It Takes an ADHD to Push for [Rapid-Fire] Progress at Work. Now, I Truly Understand. | by Aldric Chen | The Startup | Mar, 2025

Personality matters

My outsourcing business partner is a self-proclaimed ADHD guy.

He believes he is. I think he is. He moves at the speed of light. And you know what is shocking about that? He is 65 years old.

Shawn’s speed is reflected in his walking.

He walks faster than many young folks we find on the streets. He is rarely breathless. Shawn talks while walking, too. He talks about work nonstop. Every 10–15 steps is a different topic.

Sales structure. Website wireframes. YouTube outreach. An automated sales funnel works best at 4 tiers. Customers love freebies. Let’s do vouchers. Let’s give them free restaurant vouchers.

It is never-ending.

That is what I like about him. He is energetic and focused.

Shawn has the sharpest mind and commercial acumen I have ever seen in a 65-year-old.

I appreciate him.

Our war on hard work

We are at war in 2025.

Forget 2025. It started during the Pandemic years, magnified itself, and never left us. I am referring to our society’s war against hard work.

The pendulum is now swinging to the other end.

I know I am a workplace neanderthal. I still believe in working [super] hard to achieve our larger-than-life goals and career ambitions. It was influenced by my formative years in the workplace.

I plunged myself into the management consulting industry upon graduation. It was challenging work. Hours were long. Clients were demanding. Bosses had high expectations.

I remember going home on the 3rd day after reporting to a client site for a project assignment on Day 1. It was an incredible experience.

Would I want to experience that again? Nope.

Those hardcore years allowed me to sniff out ultra-high achievers from the above-average excellent folks. Those folks at the pointy end of the high-performance curve are obsessed with their work and can think while working. Shawn reminds me of them.