← Strategy Hour | Online Marketing for Business Growth
Strategy Hour | Online Marketing for Business Growth
904: ADHD & Entrepreneurship with Skye Waterson
00:41:53
Skye shares insights into working from home as a business owner with ADHD and gives listeners practical strategies for approaching focus and productivity.
Loading summary
Transcript92 lines
- [00:00]
Sky Waterson
It's really important to understand why you might be struggling with hyperfocus. One of the reasons is because you have ADHD and we can get very fixated on things. But one of the reasons is actually because you're afraid that if you stop doing the thing, you're going to forget everything.
- [00:16]
Abigail Pumphrey
Welcome to the Strategy Hour podcast brought to you by Boss Project. I'm your host, Abigail Pumphrey and I'm dedicated to supporting online businesses. I don't believe in one right way to build a business. I'm here to help you build business your way. One that supports not only the life you have, but the life you want. I'm on a personal mission to help you become financially free.
- [00:38]
Co-host
I'm taking all the lessons learned as.
- [00:40]
Abigail Pumphrey
I turned a layoff into a seven figure online business. I'm here to help you prioritize your.
- [00:46]
Co-host
Life every step of the way.
- [00:47]
Abigail Pumphrey
Whether you're creating your first digital product, growing an email list, or scaling an already profitable business. Settle in.
- [00:54]
Co-host
It's time to talk strategy.
- [00:57]
Abigail Pumphrey
Looking for a way to make a difference with your morning coffee? Grab a bag of talitha coffee@bossproject.com Coffee Every purchase helps support survivors of human trafficking. Make every cup count@bossproject.com Coffee today on.
- [01:14]
Co-host
The show I have Sky Waterson, a former academic turned coach, podcast host and founder of Unconventional Organization, an international ADHD support service, Skill. Sky's journey began when she received an unexpected ADHD diagnosis during her PhD and since then she's dedicated her career to developing research based strategies for adults with adhd, helping them manage their day to day lives with focus and balance. Today, sky sharing insights into working from home with ADHD as a business owner with practical strategies that can transform how we approach focus and productivity. Hey sky, welcome to the show.
- [01:57]
Sky Waterson
Welcome. Yeah, thanks. It's so great to be here. I'm very excited.
- [02:02]
Co-host
I look forward to diving into this because I love talking about the way people think, how the brain works, how we can be more productive, but also in a way that's really acknowledging the kind of person we really are instead of, you know, giving us blanket advice that's made for absolutely everyone. So I really look forward to getting into this topic today. But your story is so powerful. You went from academia to launching your own business and I'd love to hear what it was like to go from receiving an unexpected ADHD diagnosis to using that experience to actually help others.
- [02:46]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, for sure. It's been a pretty wild ride. I've sort of been thinking back on it recently. But, yeah, I was a lifelong academic. I had undiagnosed adhd. So I changed my career in academia so many times they told me I couldn't anymore. I think I changed it, like, seven times. And, yeah, when I started my doctorate in public health, I knew there was something wrong. I knew there was something different. I just. Sometimes I was doing really well, and then sometimes I would be doing really badly, particularly around, like, writing. That was a big struggle for me. And so I thought, maybe it's disappointing. Dyslexia. I'd heard that that might be in my family. So I went to my inclusive learning center, which is amazing to have, and I just said, you know, scare, like, is there something wrong with me? And they tested me for, like, four hours, a whole bunch of tests, and they said, look, maybe dyslexia, but for sure, adhd. And that was the first time I'd really heard about it in adults. I'd actually learned about it. I'd even taught about autism and. And ADHD in children, but I didn't really have much of a concept at the time of what that looked like in adults. So I had to go home and Google it. That was where I was at.
- [03:57]
Co-host
Yeah, I know a lot of us over the last few years have kind of done that deep dive of trying to figure out who are we really and what are the things we've missed. And especially, like, myself going into my mid-30s, a lot of effort put into knowing there's little things about me that are not necessarily wrong, but just different. And, like, what does that actually mean? And getting to the root of it can be so helpful in understanding who you are and how to set yourself up for success. But in that vein, so many of our listeners work from home, and they can struggle with focus. And I know there's many listeners listening that do have adhd, so I'd love to talk about at least first the challenges that that tends to pose for business owners working from home. And how have you started to help clients address some of those challenges?
- [04:55]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, I think that's a really good question. And, yeah, for myself, I was lucky enough my research could include academic research. So I was able to kind of, like, deep dive into the latest strategies because they're always coming out. Like, every week, new research comes out into adhd. And so what this allowed me to do was go, okay, how am I, first of all, going solve my own problems? Because the first thing I needed to do was I was a person who was studying at home 100%. You know, I was Writing. And, you know, I was teaching a little bit as well, and so I had to figure that out. And so what I ended up doing was doing the research into how our brain works, into how the dopamine works, and then from there, understanding, okay, this is how with adhd, you can go from that high dopamine state to. To a lower dopamine state without the painful resistance feeling that we feel when we have ADHD and actually get things done, even when you're at home and even when it's proactive. And that's probably, I think, the biggest and most helpful thing is, like, that step into focus routine.
- [05:58]
Co-host
I just had something click for me. So now I have to know, if you have adhd, is it ultimately dopamine seeking? Is that what you're after? How does dopamine play a role in.
- [06:11]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, so ADHD diagnosis is interesting because there's kind of two things. There's kind of the. There's the dopamine, which is the impulsivity. And for neuroscientists out there, I know I'm very much making this sound more simple than it is by just using the term dopamine. But, you know, there is this idea of, okay, we are either not receiving enough or it's not being processed correctly. One of the two things is happening, and what that means for us is that, yeah, we chronically understimulated, occasionally overstimulated. That happens as well. But, you know, kind of needing that additional thing. And so what we'll do is we'll kind of be dopamine seeking, and we'll seek it in our phones, in our career changes, in our new projects. We'll add and add and add and do all of those things. And so one of the things I teach is how to get your dopamine from something that's not your career so that you can focus on developing that in a more sustained, sustainable way than you would otherwise. Because I've been there. Like I said before I was diagnosed, I was chronic. Like, this is not my passion, so therefore, it must be the problem. I'm gonna go do something else, and so on and so forth.
- [07:22]
Co-host
I feel like you just explained a lot of my life that now makes sense, but it's, you know, not just for me. I absolutely have people in my life that also are challenged by some of these things going on. And I know people personally who have adhd, and I've watched this, like, in action, but, like, really understanding why it's happening, I think is so helpful in being able to Figure out how to set people up for success. But with that in mind, like, what about not just the people who have it, but the people who are around those people. Do you have any words of advice for supporting someone with adhd?
- [08:04]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, I think that's a really good question. I think the best thing you can do if you're supporting someone with ADHD is actually what you just said, understanding how their brain works. Because one of the ways I often describe ADHD is it's a bit like wearing the wrong prescription of glasses. You know, you're wearing these glasses and you can kind of see something. It's like green blob in the distance. But a neurotypical is describing it in this amazing detail. And you're like, okay, I'm definitely not seeing that. Whatever that is, I'm not getting it. And so understanding, first of all, trying to get inside the head of the person with adhd, trying to understand, like, okay, this is what's going on. They're not getting enough dopamine. This is what's going on. Their working memory isn't really good. Can stop some of these things from being seen as personal attacks, as seeing, okay, this is what's going on in the brain. But then at the same time sort of going on the journey with them of saying, that's cool, but like, let's learn some strategies here. Like, we're going to work on those strengths. We don't want to leave it in that space so that you can say, okay, well, if you're struggling with working memory, then we're going to use these different skills to support that. Or if you're struggling with impulsiveness, we're going to use these different skills to support that and sort of going along with them. And sometimes initially you're going to be a supportive person, you're going to help them. But all the skills I teach are for the person with ADHD to empower themselves to be able to do it themselves so that they don't need that as much. Yeah.
- [09:33]
Co-host
Speaking of working memory, I. This is something I've always personally struggled with for a variety of reasons, but I'd love to dive into it. I know you have kind of an exercise around creating a recipe for working memory. Can you share what a recipe might look like and how it helps someone with ADHD stay on track, especially during complex tasks?
- [09:58]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, definitely. So this is part of the Step into Focus routine, which has got five steps, and essentially what we do is the first step. So let's say you're on the couch and you're on your phone and you know you need to do that deep work task, but you don't want to. You really don't want to. And so what you're doing instead is you're going, okay, can I give myself a reward for just going to my desk? You know, so, for example, can I go to my desk with a cup of coffee and a chocolate biscuit and read an article? Okay, now we're at our desk. That's great. And then from there what you're doing is going, okay, well, now I'm here. Can I turn off the distractions? Can I move my phone away without getting up, staying in your seat? Can I push my phone away? Can I turn off my email notifications, which I really, really need, but actually not really. And those kinds of things. And then from there, when you're in that space where now you've like given yourself a dopamine starter, you've turned off all your distractions, maybe you've turned on a podcast or music or something to kind of keep that base level dopamine still high. You want to go ahead and you want to grab a piece of paper, just a small one, like a post it note, and you want to write down exactly what you want to get done during this working period of time, as if you were writing a recipe. So I want to find this document, I want to write this thing, I want to review this thing, I want to write, draft this message, all of those kinds of things as if you were going to leave and someone else who had your information could take that and kind of follow the process, basically. And the reason we do this is because the person who's going to forget and need to be reminded is you. With working memory struggle. Someone will come in and they'll distract you or something will happen and you'll need to go back and go, okay, where am I up to? I've done this, I've done this, I've done this. Oh, there I am. And keep going.
- [11:49]
Co-host
Yeah. Oh, makes sense. Why when you put the really vague.
- [11:54]
Sky Waterson
Thing that's like work on the process, project, question mark, like, I had.
- [12:01]
Co-host
This is a very specific situation to me, but I've been dealing with, you know, a lot of estate specific things for my dad who recently had a stroke and whatever, and I just wrote the word beneficiaries on a list and I was like, for where?
- [12:18]
Sky Waterson
For what?
- [12:19]
Co-host
To do What? And then 20 minutes later I was like, oh. It was a reminder to me to check if my current bank account has beneficiary because since I'm in the midst for Dad, I should check on it for me. But the word all on its own was not helpful.
- [12:37]
Sky Waterson
Yes. Yeah, exactly. And it's about this idea of, like, I think I posted something recently was like, no, you really won't remember. Because we love to tell ourselves, I'm going to remember it, I'm going to remember it. And it's, no, you're not going to remember it. So kind of coming to terms with that reality.
- [12:55]
Co-host
Yeah. So say we have the list in front of us. We've, like got ourselves to the position, we're ready to do the work. How do we stay on task and, like, move through it?
- [13:07]
Sky Waterson
That's a great question. So the step after that is you've got the list now. It's really important. You are not doing this in silence. That would be terrifying. We have adhd, remember? So you're doing this while listening to some music or having background TV on, something that you know that you could still still be, like writing a list and listening to. And then from there we're going to tinker and we're going to help with that initial opening anxiety. You know, when we do work, we just want to get straight into it. That's the way, right? Just start. You see, I've seen neurotypicals just go into the word doc, open up the word doc and start typing. And I'm always like, how are you doing that? Because, you know, what we need to do is we need to stretch a little bit. We need to, you know, get. Imagine you're running a race. You're not just going to go to the finish line and start. You know, you need to need to stretch it out. So what you want to do instead is you want to go to the application that you're going to use and you want to tinker a little bit in there. You want to write a title, write some notes. Just kind of get comfortable with the fact that you're in this space. And then from there, the inertia goes the other way. Because what you've done is you've given yourself a dopamine boost for starting, which is very important. There's a bunch of neuroscience behind that that I don't have time to go into. You have reduced your distractions and your future distractions, so now you won't get that ping. Five seconds later, you've removed your email notifications and all those things. You've written down exactly what you need to do in case you get confused or lost or anything. Like that you've written it on a small enough piece of paper that you could possibly get it done in this hour, and you've opened the application. So at this point, you might as well get started. And if you get distracted, you just kind of go back up. Okay, well, I got lost. Where am I up to? Let's go back to the thing. You know, sometimes something crazy will happen and we'll actually have to go all the way back to the top of the routine and go back down the steps again. But that's the process. It's always there for us when we need it.
- [14:54]
Co-host
Yeah.
- [14:55]
Sky Waterson
Okay.
- [14:56]
Co-host
I'm feeling it. And I feel like, honestly, even if this isn't an official diagnosis for you, if. If you just struggle with, you know, work management, in any case, I think a lot of these strategies can work for a wide variety of people, because I love a reward.
- [15:15]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, well, we. It's an executive functioning strategy. So if you struggle with executive functioning, this is a good strategy for you because that's kind of the main thing that we're working on here.
- [15:28]
Co-host
I want to talk about time management specifically. Do you have any hacks for business owners who are balancing multiple projects and responsibilities and they have to bounce around throughout the day?
- [15:45]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, I have a bunch of hacks. Actually. One of them is the prioritization filter. If you guys want that, you can just DM me prioritization on Instagram because I actually have a video and a couple of workbooks as well that I just give to people because this becomes such an important focus. Really? Because what we're talking about here is there's tons of things coming at you. And I work one on one with. With business owners all the time. And what we find is that the things that are coming at us, they're not urgent or important when we look at them, they're just kind of there. They're just kind of all of the things that we need to do, and they make it really hard for us to manage our time. So we go through a process of kind of filtering out. I don't have time to get into the whole thing probably today, but like, we go through a process of going, okay, what has to be done today? Or there will be a significant negative external consequence, what has to be done this week, or there will be a significant negative external consequence. And then from everything else that's left over, what's the important stuff? What's the top one, two, three important things, Bringing that in back into your week and going, okay, now that I'm a Bit more clear eyed. These are the priorities. And sometimes it'll be, you know, I was just talking to my community the other day about like, okay, well if it's a long term project, sometimes we have to set a calendar event to say we're going to start planning the project future in advance. You know, things like that. So there's a lot of different ways to do it. Does that make sense?
- [17:15]
Co-host
Yeah, it does make sense. I know I can get caught in the trap of like making a project far too large in scope. And I'm the kind of person who doesn't want to work on a project until it's due. And so I have to decide that the project is in fact seven smaller projects instead of one project. Yeah, I'm never going to get anything done on a timely basis, but working through prioritization has definitely helped. I've used a matrix of the Eisenhower matrix.
- [17:51]
Sky Waterson
Yeah.
- [17:52]
Co-host
And I found that for myself to kind of run through and figure out what's important but not urgent and what is urgent and is required to move forward. I'm curious, once we've set these priorities and we're working away, I know that a lot of the time your environment can have either a positive or negative impact on our ability to move forward. I also know that different people require different environments. But do you have any specific tips or tools or setups that you would suggest for people working from home?
- [18:37]
Abigail Pumphrey
I keep seeing it happen. You're caught in a loop, waiting for that perfect moment, overthinking every decision and comparing your progress to the curated realities of others online. I've been there too, and I made a shift that changed absolutely everything. It simplified my approach and allowed me to start trusting my intuition again. Truly, everything changed. My business doubled, then doubled again. I rocked $300,000 launches, enrolled over 10,000 students in a single course, and finally started showing up in a way that felt effortless and aligned. Now I'm sharing those exact tools and strategies in my new three part workshop series, Mindset Reboot. Right now you can grab it for just $11. Hurry. Visit creative templateshop.com mindset to find out more. Hiring with Indeed. Your search is over. When it comes to hiring, don't go searching for the 1. Just meet your match with Indeed. Get unparalleled access to job seekers with over 350 million unique monthly visitors globally according to Indeed data and an extended reach through Glassdoor. I love that Indeed makes it easy to hire. When we've hired in the past, the process was full of unqualified applicants. With Indeed, we can target the right candidates for the right position, leveraging over 140 million qualifications and preferences every day. Indeed's matching engine is constantly learning from your preferences, so the more you use Indeed, the better it gets. And listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit. To get your jobs more visibility@inn Indeed.com strategy hour, just go to indeed.com strategy hour right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com strategy hour terms and conditions apply. Need to hire you. Need Indeed.
- [20:28]
Sky Waterson
Yep. Yeah. I love this, by the way. I have, like, six different things that I teach in Focus balance days, and you've got me talking about all three of them today. So I love this. So basically what I recommend people do is when we come back to that idea of ADHD and dopamine deprivation, we are not necessarily receiving enough stimulation. You might have heard about dopamine menu and things like that. Those are really good. It's important to take breaks. It's important to do things that are fun. But what do you do when you're at work? You know, you can't take a break and do something fun. You're at work. So what we talk about is the idea of sensory stacking. So you think about your five senses and you think about, okay, in the space that I'm in, what am I doing to support my sound, my sight, my touch? Like, what am I doing to support those senses in my space? And you have a lovely space, so I can see that you're probably doing that and thinking about how to make that something that helps. So, for example, if we're going to sit down and work on writing our prioritization list, for example, I talk about this all the time. People are like, oh, but I don't want to do it. And I'm like, yes, it's another task like any other. So, okay, maybe you're going to do it with a coffee or a cup of tea or a cold drink or something like that. But, you know, are you doing it on a cozy couch looking out a nice window? You know, like, what can we do to elevate the sensory experience that you're having at work? And some people will. Different people have different levels. Everyone's sensory needs are different. And so. But what I want you to do is I want you to think of those five senses, and I want you to go, okay, what are all the scents that I like? What are all the sounds that I like? And then stack them for different situations. Sometimes you Want to be focused. Sometimes you want to be more distracted. Those kinds of things. Yeah.
- [22:10]
Co-host
And I find I need different environments for different types of things.
- [22:15]
Sky Waterson
100%. 100%.
- [22:17]
Co-host
If I'm writing, for example, I can't handle any sort of, like, music or outside sound, but I love the hum of a fan. But if I'm like, learning, like, I want to be moving my body. So I actually prefer to walk and learn at the same time instead of sitting still and staring at a screen because I cannot keep my focus for more than five seconds, which is why I doom scroll at night on TikTok.
- [22:46]
Sky Waterson
But.
- [22:48]
Co-host
But if I'm an interview like this, I find myself wanting to fidget a lot, and it's not easy to do so quietly. So I have this stone, actually, and.
- [23:00]
Sky Waterson
I have one too.
- [23:01]
Co-host
I just thumb it with my. My thumb and rub on it. It's pretty and it's smooth and it feels good. But I'm always accompanied by three drinks, typically. And if I'm feeling really vibey, which is not all the time, but I might light a candle or start a diffuser.
- [23:22]
Sky Waterson
So, yeah, you're doing it.
- [23:24]
Co-host
I get it. I. You know, you learn to accommodate yourself over time, whether you realize it or not. But if you can take anything from this, I want you guys to understand that those weird, kooky things that you feel like you do are often for a reason. Like, you're not just, like, doing it because, you know, it's fun. Like, sometimes it's fun, but a lot of times it's so you can get.
- [23:50]
Sky Waterson
Shit done a hundred percent.
- [23:53]
Co-host
Prioritize those things. Let's talk a little bit about balance, because I know plenty of ADHD people that end up actually having issues with hyper focus, where, like, they get so into the thing they're working on that they, like, forget they have a life outside of work. Don't ask me how I know, but how can we create that sense of balance so we don't burn out? Because, you know, if you're always making your career, like you said, the center of everything, it can get really unhealthy really quickly.
- [24:35]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, 100%. I love that you say that. This is a big focus. It's one of the reasons I would identify as a career development coach, not a career coach, because you need a little bit of that balance in your development. And so, you know, when we're talking about this kind of stuff, it's really important to understand why you might be struggling with hyper focus. One of the reasons is because you have adhd and we can get very fixated on things. But one of the reasons is actually because you're afraid that if you stop doing the thing, you're going to forget everything. Everything. Like, there's a lot of it will have to do with working memory. So we'll get into something and we're finally focusing. Oh, my gosh, it's been days. And now we're in a good spot. We're finally doing the thing. We have the energy, and there's this big fear that we're never going to get the energy again and we're never going to, like, be able to pick up the threads of what we were doing again. Is that an experience you've had?
- [25:27]
Co-host
Yeah, like, absolutely. So, like, I have to batch, like, tasks or I'm afraid I can't do them. Not that I'm like, I know I could do them, but, like, doing five videos in a row versus three one day and two the next are dramatically more effective for me.
- [25:49]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, yeah. And that's the thing is, like, we need to understand, again, like, the research backs you up on that. We struggle with transition times. And so transitioning in and out of little tasks all the time is a recipe to spend the day kind of dithering and not getting anything done with adhd. So what we want to do instead when we're talking about this is we want to go. You know, I often recommend people do this step into focus routine backwards to step out of focus. So we want to do something like this for, like, one to three hours. You want to set yourself an actual timer, and then at the end, you want to go, okay, let me tinker in this space again a little bit. Let me write notes of what I'm going to do next time I get back to this. Let me, you know, turn on a few things that are going to distract me and get my attention back and kind of bring me back to where I was at. Let me go ahead and write down a list, and this would probably be more in your capture space or your prioritization space. Let me write a few things that I'm going to do based on where I'm at right now, and then let me turn on a nice dopamine distraction for, you know, having done the thing. And yes, we have a lot of dopamine. That's just how it be with adhd. So, like, that's the hardest thing I tell people is, like, accepting that you're gonna have that much fun in your life is really hard for a lot of people.
- [27:09]
Co-host
Yeah, I Love all the little wins, you know, that you make happen. But I do think the. The concept of just taking the time to transition is so important. I know when I, like, stop work and like, immediately try to jump into being a spouse that's like a kind and compassionate human and isn't thinking about work, I'm not great at it. So I need some time. But, you know, I used to blame it on the fact that I no longer commuted because I saw my commute as my time to do that. I would, like, listen to music or sing or listen to a podcast and, like, zone out in my own head for a while. And then by the time I got home, I was ready. But when you work in the same place, you live so easy to not honor that you, like, need some minutes before you tackle the rest of your day.
- [28:10]
Sky Waterson
Mm.
- [28:11]
Co-host
Exactly what kind of wins do you feel like are helpful, like, as a motivation tool, big or small, to keep people motivated and keep going?
- [28:24]
Sky Waterson
I love this question because sometimes I've had people say to me, like, well, you know, I really want to eat healthy, so I'm not going to be able to do this process. And I'm always like, that is not what I. That is absolutely not what it is. So this is, again, we come back to that sensory stacking. You have five senses. Take your five senses and pick five things you enjoy for every single one of those senses and then stack them together in different forms for different. That gives you just. That will give you a huge variety of different things that you enjoy. And, you know, even if we are talking about food, it might be salty. I know people like pickles or crunchy or sweet or, you know, and then you've got the whole range of drinks and then you've got the whole, you know, is it a cafe working day? Is it an at home working day? Different kinds of music, different kinds of sound. Stacking them together can create a lot of variety for you.
- [29:17]
Co-host
Yeah, I need to be better about not just, like, going to the same ones all the time. I feel like I kind of get in a rut and my days can often look very, very, very similar.
- [29:31]
Sky Waterson
It happens. In fact, if I was to say one thing that I think a lot of people with ADHD need to hear, it's that you're wanting to change everything in your life is probably just the fact that you're still using the same dopamine stimulation that you have for a long time and you need to change that and not everything in your life.
- [29:50]
Co-host
Yeah. You don't have to turn Everything upside down. At the same time, like, I tend to be like, I want new offers and a new marketing strategy and I want to try a new recipe and go on a trip.
- [30:03]
Sky Waterson
We've all been there. We've all been there.
- [30:06]
Co-host
Do it when really you just needed.
- [30:08]
Sky Waterson
To change the music and change the food and change this, the setting. You know, go to a coffee shop, try a different drink, and then see how you feel.
- [30:17]
Co-host
Who knew that you don't have to change.
- [30:21]
Sky Waterson
Yeah.
- [30:22]
Co-host
About your life. Every time one little thing happens or goes wrong, I'm learning the hard way. But it's fine. I do think we have a tendency to, like, start over a lot because you're like, oh, yeah, you know, it'd be rather than continue and like, do this thing that now I find dull. I just want the newness of like, more planning or, you know, starting at the beginning. Because I have more practice working on the beginning of things than I do following through on things.
- [30:55]
Sky Waterson
Exactly.
- [30:56]
Co-host
Any suggestions around that?
- [30:59]
Sky Waterson
The follow through. Yeah, that's a really good question. I mean, I think the follow through is the hardest piece. And so, I mean, if you were working with me as a one on one, what I would do is I would work on figuring out what your real goals are. Because sometimes it's about simplifying what you're doing as well. We can be doing like, well, I'm doing 100 things and I'm finding it hard to follow through on them. And I'm like, okay, well, that might be why, for starters. But, you know, if we understand, okay, what is the 90 day goal? What is the thing that you are really trying to do right now? Breaking that down. And I've gotten this from my own, you know, business mentors. Great advice. What are the daily standards? Like, what are the standards that you have to reach to reach your goal? Not that you have a goal in business? Like you say, I want to increase my revenue by 50%. Okay, well, where is the blockage? Do you have enough leads? Do you have enough. All of those kinds of things. And then, okay, if you don't have enough leads, what do you have to do every day to get more leads? Is that you have to train someone or you have to do it yourself. And so giving yourself that kind of like, daily streak kind of habit can help you not only feel less anxious about the goal because you're doing the, you know, I need to do 10 opens a day, I need to do that kind of stuff, but also it helps you with that ADHD because it's keeping it very simple for you.
- [32:19]
Co-host
Yeah. The streaks. I really need a better way to like, count my streaks because I get kind of obsessed with them.
- [32:27]
Sky Waterson
Yeah. And also having not having too many, I've seen so many people be like, that's amazing. So I've got 23 streaks. I'm like, no, no, five, five, maybe seven. I have eight. Don't do what I'm doing. I'm in like a real deep work mode and I've delegated all of my admin tasks and that kind of thing. But if it's just you, like five streaks and also working, like, when I work with people, I'm like, okay, what's a realistic streak? Not what's like, I'm going to do 20 things and then I'm going to burn out and I'm not going to do it for the rest of the week. But those 20 were really good. Like, what is the realistic amount for you?
- [32:59]
Co-host
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think to me, some of it's that daily habit that, like, I could be great and do it for 30 days and then I'm like, oh, I did too much of it and so I have to, like, stop it all. And then it takes me two and a half months to pick it back up.
- [33:16]
Sky Waterson
And you're like, and then your marketing has dried up and you're like, oh, we were doing so great in March. What happened?
- [33:22]
Co-host
Shocking. I have no idea what happened.
- [33:25]
Sky Waterson
Nothing.
- [33:26]
Co-host
I know exactly what happened. I'm curious, out of all the tools and strategies you teach, is there one that's had the biggest impact on you personally, your own productivity?
- [33:39]
Sky Waterson
It's a great question. I mean, I think the prioritization filter is probably the best because it's the one that you go to. Like, the stuff that I teach is made for those stressful moments. It's made specifically to help you when you're feeling overwhelmed, when you're feeling stuck, or when you're feeling inconsistent. And I have had my own moments where I'm trying to learn a new thing, I'm trying to grow. We're trying to scale all those kinds of things. And I'll have this huge overwhelm moment of like, oh my gosh, can I do this? You know, that happens in business all the time. And being able to come back to the prioritization filter, organize everything, write it out. It's just a 10 minute process. And by the end of it I'm like, okay, I know what I need to do. I'm focused. And that has been the biggest one for me for sure.
- [34:24]
Co-host
I love that. What about your clients? Can you share a client story of, like, where you saw them being stuck and how they kind of transformed the way they work using your strategies?
- [34:39]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, I mean, that's a really great question. I work with some amazing clients. Let's see. Well, not everyone with ADHD wants to say that they have adhd, but I have had some wonderful people come on the podcast. So most recently we had Lisa. She works as a director at Google. And so she came to me because she was in the process of sort of growing that role and developing her space. And so for her, it was really about simplifying the calendar process. So simplifying the capture process where, okay, there's tons of things coming in, there's big deals that are getting made. How am I going to capture all of that stuff and then filter it into actually getting done? And that was when we really focused in and learning. You know, a lot of times our systems are way too complicated and we actually need to simplify them. And it was really in that simplification, understanding exactly how your ADHD brain works, which pieces of the mini calendars, notes, apps, et cetera are relevant, and simplifying down to just the most important one that you're able to say, okay, this is it. It's super basic looking. And it was.
- [35:45]
Abigail Pumphrey
But.
- [35:45]
Sky Waterson
But it's the thing that works for my brain and that's what I need. So that's probably the biggest one that I can think of right now.
- [35:53]
Co-host
No, I love that. Simplification is definitely been key. Like, if I just think about all the times I've gotten stuck, it's because I'm either trying to do too much in too many ways or too complicated or with software that's far too sophisticated for the actual needs. And like, really bare bones stuff can work so well. For me, I like, basically run my whole business from my notes app, Google Drive and Slack. So like kind of the whole thing. So I love all of this and I think for me at least, it's really just like reinforce that some of those things that I felt like were just odd ways I worked or really valid and things I should prioritize doing. And I'm also excited about the idea of mixing it up a little bit more instead of like always going back to the same routine. So I appreciate you. Do you have, like, one last takeaway for people before we move on with our days?
- [37:02]
Sky Waterson
I suppose, yeah. Yeah. I think the thing I really want people to know, and I've said this before, is you're probably working really, really hard. You're just not necessarily working really, really hard on the right things in the right order. And that can be really difficult with ADHD is we feel like, oh, I'm not trying, but I see you there. Even if you're on the couch, you are trying. You want to do this. And so it's about going, okay, let me stop trying to just hit that wall full speed and see if I can break through it. But actually let me find alternative ways of working around things. So really my call to action is a call to experimentation, a call to try things, a call to test things, a call to not throw everything out the second it doesn't work 100% of the time and adjust and stay with something and test it and make it work for you, because that's really where you're going to see those amazing changes.
- [37:56]
Co-host
Incredible. Where can our listeners connect with you, sky, and learn more about what you're doing and how they might work with with you?
- [38:03]
Sky Waterson
Yeah, so you can find me at unconventionalorganization.com or at unconventional Organization with an S on Instagram. I have a podcast you can listen to. It's the ADHD Skills Lab. We also have a wonderful community called Focus Balance Days where you can get all of these strategies and I think for the rest of the year I have three spaces left if you want to do one on one business coaching with me.
- [38:29]
Co-host
Incredible. This has been so good and I hope you guys really enjoyed today's episode. Sky, thank you so much for being here and I hope to have you back on in the future.
- [38:40]
Sky Waterson
Wonderful. Thanks so much for having me.
- [38:43]
Abigail Pumphrey
Hey, a few quick favors before you leave. I'd love if you'd share today's episode, send it to a friend who needs to hear it and post on social. You can show us where you're listening from, your favorite takeaway or why someone else should listen. Be sure to tag me, Abigail says and bossproject so we can share it.
- [39:00]
Sky Waterson
Okay.
- [39:01]
Abigail Pumphrey
Second favor to get podcast updates and all the behind the scenes news from Boss Project. I'd love if you'd join my VIP list. Just head to bossproject.com signup to make sure I have all your contact details.
- [39:14]
Co-host
Really love this show.
- [39:15]
Abigail Pumphrey
It would mean so much to me if you'd leave a rating and review. It not only helps more listeners find the show, but allows us to bring on quality sponsors so we can keep bringing you this valuable content for free. Thanks so much for listening. Until next time.