What do you think?
Rate this book
Organised Chaos: Turbocharge your ADHD superpowers
At sixteen, Nick Lennon-Barrett was kicked out of home for being “too much.” Twenty-five years later, he finally received an ADHD diagnosis and realised the very traits that got him into trouble were the same ones that helped him build a career as an award-winning learning leader, developing everyone from graduates to CEOs across sectors, which include FTSE 100 organisations.
In Organised Chaos, Nick tackles the barriers ADHD present each day, sharing his own lived experience. Drawing on decades of navigating the corporate world as a learning professional, he challenges the obsession with fixing weaknesses and instead champions the power of strengths.
For ADHDers, brilliance isn’t about being in control all the time. It’s about learning how to harness hyperfocus, navigate rejection sensitivity, and unlock the unique superpowers wired into our brains. It’s easy to hyperfocus on something interesting, but what if you could tap into that superpower anytime you choose?
This book reimagines the six executive functions of the brain as superpowers, complete with cheat codes (because we need them!) and foundational skills to help you take charge of when and how to use them.
Every brain is different. Organised Chaos shows how to make yours brilliant on purpose.
In Organised Chaos, Nick tackles the barriers ADHD present each day, sharing his own lived experience. Drawing on decades of navigating the corporate world as a learning professional, he challenges the obsession with fixing weaknesses and instead champions the power of strengths.
For ADHDers, brilliance isn’t about being in control all the time. It’s about learning how to harness hyperfocus, navigate rejection sensitivity, and unlock the unique superpowers wired into our brains. It’s easy to hyperfocus on something interesting, but what if you could tap into that superpower anytime you choose?
This book reimagines the six executive functions of the brain as superpowers, complete with cheat codes (because we need them!) and foundational skills to help you take charge of when and how to use them.
Every brain is different. Organised Chaos shows how to make yours brilliant on purpose.
- GenresAdhd
234 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 1, 2025
1 person is currently reading
5 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 7, 2025
Complex and fascinating, this guide for those with ADHD was too chaotic for me, just like the cover. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NerGalley for the advance review copy. Opinions are mine.
September 30, 2025
Quick read, and pretty insightful yet written in a refreshing and accessible language that I believe will be very attractive to readers who are new to ADHD, or simply do not do well with specialised jargon. I loved that the author decided to approach ADHD as a plethora of opportunities and potential, rather than the more defeatist deficit model we're used to, because it painted a much richer and kind picture of how it feels like to live with ADHD. Besides, the tips provided were quite practical and easy to put into practice. If I had to point out any potential improvements, perhaps I would recommend going a bit deeper into necessary technicalities. For example, what are the tangible consequences of executive dysfunction? Why does it happen? What drives symptomatological behaviors? While I appreciate the attempt to offer a cognitively accessible resource, I do believe that sometimes some technicalities are necessary in order to fully understand the concepts that are being discussed. Besides, nowadays dopamine gets a really bad name, and there's a lot of "therapyspeak" being misused in day-to-day conversations that generates ableist and stigmatising linguistic and conceptual biases. Thus, I find it really important to address specific topics regarding ADHD and its impact on our lives.
November 7, 2025
If you've ever felt like your brain is a chaotic pinball machine of thoughts, impulses, and big ideas and that the world keeps telling you to "tone it down", Organised Chaos: Turbocharge your ADHD superpowers will feel like a deep breath of validation.
Nick Lennon-Barrett's story starts with a gut-punch: kicked out of home at sixteen for being "too much." It's a sentence that lands hard, because so many neurodivergent folks know exactly what it means to be misunderstood. But what follows in this book isn't self-pity, it's self-empowerment. After receiving an ADHD diagnosis 25 years later, Lennon-Barrett flips the narrative. The very traits that got him into trouble became the fuel for a successful, creative career. And now, he's helping others tap into the same fire.
This book is part memoir, part practical guide, part rally cry. What makes it sing is how it seamlessly blends raw personal experience with professional insight, never veering into clinical or preachy territory. It's like sitting down with a whip-smart friend who's walked the rocky road of ADHD and come out the other side not "fixed," but fiercely self-aware.
He introduces us to six executive functions of the brain, such as attention control and time management, and reimagines them as ADHD superpowers, with names like Focus Beam and Mind Vault. These aren't just cutesy labels; they reframe how we think about neurodivergent brains. Lennon-Barrett gets it: ADHD isn't a glitch, it's a different operating system.
What I appreciated most was the humour and honesty woven through every chapter. It's not sugar-coated, but it is hopeful. His "cheat codes" (like the DOPE Engine and Colour Codex) are quirky, practical, and genuinely helpful, especially if the typical productivity advice has never clicked for you.
I've already recommended this book to friends who feel overwhelmed, scattered, or stuck in a system that wasn't built for brains like theirs. Organised Chaos: Turbocharge your ADHD Superpowers doesn't ask you to be less, it shows you how to be more you, on purpose.
If you or someone you love has ADHD diagnosed or undiagnosed, this book is a must. Not just for what it teaches, but for how it makes you feel: seen, capable, and finally, understood.
Thank you, Netgalley and BooksGoSocial, for supplying me with an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Nick Lennon-Barrett's story starts with a gut-punch: kicked out of home at sixteen for being "too much." It's a sentence that lands hard, because so many neurodivergent folks know exactly what it means to be misunderstood. But what follows in this book isn't self-pity, it's self-empowerment. After receiving an ADHD diagnosis 25 years later, Lennon-Barrett flips the narrative. The very traits that got him into trouble became the fuel for a successful, creative career. And now, he's helping others tap into the same fire.
This book is part memoir, part practical guide, part rally cry. What makes it sing is how it seamlessly blends raw personal experience with professional insight, never veering into clinical or preachy territory. It's like sitting down with a whip-smart friend who's walked the rocky road of ADHD and come out the other side not "fixed," but fiercely self-aware.
He introduces us to six executive functions of the brain, such as attention control and time management, and reimagines them as ADHD superpowers, with names like Focus Beam and Mind Vault. These aren't just cutesy labels; they reframe how we think about neurodivergent brains. Lennon-Barrett gets it: ADHD isn't a glitch, it's a different operating system.
What I appreciated most was the humour and honesty woven through every chapter. It's not sugar-coated, but it is hopeful. His "cheat codes" (like the DOPE Engine and Colour Codex) are quirky, practical, and genuinely helpful, especially if the typical productivity advice has never clicked for you.
I've already recommended this book to friends who feel overwhelmed, scattered, or stuck in a system that wasn't built for brains like theirs. Organised Chaos: Turbocharge your ADHD Superpowers doesn't ask you to be less, it shows you how to be more you, on purpose.
If you or someone you love has ADHD diagnosed or undiagnosed, this book is a must. Not just for what it teaches, but for how it makes you feel: seen, capable, and finally, understood.
Thank you, Netgalley and BooksGoSocial, for supplying me with an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
October 5, 2025
I actually really liked this book—enough that I found myself thinking about parts of it long after I finished. It’s rare for a self-help or ADHD book to keep my attention all the way through, but this one did. Nick Lennon-Barrett’s writing style felt real and conversational, like hearing from someone who’s been through the same struggles and finally found a way to make sense of them. It wasn’t textbook-perfect or overly polished, but that’s what made it work for me.
What stood out most was how personal it was. Some books about ADHD try to sound “neutral” or overly scientific, but this one leaned all the way into lived experience—and I actually appreciated that. So much of what he described, especially around being “too much” or feeling out of sync with everyone else, felt familiar. You can tell he’s been in the trenches, both personally and professionally, and that authenticity made the advice land harder.
The concept of turning executive functions into “superpowers” and giving them cheat codes was both smart and fun. It made something that usually feels frustrating—like struggling with focus or time management—feel approachable. He doesn’t pretend ADHD is easy or that we can just “manifest” productivity; instead, he shows how to use what already works in our brains and build from there.
Overall, it felt like a pep talk from someone who really gets it. It reminded me that the chaos isn’t something to fix—it’s something to work with. It’s not a perfect or highly structured book, but that almost made it more charming. For anyone who’s ever felt “too much” or “not enough” because of how their brain works, this one hits home in all the right ways.
What stood out most was how personal it was. Some books about ADHD try to sound “neutral” or overly scientific, but this one leaned all the way into lived experience—and I actually appreciated that. So much of what he described, especially around being “too much” or feeling out of sync with everyone else, felt familiar. You can tell he’s been in the trenches, both personally and professionally, and that authenticity made the advice land harder.
The concept of turning executive functions into “superpowers” and giving them cheat codes was both smart and fun. It made something that usually feels frustrating—like struggling with focus or time management—feel approachable. He doesn’t pretend ADHD is easy or that we can just “manifest” productivity; instead, he shows how to use what already works in our brains and build from there.
Overall, it felt like a pep talk from someone who really gets it. It reminded me that the chaos isn’t something to fix—it’s something to work with. It’s not a perfect or highly structured book, but that almost made it more charming. For anyone who’s ever felt “too much” or “not enough” because of how their brain works, this one hits home in all the right ways.
December 1, 2025
I received an ARC from NetGalley and I'm willingly leaving a review. Worth 3.5 stars, rounded up
The author lost some points because the end is a recap of a recap so it's entirely a repeat of what was said through the book, even though each chapter (or section) was already had a recap at the end. There are 2 or 3 acronyms that were used but I have no idea what they mean and it was not explained. The book should have had a table of content; it would be easier to find actions later on. Other than that, the author has a great sense of humour and gets personal throughout. The book is well organized (except for the end, but we already talked about that). As a AuDHD myself, I could related on many things, including the love of shiny things or opening up dozen of tabs on my browser (but also in Windows). I was already using the Eisenhower Matrix, but tried the Colour Codex right away; it gave me a peace of mind because most of what was on my to-do list were flagged red instead of blue or grey (my colours). If someone is only offered dull yellow Post-Its, you could always colour them with different highlighters. I would like to point out that Rain is not part of the elements, it's water. It's really interesting and I would recommend it.
The author lost some points because the end is a recap of a recap so it's entirely a repeat of what was said through the book, even though each chapter (or section) was already had a recap at the end. There are 2 or 3 acronyms that were used but I have no idea what they mean and it was not explained. The book should have had a table of content; it would be easier to find actions later on. Other than that, the author has a great sense of humour and gets personal throughout. The book is well organized (except for the end, but we already talked about that). As a AuDHD myself, I could related on many things, including the love of shiny things or opening up dozen of tabs on my browser (but also in Windows). I was already using the Eisenhower Matrix, but tried the Colour Codex right away; it gave me a peace of mind because most of what was on my to-do list were flagged red instead of blue or grey (my colours). If someone is only offered dull yellow Post-Its, you could always colour them with different highlighters. I would like to point out that Rain is not part of the elements, it's water. It's really interesting and I would recommend it.
September 29, 2025
I found this book absolutely fascinating—I never expected to recognize myself and even some family members in these traits! I catch myself doing the same thing while watching TV, noticing actors and then letting it spiral further. I’ve even started leaving my phone in the kitchen to avoid temptation, and so far, it’s working!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews