Ari Tuckman > Quotes

“Our minds automatically seek explanations for things, so when we don’t know something for sure, we make assumptions. For someone with ADHD, her symptoms are clear but the explanation isn’t, so everyone makes assumptions about why she doesn’t do better. Of course, all the old familiar explanations are used—she just needs to try harder, she’s irresponsible, she doesn’t care enough, she wants to do badly. This very much adds insult to injury. Not only doesn’t it help her do better, but it just makes her question herself: “Huh. I thought I tried my best on that, but maybe I didn’t.” Initially most people tend to fight back against these accusations, but over time the accusations begin to sink in and influence how people see and feel about themselves.”
― Ari Tuckman, More Attention, Less Deficit: Success Strategies for Adults with ADHD

“Unfortunately, ADHD makes it easy to misinterpret your actions and what they mean about your traits and skills. For example, repeatedly forgetting about meetings could be interpreted to mean that you’re irresponsible or even stupid, even if you’re very diligent and intelligent.”
― Ari Tuckman, Understand Your Brain, Get More Done: The ADHD Executive Functions Workbook