There are usually signs you’re about to lose your job. Sometimes they’re clear; sometimes you can’t put your finger on the exact signs but you can “feel” it. If you’re about to lose your job and you feel it may be related to your ADHD, chances are you’re right. And you’re not alone. Learn how ADHD affects your career.
It may be difficult to believe, but losing a job may be an opportunity. If you are about to lose your job, take some time to do a bit of soul searching and ask yourself these questions.
- Is this job worth saving? You and the job may not be compatible and so, it may be best to find something else. To know if the job is worth saving here are a few questions to help you decide.
- What’s expected of me? It’s difficult to correct problems you don’t know about. Determining exactly what is expected of you is an important part of correcting the problem.
- What are the gaps between what’s expected of me and my performance? Identifying the gaps can help you identify the type of solution you need to apply.
- How can I fill the gaps? You and your supervisor must create a plan together about how you can improve your performance and align what you are capable of doing with what is expected of you.
Losing a job is a traumatic experience that erodes a person’s self-confidence. Should you decide you do want to keep this job, armed with the right information you may be able to prevent job loss and the emotional, financial and negative professional repercussions. Below you’ll find information to help you create a plan to prevent job loss.
Accommodations
Did you know that ADHD is considered a disability based on the degree and severity of its impact on your daily functioning? If you suspect ADHD is negatively impacting your work performance and your emotional well being (common co-morbidities are depression and anxiety, which are understandable), you may wish to disclose your ADHD so you can get help and accommodations from your employer. It is important you weigh the pros and cons of disclosing your disability.
Should you choose to disclose your diagnosis, it is important to continue using any established self-accommodations that work and be open to ideas for new accommodations. Most accommodations are simple, inexpensive and extremely effective. Implementing some changes immediately can demonstrate your positive intentions to your employer. In fact, many of these immediate changes can be implemented without disclosing your diagnosis at all. For a more formal procedure to ask for additional accommodations, you may want to consider these additional steps.
You may want to learn more about your rights to request accommodations for ADHD and to review some accommodations you can implement to help you overcome your ADHD challenges.
Skills
ADHDers often lack certain skills because of the challenges presented by their ADHD. Time management, organizing and project management, among others, are skills that can be learned well enough to improve your performance at work. You can learn some new success strategies. You can work with an ADHD Coach to help you around these challenges. Many employers will directly, or through an Employee Assistance Program, help provide funding for ADHD coaching. Visit ADDA’s Professional Directory to find the ADHD professionals who may be able to help.
Job Modification/Redesign
Job redesign is an effort where job responsibilities and tasks are reviewed and possibly re-allocated among the team to improve performance. Redesigning jobs can lead to improvements in both productivity and in job satisfaction. Jobs are constantly being redesigned for any number of reasons. You can work with your supervisor to redesign your job to accommodate your ADHD, and with the right approach, your employer will see it as an opportunity to improve team output. If you feel your employer may be open to redesigning your job, learn the best strategies to approach the subject.