Leading Soldiers with ADHD
By Sgt. Maj. Emmanuel A. Emekaekwue
XVIII Airborne Corps
July 16, 2021
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“ADHD adults bring many positive attributes to the workplace; they can be highly intelligent, creative, and outside-the-box thinkers. They may also have high energy levels, be very persistent, and take risks.” – Carnes & Holloway 2009, para. 2
The hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattentiveness symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) could be concerning or even dangerous in a military setting, but addressing the challenges and recognizing the potential can be beneficial to the U.S. Army. Adults with ADHD bring a high degree of creativity and innovation to the workplace due to their tendency to think outside the box (Yu et al., 2018). This article addresses some of the challenges Soldiers with ADHD face and provides six tips to help Army leaders manage and optimize their performance.
Background
ADHD is a growing diagnosis in American society. According to Health.mil, “The prevalence of ADHD in U.S. children ages 2–17 is estimated to range from 9–11&prcnt;” (Sayers et al., 2021, para. 2). The American Psychiatric Association defines the major symptoms of ADHD as inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity (“What is ADHD?” 2017). On the surface, these symptoms make affected individuals seem incompatible with the rigid, disciplinary structure of the military (Fruchter et al., 2019). On the contrary, according to Scientific American:
“ADHD may also bring with it an advantage:
the ability to think more creatively.
Three aspects of creative cognition are
divergent thinking, conceptual expansion
and overcoming knowledge constraints.
Divergent thinking, or the ability to think
of many ideas from a single starting point,
is a critical part of creative thinking.
Previous research has established that
individuals with ADHD are exceptionally
good at divergent thinking tasks, such as
inventing creative new uses for everyday
objects, or brainstorming new features for
an innovative device. In a new study, college
students with ADHD scored higher
than non-ADHD peers on two tasks that
tapped conceptual expansion and the ability
to overcome knowledge constraints.” (White, 2019, para. 2)
Leading Soldiers with ADHD
A priority in setting your Soldiers with ADHD up for
success is adopting a situational leadership style (Brown,
2020). According to Kendra Cherry, “The most effectiveleaders are those who are able to adapt their style to
the situation and look at cues such as the type of task,
the nature of the group, and other factors that might
contribute…” (Cherry, 2020, para. 1).
This approach, as well as the following six tips
which I developed from a variety of ADHD resources,
worked for me as a first sergeant when I
needed to refocus my Soldiers on assigned tasks and
curb their hyperactivity. With these adjustments,
their behavior and work performance significantly
improved, contributing to the unit’s success. In 2017,
our team won the Secretary of Defense Field-level
Maintenance Award and the Superior Unit Award.
Helping Soldiers with ADHD
Provide creative, realistic training. Individuals
with ADHD typically struggle with repetitive
and routine work or training. When possible,
leaders should provide realistic, stimulating, and
challenging training and environments. This will
help the entire unit prepare for combat as well as
keep them engaged in their training (Department
of the Army, 2020).
Encourage breaks. Your Soldiers may show signs
of hyperactivity or impulsive behavior with tapping,
humming, and fidgeting. Scheduling breaks
can help them release their energy with physical
activity (Mind Tools Content Team, n.d.)
.
Encourage Soldiers to be early. Individuals with
ADHD symptoms function better if they arrive
early for formations and meetings, accomplish
tasks ahead of schedule, and work to minimize
competing requirements (Nadeau & Novotni,
n.d.). Leaders can suggest they take advantage of
tools like timers, Outlook reminders, checklists,
timelines/milestones, and in-process reviews
(IPRs) to stay on track.
Help them set goals and stay organized. If a particular
goal matches their preference and ability,
individuals with ADHD can become focused on
that task to the exclusion of other tasks. This is
a sign of executive function disorder where the
brain struggles to analyze, plan, organize, schedule,
and complete certain tasks (Goodman, 2021). To avoid this, leaders should help these individuals
by setting work-related goals and providing individual
development plans (IDP) — ensuring they
are on track with personal and professional goals.
Explain the “why.” Whenever possible, share the
underlying reasons for a task. Understanding the
basis of a task can trigger their creativity and innovation, potentially enhancing task accomplishment.
This approach is consistent with the Army’s
approach to the mission command philosophy
and is also a best practice to lead and engage
Generation Z Soldiers (Moore, 2019).
Frequent feedback and rewards. Individuals with
ADHD thrive when given feedback on their
progress, ensuring they’re consistently within the
commander’s intent and mission/task objectives.
It’s also important as emotionally intelligent
leaders to reward those Soldiers, and really all
Soldiers, when they do good work (Low, 2020). It
doesn’t have to be a large reward, sometimes even
just telling them they did a great job is enough to
keep them motivated and boost their self-esteem.
Large-Scale Solution
While these tips worked wonders for my unit, they are
only small-scale remedies to help individual units. The Army can do more. As a whole, it should help leaders
recognize and adapt to Soldiers with ADHD. NCO Professional
Military Education (PME) is a great place to expand
training and include classroom instruction on how to
recognize, manage, and lead Soldiers with ADHD.
Conclusion
Research shows individuals with ADHD bring a great
degree of creativity and innovation to the workplace.
Leaders should help Soldiers with ADHD by adopting a
situational leadership style and following, at a minimum,
the six tips provided in order to help them thrive in a
structured military environment — provide creative, realistic
training; encourage breaks; encourage them to be
early; help them set goals and stay organized; explain the
“why;” and provide frequent feedback and rewards. Following
these tips will ensure units function at maximum
efficiency and are ready for the battlefield, regardless of
the challenges some Soldiers may face.
References
Brown, D. (2020). Six tips for helping employees with ADHD
succeed in the workplace. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2020/03/31/six-tips-for-helping-employees-with-adhd-succeed-in-the-workplace/?sh=216d7ad26c99
Carnes, B., & Holloway, M. (2009). Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in the Workplace. Graziadio Business Review. https://gbr.pepperdine.edu/2010/08/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd-in-the-workplace/
Cherry, K. (2020). The situational theory of leadership. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-situational-theory-of-leadership-2795321
Department of the Army. (2020). Training Circular 7-22.7: The noncommissioned officer guide. https://armypubs.army.mil/epubs/ DR_pubs/DR_a/pdf/web/ARN20340_TC%207-22x7%20 FINAL%20WEB.pdf
Fruchter, E., Marom-Harel, H., Fenchel, D., Kapra, O., Ginat, K., Portuguese, S., & Weiser, M. (2019). Functioning of young adults with ADHD in the military. Journal of Attention Disorders, 1470-1474. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1087054716652478
Goodman, B. (2021). Executive function and Executive Function Disorder. WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/executive-function
Low, K. (2020). Using a reward system to improve ADHD behavior. VeryWellMind. https://www.verywellmind.com/behavior-management-for-adhd-20867
Mind Tools Content Team. (n.d.). Managing a person with ADHD: Working with energetic, easily distracted people. Mind Tools. https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/managing-adhd.htm
Moore, C. C. (2019). Engaging Gen Z. NCO Journal. https://www.armyupress.army.mil/journals/NCO-journal/archives/2019/august/generation-z/
Nadeau, K., & Novotni, M. (n.d.). 7 secrets of the most obnoxiously punctual people. ADDitude. https://www.additudemag.com/slideshows/how-to-be-on-time-with-adhd/
Sayers, D., Hu, Z., & Clark, L. L. (2021). The prevalence of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and ADHD medication treatment in active component service members, U.S. Armed Forces, 2014–2018. Health.mil. https://www.health.mil/News/Articles/2021/01/01/Prevalence-of-Attention-Deficit-MSMR
What is ADHD? (2017). American Psychiatric Association. https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/adhd/what-is-adhd
Sayers, D., Hu, Z., & Clark, L. L. (2021). The prevalence of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and ADHD medication treatment in active component service members, U.S. Armed Forces, 2014–2018. Health.mil. https://www.health.mil/News/Articles/2021/01/01/Prevalence-of-Attention-Deficit-MSMR
White, H. (2019). The creativity of ADHD: More insights on a positive side of a “disorder.” Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-creativity-of-adhd/
Yu, W., Wiklund, J., & Perez-Luno, A. (2018). ADHD symptoms, entrepreneurial orientation (EO), and firm. Academy of Management. https://doi.org/10.1177/1042258719892987
Sgt. Maj. Emmanuel A. Emekaekwue is the maintenance operations sergeant major for XVIII Airborne Corps.
He is a graduate of the Army's Strategic Broadening Seminar and holds an MBA in Business Analytics from the University
of North Carolina at Pembroke.
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