More Attention, Less Deficit: Success Strategies for Adults with ADHD

Whenever I meet a new client with ADHD, I always feel compelled to tell her a million things that can help her understand her ADHD and enjoy life more. This book is those million things. -- Ari Tuckman

Books on ADHD abound - but More Attention, Less Deficit is one of the best I've seen for adults (rather than children) with ADHD, and the other people in their lives. The National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization pointed me to this book, and I'm very glad about that. Update on May 30, 2011: The National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization is now the Institute for Challenging Disorganization.

I dislike the book's cover - the photo looks like those pictures you seen in tons of bad PowerPoint presentations - but that's the only thing I disliked!

Here's a pretty up-to-date book (published in 2009) that pulls together all the information you'd want, in a well-organized way, including:
- How ADD works.
- How it affects adults' lives.
- How to get diagnosed.
- Meds that can help.
- People who can help: therapists, coaches, professional organizers.
- Building the skills to do better at time management, organization, etc.
- Dealing with specific situations: work, college, family and more.

Because I've already studied ADHD a lot, and worked with clients who have ADHD, there weren't too many things in here that were new to me. But I found myself highlighting all over the place, as I found points I wanted to remember, and especially nice ways of wording things.

I liked the author's tone, too. He's compassionate, but also expects each of us to take responsibility for improving our own lives - with appropriate help. He's never preachy. He focuses on presenting information that is backed up by reputable research studies, but he doesn't bore you with the details of those studies. (He does point you to them, so you can go investigate more if you so desire.) There's also a sly little sense of humor that pops up every once in a while.

And I like his approach to tools: "I'm all about using the simplest tool to get the job done."

Finally, I'm very thankful for the pointer to the Job Accommodation Network web site, with its wonderful list of accommodation ideas for those with ADHD.