Jobs for women with Adhd

[Bowcup]

I haven’t got a diagnosis but I really think I have this. The burn out anxiety is strong. I’ve just come off the high of thinking I can start a fashion brand. I’ve registered a logo, a name and spend a lot of money on samples. Now I feel stuck and thinking wtf.

I’m coming from childcare which I’m good at but find it either soul destroyingly boring or too stressful.

I’ve tried being a cake baker, did a coding bootcamp that I couldn’t get on with, tried buying and selling stuff on EBay, teeth whitening business, fixing and selling Bugaboos. Thought about opening my own nursery and emailed churches with spaces.

There has to be something that I can do that is also stimulating.

What about taking orders in McDonalds? It’s fast paced and varied.

there is no specific area that will definitely suit a woman with ADHD. What you need is to find an environment where you feel comfortable and able to be yourself. That could be anywhere from a building site to a train driver to a company executive.

I’ve been diagnosed for 11 years, and I found my niche in finance complaints. It’s not boring but it’s structured and I’m surrounded by agents with their own expertise and various issues . No one cares about my social nuances because they are focused on their own

I went freelance as a children’s storyteller as it’s infinitely varied and I can bring lots of my skills together. When I’m not telling stories directly I can make my own props and puppets, draw, write, paint etc.

https://www.prospects.ac.uk/planner try this

I'm awaiting an assessment and 99% sure I have it.
I worked in sales for many years until I burnt out. The commission would give me a dopamine hit every month and it was very fast paced so I never got bored.

After 10 years I felt like a caged animal so one day I just quit and set up a business. What I didn't consider was that I need external pressure and structure to get things done, so that wasn't the best idea.

I'm now looking to return to work but I know that 99% off the job options will bore me to death so i'm looking to retrain as a travel agent - I love travel and the sales element will keep me focused!

It's so hard isn't it? Wish I could just do a qualification and settle into a career like everyone else...

I had my own business working with children for a while and am a TA now. Working with kids is great, they keep my brain active all the time! It’s fast paced and every day is different whilst following a usual steady routine, this structure helps my autism and the variety within each session helps my ADHD.

I know a few people with ADHD and they all run their own business and are very successful, you can do it.

One of my friends is a very social and caring person and that helps her in her business where she is a mobile housekeeper/ carer for multiple clients. She never gets bored because she has multiple clients however I can't say she doesn't experience burnout.

Starting your own brand/business from the ground up is incredibly labour intensive and relies a lot on luck. I know it's a bit of a trope that people with ADHD make good entepreneurs but I think that's only realistically true if you have a lot of capital behind you or you're exceptionally lucky/talented, IMO. Or you need a business partner who is fantastic at the making ideas happen part and then you need to not have a spectacular fall out

I am prone to this "must reinvent entire life plan" type thinking but actually what's been most successful is always just building on my existing experience and prioritising either something like what hours I can do, and/or something stable enough that it is going to continue without me having to put my whole self into it (which generally means working for an employer). There are very few jobs which are never boring, but if you make your whole life not about work, then it's less boring. You could also seek out a job where the actual work itself is more varied or it changes a lot.

So childcare and the buggy repair thing - these seem the most closely linked to me, so I would look at this as an area/starting point.

Could you look at working with children in some capacity or adjacent to. Would you be open to retraining? OT or SALT are interesting and you'd get to work with children 1:1. Or health visiting where you get to visit families at home. Working at a local family centre or children's centre if you have something like this. Working with older children perhaps in a primary school? Although that does sound extremely stressful and poorly paid.

Or some kind of smaller group activity or classes. Less repetitive than nursery work but similar aspects. Lots of franchises here which can be a good way to set up your own business - tumble tots, sing and sign etc.

Working within the nursery industry but not necessarily with children directly. Could you look at gaining a qualification to allow you to run training courses for nursery staff?

Childminding rather than your own nursery - less start up costs. Foster carer? Although that's a lot more than a job.

Nursery products (buggies, bottles, car seats) is another area which can be fun if you have an interest. Look at local chain stores like Mamas and Papas/John Lewis or independents. Personally I always loved working retail because I absolutely adored demoing products, speaking directly to customers to help them narrow down a choice and just getting to know and become expert in all the different options. You could also get into being something like a brand rep where you travel around showing all the new prams/slings/whatever to the different shop workers.

Thank you for the replies. I really appreciate it and there are some great ideas in here.
The children’s story teller sounds amazing as does the training other nursery staff, I will have to get another qualification for that one.

I’m going to push with the clothing business until I realise it’s crap or it takes off. I’ve invested a bit of money and I need to know if it would’ve worked out.
It’s the push to do it that I’m struggling with. I have a lot of will power but it’s hard to focus in when I have a lot of family life distractions. I can’t just dip in and out when I have the time I need a few solid hours to get the boring bits done.
It’s hard coming to the conclusion that I could have ADHD as it doesn’t sound like there is much help just a label and a realisation that this is why you want to quit every job you’ve ever had.

I mean TBF the medication is pretty good. I understand it can be many years on a waiting list to access it, though.