it so hard to finish the work, remember it, or not lose it?

• “What’s the big deal about homework if I do OK on the tests?”

• “Why can’t I finish or do well on the SAT or ACT?”

Evaluation is necessary to see the degree to which problems exist. School personnel, psychologists, or neuropsychologists conduct tests to provide diagnoses and recommendations.

Parenting Teens with ADHD

Parents play a major role in their children’s growth and self-reliance; it may take extra help to understand the challenges and plan for steady growth.

Here are 8 tips to help teens with ADHD:

• Time Management: Provide a structured schedule for school wake-up, meals, and bedtime. This is difficult for teens who participate in athletics and other extracurricular activities. Post a calendar of weekly activities and color-code each family member’s activities. Post reminders or alarms to keep on track

• Physical Health: Organize sleep, nutrition, and exercise activities. A rested, well-nourished, and physically strong body helps the mind function more effectively. Aim for at least 8 hours of restful sleep, since teens need it for growth and development. Ensure that digital devices are turned off at least 1 hour before going to sleep and charged outside of the sleeping area. Watch for medication side effects that may affect sleep, appetite, or mood.

• Distraction: Reduce digital distractions by setting limits and monitoring device use. Unlimited or excessive use of TV, phones, and games is a “shiny object” that drains time and energy from homework.

• School: Work with school personnel to ensure that reasonable accommodations are available. Most commonly, accommodations include extended time for tests or separate, non-distracting test rooms.

• Academics: Arrange tutors or homework helpers to build skills, reduce stress, and encourage completion of homework and projects.

• Emotional Health: Consider family or individual therapy to help deal with frustration, manage anger, and not fly off the handle over minor conflicts.

• Organization: Provide structure of space and materials. Help clear the clutter in the study area, shared spaces at home, and backpack. Be the assistant, rather than the nag. Provide folders or cabinets for school, health, and other papers or forms.

• Social Behavior: Be watchful about friends who get into trouble and provide firm rules. At the same time, provide for positive group experiences, including family or school outings.

Special Problems

Everything about adolescence is exacerbated with ADHD. Teens with ADHD may:

• Engage in higher-risk behavior

• Be immature in judgments

• Be inattentive or careless when driving

• Fail to cope with social or emotional problems

• Overuse or abuse gaming, alcohol, or drugs.

Students with ADHD are two to four times more likely to have a car accident than teens without ADHD. However, studies show that teen drivers with ADHD who take their medication are less likely to have accidents.

Do young women have ADHD?

Yes, girls can have ADHD, although it is commonly overlooked. More males than females are identified, and fewer girls show symptoms of hyperactivity. Studies have shown that girls with ADHD have a harder time than boys in some ways. They’re more likely to have anxiety and depression, as well as low self-esteem.

Co-Occurring Conditions

Teens with ADHD may have several disabilities or exceptionalities that occur along with their attention-related problems. These include learning disabilities: difficulty reading, listening, performing math calculations, writing, or remembering. Other difficulties include nonverbal abilities such as hand-eye coordination and managing time and space. Students with learning disabilities have average or above average intellect, but for some reason cannot perform as expected when compared to their same-age peers.

Gifted and Talented

When ADHD teens possess extraordinary intellect or talent, they are labeled “twice exceptional.” Visible at an early age, their gifts allow them to compensate for ADHD symptoms. If a gifted student is trying but underachieving, then consider testing for subtle ADHD, learning disabilities, or an emotional difficulty such as anxiety.

Treatment

There are several options for treating teen ADHD. One option involves therapy or counseling to provide awareness of the student’s ADHD and the way it impacts self-esteem, schoolwork, and interactions. Another option is cognitive behavioral therapy, which provides strategies and skills for self-regulating emotions and behavior. Such research-based therapy helps ADHD teens adopt a more positive attitude and behavior using interventions such as positive self-talk, visualization and imagery, relaxation, mindfulness, and thought-stopping. Another option is medication. The most common treatment is a combination of behavior therapy and medication

Can You Get ADHD as a Teenager?

ADHD is a lifelong, chronic, and pervasive condition. A teen may appear to develop ADHD, but it is usually the case that the student managed or circumvented the ADHD symptoms in earlier grades—especially if he or she was not hyperactive.

ADHD teens may be diagnosed in elementary school, but many are not identified until high school, college, or even graduate school. Often, teens who are gifted and have ADHD compensate for their vulnerabilities until they are unable to handle the many responsibilities and high standards of higher levels of education. Girls are often not identified as early as boys.

Is your teenager experiencing inconsistencies in grades and school performance? Lost homework or poor test scores? Is ADHD a possibility?

“I couldn’t get down to work until 2 am and stayed up all night studying. Then, I overslept and missed the midterm.” I’m getting an A in lab. How could this happen?

“I taught several other students how to solve problems, but I ran out of time on the test and bombed it.” Why does this happen to me?

As an educational psychologist, I’ve worked with people facing these puzzles for decades. One was Brian, a high school teacher, who later shared his college experience in ADDitude Magazine.

“I did well in high school,” he recalled. Math and science came easily, as did test-taking. Writing papers and turning in homework were another matter. He assumed he would become more organized in college.

Instead, his freshman year became “one big writer’s block.” He was placed on academic probation and eventually dismissed. He hadn’t written a single paper.

Brian’s intelligence had helped him compensate for attention difficulties in high school. In college, greater demands exposed those difficulties. Procrastination and perfectionism left him unable to complete his coursework.

After his dismissal, Brian was diagnosed with ADHD, inattentive type. The diagnosis brought relief: “There was a name for what was going on.”

Medication, coaching, and counseling helped him move forward. He developed study habits, learned reading strategies, and addressed the emotional strain of his experience.

One discovery especially surprised him: “I didn’t know you could read a page and understand it so easily.” Previously, his eyes had moved across the page, but his attention hadn’t stayed with the words.

Brian also had to rethink what being gifted meant. Intelligence didn’t eliminate his need for strategies and support. Accepting that helped him use his abilities more effectively.

When Struggles Become Labels

Brian’s experience is familiar to many students and adults I’ve worked with. Some had diagnosed ADHD; others were still trying to understand their difficulties. Some also faced learning disabilities, depression, or anxiety.

Their circumstances differed, but many shared a painful question: If I’m capable, why can’t I do this?

Others often supply unhelpful answers.

A child who forgets instructions becomes a “troublemaker.” A teenager who leaves assignments unfinished is called lazy. An adult who misses deadlines begins to feel incompetent.

These labels can become part of someone’s inner conversation.

I must be lazy—I keep putting things off.

I feel crazy—why can I do something difficult but struggle with everyday tasks?

Maybe I’m dumb—I understand the ideas, but I can’t organize my thoughts quickly enough.

When you don’t have attention or task-management difficulties, it can be hard to understand why someone can’t “just do it.”

But criticism rarely helps someone get started, stay focused, or finish. It often adds shame to an already frustrating situation.

ADHD involves persistent difficulties that interfere with daily life. It is more than occasional forgetfulness, distraction, or a few bad habits.

Different Ages, Different Pictures

ADHD can affect people from childhood through their senior years. Yet its outward appearance varies considerably.

Consider these examples:

• Nic, nine, runs, jumps, and fidgets throughout the day. He struggles to follow classroom instructions.

• Marco, a college student, misses classes after staying up all night. An empty gas tank and unpaid insurance bill create more problems.

• Susan, a sales executive, loses track of time and falls behind on reports. She worries about her chances for promotion.

• Carl, a manager, drifts off during meetings. Coworkers interpret his inattention as a lack of interest.

• Phyllis, a medical resident, feels overwhelmed by recordkeeping, staff responsibilities, and board preparation.

These behaviors alone don’t establish an ADHD diagnosis. They do show how attention difficulties can affect school, work, relationships, and everyday responsibilities.

Someone like Carl may appear quiet and “spacey,” while Nic is visibly active. Neither picture tells the whole story.

Sometimes adults recognize their own struggles after a family member receives a diagnosis. As one father told me, learning about his son’s ADHD helped him make sense of lifelong difficulties at work and home.

Begin with Curiosity

Awareness starts with a willingness to ask questions without judging yourself or someone else.

Consider:

• Is distraction seriously affecting work, school, relationships, or family life?

• How do disorganization and poor time management get in the way?

• Have efforts to improve routines helped, or do the same problems keep returning?

• Do others frequently say, “Stop interrupting,” “You’re always late,” or “You never finish”?

• Have you discussed these patterns with a qualified professional?

You don’t need to settle on a label before starting a conversation. Begin by noticing what happens, where you struggle, and what helps. What about your strengths and talents? How do they help you succeed?

Embarrassment, shame, and fear can keep people silent for years. Understanding can open the door to useful support and practical strategies.

You don’t have to keep viewing yourself as lazy, crazy, or dumb.

Your gifts and your difficulties can coexist. Recognizing both gives you a better place to begin.

We’ve all heard about the absent-minded professor—the brilliant person who can solve complicated problems but can’t remember where they left their glasses.

But this happens in real life more often than you might think.

I’ve met bright, capable people who are genuinely puzzled by their own struggles. A urologist who knows medicine but can’t pass the specialty boards. A talented biologist who gets stuck and stops writing her dissertation. A creative manager who writes brilliant marketing material but can’t keep track of what his team is doing.

These aren’t lazy or unmotivated people. They’re smart, ambitious, and often very successful.

And yet, something keeps getting in their way.

They procrastinate. They lose track of details. They become overwhelmed. They start strong but struggle to finish. And eventually, they begin asking themselves a painful question:

“I know I’m capable. So why can’t I get it together?”

I’ve heard versions of that question again and again in my work.

The problem isn’t necessarily intelligence or ability. Sometimes, it’s simply that no one ever taught us how to manage our minds—how to focus our attention, organize our thoughts, manage distractions, and follow through when life gets complicated.

And that’s something we can learn.

William was one of those kids who breezed through most of public school with his great brain. He had a few academic close calls as a college undergrad, but he always pulled it off in the end. He completed his MBA at the top of his class at an extremely competitive university. Sure, there were a few too many all-nighters—and more than one plea to a professor for an extension on a late assignment—but his scores were so high, and his in-class discourse so articulate that he graduated with glowing recommendations to a very promising, entry-level job.

His position included a wide variety of responsibilities, deadlines set in stone, and high expectations for him to develop into a corporate leader. As he tried to cover all his bases, his past habits didn’t seem to work the way they used to. He was always feeling rushed and overwhelmed, and began experiencing attention slippages like lost keys, missed appointments, and overdue monthly statements. Despite these difficulties, his keen analytical mind, eloquence, and charm helped him rise through the ranks of the firm.

As time went on, his work/life responsibilities increased. Married with two children and required to travel to meetings and conferences, he didn’t have the time or energy to fix his mistakes and mishaps. Although respected as an “idea generator,” he often failed to complete the administrative aspects of his job. He procrastinated and then had to spend long hours at night trying to bring his technical reports up to the level everyone “knew he was capable of.” His image became increasingly tarnished due to inattention, disorganization, and mood swings related to stress and fatigue.

The results? Those at the top have lost patience with all of William’s “slippages;” his peers assume that he must be arrogant, lazy or apathetic; and his subordinates can’t get what they need from him to get their jobs done. As his work/life unravels at a faster and faster pace, William becomes even more stressed out. Now it’s time for the yearly corporate 360° Performance Evaluations: will he ever get promoted? Does the company still believe in developing his leadership potential? In an era of downsizing and doing more with less, can William even keep his position?

What is William’s problem anyway? He is a paradox to those who work with or live with him. On one hand, he has great intellectual gifts: he is creative and analytical. He can solve complicated problems in a flash. On the other hand, his performance is inconsistent; he avoids tasks that demand sustained mental effort unless they are in his areas of strength, makes careless mistakes (especially when rushed), and misses deadlines. These are classic symptoms of adults with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).

In the past, ADD referred to a cluster of symptoms involving short attention span, distractibility, disorganization and time management problems. If impulsivity was involved, the term Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) applied. These conditions are considered disabilities when they are long-standing, pervasive, and chronic, and interfere with productivity and potential at work, at home, and in social relationships. The most recent research on ADD/ADHD associates the condition with problems in executive functioning skills. Such skills include planning, organizing, managing time, paying attention to and remembering details, and organizing space.

William is gifted with a glitch: he is extremely intelligent but also shows a pattern of chronic difficulty successfully executing his work/life responsibilities. He has recently been diagnosed as having Adult ADD; in dealing with this dichotomy, he can be said to be twice exceptional. Surprisingly, many bright, well-trained professionals like William perform below par, and the cause is often unexplained. Although ADD/ADHD is recognized in children and adolescents, it is often missed or ignored in the adult population.

In William’s case, his high intelligence, charm, creativity, and motivation compensated for his vulnerabilities—until the bar was so high and complex that he just couldn’t perform as he or others felt was possible. Without understanding the situation, both William (and his family) and his firm lose. Many leaders and professionals like him end up leaving or losing their jobs and therefore never realizing their potential. They are disappointed, confused, and demoralized—as are their employers, friends, and families.

Adults who are gifted with a glitch experience an ever-increasing gap between their expected and actual performance; their problems with executive function eventually override their intellectual gifts and motivation. As the situation worsens, the resulting stress further damages productivity and creativity. Are you or someone you know experiencing such difficulties?

For those who are caught in such a downward cycle, it’s time consider whether attention difficulties and insufficient executive function skills contribute to their deteriorating performance.

Do you know a seemingly competent adult who is underperforming? Are you feeling dissatisfied with the distraction or disorganization in your work/life?

Consider behaviors that have caused career or life problems and ask if issues with attention, planning, prioritizing, follow-through, or organization created barriers to work/life success.

Being gifted with a glitch doesn’t have to keep anyone from enjoying greater productivity, achievement, and job satisfaction.

Distracted driving plagues us. The statistics are clear. When distracted, drivers are more likely to cause accidents.

Distracted Driving Experiences

Most of us have experienced some discomfort and stress related to distracted driving. For example, you’re in the passenger seat while the driver is talking, texting, and fiddling with the audio. Politely, you say, “Please stop. It’s dangerous.” Irritated, the driver snaps, “You’re making a big deal about nothing.”

In other vehicles around the nation, the driver may respond:

• Don’t you trust me?

• Leave me alone. I can handle this!

• I only glance at the zoom meeting at stoplights.

Are these drivers unaware of the danger, arrogant about their multitasking skills, risk-loving, or in constant need of amusement? Regardless of the reason, their behavior endangers themselves and others.

Distracted Driving Statistics

For over a decade, research reports high rates of auto accidents due to distracted driving. For example, more than 2.5 million people are involved in crashes each year, and distracted driving is the leading cause. By some estimates, as many as 1,000 people are injured every day in crashes related to distracted driving.)

What are Distracted Driving Myths and Facts?

Have we become so used to a culture of distraction that we buy into myths and ignore the facts. Here are a few myths to consider:

Myth: You can multitask while driving without any loss of driving accuracy.

Fact: Research shows that when you’re doing two things at once, your brain is just switching between tasks very rapidly. Every additional task you do while driving detracts from your ability to drive well and increases your chance of collision. It takes your brain up to 13 seconds to refocus on your surroundings after looking at your cell phone — even if you “only glanced at it for a second.” As your brain refocuses, your driving skills are not at their best. When you attempt to multitask while driving, your eye activity slows down, and your problem-solving skills are diminished (

Myth: Although it is dangerous to drive after drinking— it is OK to drive while talking, texting, or glancing at a zoom meeting.

Fact: People are as impaired when they drive and talk on a cell as they are when they drive intoxicated at the legal blood-alcohol limit of 0.08%

Do you know someone who while drinking always assigns a designated driver but insists it’s alright to talk on the phone–even during inclement weather? Besides pleading for greater care, perhaps logic and statistics will help change their behavior.

Distracted Driving Self-Check:

Are you paying attention to the ways you and others engage in distracted driving? To what degree do you deny the statistics or ignore your responsibility for safe driving?

• __ I text more than I should.

• __ I use my mobile phone too often.

• __ I often eat or drink while driving.

• __ I talk to passengers turning to see them.

• __ I can’t help fixing my hair or engaging in other grooming.

• __ I glance at notes or other print materials.

• __ I misuse a navigation system.

• __ I occasionally watch a video or Zoom meeting.

• __ I constantly adjust a radio, CD player, or iPhone.

• __ I smoke or vape while driving.

7 Guidelines to Curb Your Distracted Driving Habits:

• Open your mind to the facts about distracted driving and the bad habits you have.

• Visualize those you love and feel how devastated they will be if you are in a serious accident or kill or maim others.

• Look in the mirror as ask, “Am I in control of my safety and the safety of others, or am I neglectful of my ethical and moral responsibilities?

• Make a serious commitment. Pledge to take action.

• Leave your phone on the back seat or somewhere you can’t reach it. Don’t depend on hands-free calling.

• Pullover if you must make or answer a call.

• Stop if you need to eat something or groom yourself. You’ll avoid the dangerous consequences of burns from hot coffee or a poke in the eye from a mascara wand, not to mention stains from ketchup, mustard, or ice cream.

Many otherwise high-achieving professionals fail to use their smarts when driving. Intellectually, they understand the dangers but somehow feel that they can disregard sensible driving rules. The painful reality is all of us need to follow the rules of the road.

Work with your team and family to protect yourself and others. If you are a leader, you have the power and responsibility to stop distracted and sometimes reckless driving behavior.

More and more people struggle to stay focused and experience memory slippages because of information overload and overreliance on digital devices.

Does this sound like you?

“I used to know all the phone numbers of family and friends. Now I’m completely dependent on my phone’s contact list. If I lose my phone, I’m unable to call my dearest and dearest.”

Reliance on digital devices creates two problems. First, the more we rely on Google or Ask Siri-type sources of information, the more we tend to rely on them rather than our memory, especially if we overuse our devices. Second, the constant flow of emails and social media interruptions negatively affects productivity, critical thinking, and creativity.

We experience information overload, especially when we overuse our devices. As our brains are bombarded with information and we are forced to multitask, our minds seem to shift into overdrive while our memory drops into low gear. It is no wonder everyone seems more prone to forgetting names, numbers, and facts; misplacing keys; losing papers; forgetting correspondence; or missing appointments.

As with other cognitive functions, several factors may impair our memory. These include fatigue, side effects of medication, illness, stress, and overconsumption of caffeine (slows blood flow to the brain), tobacco (constricts blood flow), or alcohol or drugs (kills brain cells).

Seven Tips to Help You Improve Memory and Focus

1. Create routines. For example, put hooks by the door to hang your keys, or a bowl to hold your wallet or glasses. Slow down and take the extra minute to think about what you are doing.

2. Create checklists that you won’t lose. For example, post a checklist somewhere visible or use an appealing digital format.

3. Differentiate between a checklist and a brainstorm. For example, jot down all the “to-dos,” then prioritize them and schedule them on your calendar.

4. Stop multitasking. It may seem that you can do two things at once, but research indicates that if you want to remember something, you need to focus on it. Multitasking slows you down and increases the chances of forgetfulness.

5. Use your senses. For example, feel your keys, papers, or other items as you put them down. Augment the process by saying, “I’m putting the keys on the desk.” Once placed, use your mind’s eye to visualize the item. When parking a car, note the location, take a photo of it, or dictate the information into your phone.

6. Take time to memorize important facts. For example, learn 10 important phone numbers, your Social Security number, and one credit card.

7. Create cheat sheets of important numbers. Keep written notes such as your license, important passwords, or phone numbers in case you lose your phone or computer.

Stress and the Brain

Stress compounds memory problems. So, in addition to using memory tips, make a concerted effort to relax through stress management. You can’t control everything, but using these and other tips, getting more sleep, and lowering your stress will help your memory, improve your ability to focus, and boost your productivity.

Do you have great memory techniques you want to share? Put them in the comment section.

Then I had to downsize and move.

Suddenly, all that stuff became my problem. Sorting through years of belongings was exhausting, stressful, and a real eye-opener.

I learned something: clutter is easy to ignore—until it isn’t.

So how can you keep your stuff from taking over your space, time, and peace of mind? Here are a few ideas that helped me clear the clutter.

I have a confession. I have stuff.

Stuff I use, stuff I might use, and stuff I haven’t touched in years but somehow still believe deserves valuable real estate in a closet.

Maybe you know the feeling. You open a drawer looking for scissors and discover three old phone chargers, several pens that may or may not work, a mystery key, and a coupon that expired two years ago. But no scissors.

Or you open the hall closet and something falls on your head.

So you close the door and think, I’ll deal with that later.

Welcome to the club.

Most of us don’t deliberately create clutter. It just seems to happen. We buy things, inherit things, receive gifts, save things for sentimental reasons, and hang on to things because we might need them “someday.”

Someday, apparently, is going to be a very busy day.

We also get tired. After a long day of working, taking care of family, answering emails, running errands, making dinner, and dealing with everything else life throws at us, cleaning out the basement isn’t exactly calling our name.

And sometimes we simply like our stuff. Maybe you love purses, books, kitchen gadgets, tools, shoes, or those giant packages from Costco. I’m not here to tell you how many purses are too many or whether anyone really needs 500 napkins.

The problem isn’t owning things. The problem begins when all those things start interfering with the way we want to live.

Clutter has a sneaky way of demanding our attention. You walk past the pile of papers on the counter and think, I really need to go through those. You see the boxes in the basement and remember that you’ve been meaning to sort them for three years. You open an overstuffed closet and immediately close it again.

Each little encounter sends a tiny message to your brain: There’s something else you haven’t done.

When we’re already juggling work, family, appointments, bills, texts, passwords, errands, and a hundred other things, those little reminders add up. Instead of our homes helping us relax and recharge, they can become one more source of distraction and stress.

And clutter doesn’t just take up physical space. It takes up mental space.

You can’t find your keys. You know you bought batteries, but where did you put them? You can’t find the bill that needs to be paid. You’re certain you saved an important paper somewhere “safe,” which unfortunately means you may never see it again.

Then there are the things we buy twice because we can’t find the first one, the late fees because a bill disappeared under a pile of papers, and the mornings when we’re late because our keys have apparently entered the Witness Protection Program.

All of this takes time and energy.

Sometimes clutter simply makes us tired. You walk into a room, see everything that needs to be dealt with, and immediately want to walk back out.

That’s mental clutter too.

The good news is that you don’t have to organize your entire life this Saturday.

In fact, please don’t.

That’s often where people get into trouble. We suddenly become inspired and decide, This weekend I’m organizing the whole house! We pull everything out of three closets, six drawers, and half the basement. By Saturday afternoon the house looks worse than when we started. By Sunday we’re exhausted, and by Monday half the stuff has been shoved back where it came from.

Instead, start ridiculously small.

Pick one drawer. One shelf. One corner of your desk. Give yourself 15 or 20 minutes and see what you can do.

As you go through things, ask yourself a few simple questions. Do I actually use this? Do I need it? Do I love it? Could someone else use it more than I do? Is it broken, outdated, or something I’ve been moving from one pile to another for years?

And when you pick something up and hear yourself say, But I might need this someday, ask yourself when you last used it.

Sometimes that answer makes the decision surprisingly easy.

If getting organized feels overwhelming, ask for help. Most of us know someone who actually enjoys organizing. You know the person I’m talking about. She owns a label maker. Her junk drawer is somehow organized. She probably knows exactly where her warranty papers are.

Invite her over. Make coffee. Put on some music. Work together for half an hour.

And if the clutter has become too overwhelming or emotionally difficult to tackle, there’s nothing wrong with getting help from a professional organizer. You don’t get extra points for doing everything yourself.

Most importantly, don’t aim for perfection.

Your house doesn’t need to look like a magazine spread. You don’t need matching baskets, color-coded closets, or a pantry so beautiful it deserves its own Instagram account.

You just want your home to work for you.

You want to be able to find your keys without launching a search party. You want a desk where you can sit down and think. You want a kitchen counter where there’s actually room to put something. You want to walk into your bedroom and feel a little calmer instead of being greeted by seventeen unfinished chores.

That’s the real benefit of clearing clutter.

You’re not just getting rid of stuff. You’re getting rid of some of the things competing for your attention.

And in a world that’s already demanding more and more of our attention, creating a little physical space can give us something even more valuable:

A little more breathing room for the brain.

So forget the garage for now.

Open one drawer.

Give yourself 15 minutes.

You might be surprised at how good it feels.

When I was a newlywed, I decided to make macaroni and cheese from scratch.

There was just one little problem: I didn’t read the recipe very carefully.

Somehow, I ended up with mountains of macaroni—far more than two people could possibly eat. So we did the only sensible thing. We called the neighbors, turned my mistake into a macaroni-and-cheese party, and had a good laugh.

That kind of mistake was funny.

Other kinds weren’t.

I had a habit of piling up mail and magazines wherever there was an available surface. Somewhere underneath those piles were important receipts, bills, and invoices. Of course, I usually discovered them when I needed them most.

Rushed. Distracted. Stressed.

As the years went by, I began to notice a pattern.

I rushed. I over-scheduled. I tried to squeeze one more thing into an already packed day. I didn’t always pay attention to the little details—and sometimes those little details turned into big problems.

Eventually, I realized that many of these habits looked a lot like ADHD behaviors, even though having ADHD-like behaviors is not the same as having an ADHD diagnosis.

And they affected more than my desk or my calendar.

They affected the people around me. I could be late, distracted, or so busy thinking about the next thing that I wasn’t fully present for the thing—or person—right in front of me.

That bothered me.

I didn’t want to keep disappointing other people. And I certainly didn’t want to keep disappointing myself.

So I started using what I knew.

As an educational psychologist, I had spent years helping people understand attention, learning, habits, and behavior. Eventually, I realized I needed to turn some of those strategies on myself.

I began using practical cognitive-behavioral techniques to slow down, get organized, manage my time, and pay attention to what mattered most.

Nothing changed overnight. I didn’t suddenly become a perfectly organized person who never misplaced anything or tried to cram too much into a day.

But I got better.

And those strategies became especially important when life became very difficult. After tragedy struck my family, I needed every bit of mental and emotional energy I had. The habits and strategies I had practiced helped me keep going when simply getting through the day could feel overwhelming.

Maybe you recognize yourself here.

You don’t need an ADHD diagnosis to feel distracted, scattered, rushed, or overwhelmed.

Maybe you lose things. Maybe you procrastinate. Maybe you start five things and finish two. Maybe you walk into a room and wonder why you’re there. Or maybe you’re simply trying to keep too many balls in the air—and occasionally one lands on your head.

I’ve been there.

That’s one reason I’m writing these posts.

I want to share practical strategies that can help us quiet some of the noise, tame our Demons of Distraction, reduce stress, and get more of the important things done.

Not perfectly.

Just better.

And with a little more peace of mind along the way.

—Geri

Welcome to Geri Markel’s Managing Your Mind

Do you ever find yourself struggling to focus, feeling overwhelmed by everything you need to do, procrastinating on important tasks, misplacing things, or getting pulled too deeply into the digital world?

You’re certainly not alone.

Today, attention difficulties affect adults and adolescents from all walks of life—including many people who have never been diagnosed with ADHD. Distractions, information overload, constant notifications, and the pressures of everyday life can make it increasingly difficult to concentrate, get things done, and make meaningful progress toward our goals.

Even highly capable and productive people can find themselves wondering: Why can’t I stay focused? Why do I keep putting this off? Why does everything feel harder than it should?

For more than three decades, I’ve worked as an educational psychologist with individuals facing these very challenges. Many of my clients have had ADHD, while others have simply struggled with attention, organization, memory, procrastination, or managing the demands of school and work.

I’ve worked with leaders and managers whose careers were being affected by difficulties with organization and follow-through. I’ve helped professionals whose careers depended on passing licensing examinations, as well as undergraduate, graduate, and professional students struggling to meet academic requirements.

Over the years, I’ve seen how practical, research-based strategies can help people regain a sense of control, accomplish important goals, and experience greater satisfaction in their lives.

As my work expanded into business consulting, I found that many of the same strategies could be adapted to the workplace. They helped individuals and teams improve productivity, strengthen teamwork, reduce stress, and navigate the demands of increasingly distracting environments.

That experience is the foundation for Managing Your Mind.

Through this Substack and podcast, I’ll share practical ideas, research-based strategies, and insights drawn from my articles, books, seminars, and decades of professional experience. We’ll explore topics such as attention, memory, procrastination, clutter, organization, productivity, stress, and the everyday habits that can either help or hinder us.

My goal is simple: to help make your life easier, more productive, more fulfilling—and less dominated by distraction.

Life is too valuable to spend it constantly worrying about unfinished tasks or wondering where your attention went.

If you’re interested in learning practical ways to manage your mind, your time, and the distractions around you, I hope you’ll join me.

Welcome to Managing Your Mind.