There has been a lot of discussion in recent years about whether ADHD is really a problem or whether it is an advantage.
Someone proposed the “hunter theory” that states that ADHD is an evolutionary development which gave hunters an edge during the hunt. Distractibility ensures that nothing would be missed. Impulsivity aids in making instant decisions. This suggests that ADHD developed as a process of natural selection in hunting societies. It was passed on as an evolutionary advantage. It also means under certain circumstances ADHD is going to continue to be an advantage. This is a very romantic and appealing idea, particularly if you or your child has ADHD.
The biggest problem with the “hunter theory” is that all the evidence suggests that ADHD is a disadvantage in any scenario. In almost 4,000 scientific studies dealing with ADHD over the past thirty years, not a single study found that people with ADHD outperform their normal peers in any area. Indeed, it is hard to imagine how poor self-control and lack of focus are going to aid a person while stalking an animal, in the heat of battle, or in any other important complex task.
Yet, if you look at our leaders in business and society today, a surprising percentage of these individuals show ADHD behavior. Almost half of the CEOs in major corporations, many successful entrepreneurs, and most of the US Senate behave like they have ADHD. If ADHD is truly a handicap, it is hard to explain why such a high percentage of great achievers seem to have it.
It is not just the number of highly successful ADHD individuals that is striking. Just look through history and see the list of people who probably had ADHD; people like Leonardo da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin, Beethoven, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, Walt Disney, and the list goes on and on. These people were not just great members of society, they created society.
So is ADHD an advantage or is it a handicap? The answer seems to be it is both.
A genius is not someone with better ideas. We all have ideas that are pure genius. However, when a normal person gets a brilliant idea, it seems so strange, so different from the way everybody else thinks, that he usually discards the idea and goes down the familiar path. The mark of genius is that the person is not afraid of taking his creative ideas and developing them. Being different doesn’t bother him. This has popularly been called “thinking outside the box”.
A child with ADHD not only thinks “outside the box”, but also lives “outside the box”. He is used to being different. When a great idea or opportunity comes along he will be more likely to grab it, without worrying about what other people think.
Your child’s future success depends upon a number of factors. One is his native talents and abilities. However, that is not enough. There are many talented people who live as impoverished failures. There are many average people who are extremely successful.
Probably the most important factor that will determine your child’s future success is his view of himself. That view is molded by you. If you support your child, build his self-esteem, and teach him to value his talents and uniqueness, then his ADHD can be to his advantage. However, if you allow school difficulties to define him as a failure, then your child will find it very hard to rise above that.
Can ADHD make a person great? Probably not. It is hard to imagine how being easily distracted and impulsive can be helpful in any scenario. However, having ADHD can make a person be comfortable with being different. Being comfortable with being unique could be the key to success.
Most children with ADHD grow up and have difficult and unhappy lives. They are always battling the feelings of inferiority and incompetence. There are those few ADHD individuals who achieve tremendous levels of success. Ultimately, it is how you teach your child to value his uniqueness that will make the difference for your child.
