Wildflower

Oftentimes, people with neurodivergence make connections, see patterns, have a vision about something and can envision it coming together.  It might be a grand idea. Or a musical composition. It might be an art project or groundbreaking programming code. Or it might be a colorful, kind way to be in the world. It might be the matrix... A person who views life through a unique lens has a lot to offer. 

As a neurodivergent person, I think I can say for all of us that we feel it. It can be very exciting. We can sense something. We feel it’s there! So close you can taste it. Yet getting there, to reach that vision, goal, dream, idea, well, you wanna do all the things at once because that’s how you see everything. It may, in fact, correlate to the reason why some people who are neurodiverse or ADHD or AuDHD or autistic or dyslexic, whatever, neurodivergence you might experience. Chances are you also have your own unique organizational plan as well. True, many won’t see you’re vision - or your ways of working - as manageable. Your way of thinking and doing is different. And “different” can feel scary to those who don’t get it. It’s in our survival DNA to perceive change with suspicion. This can hold us back in the long run. That said, if you’re neurodivergent - your mind is uniquely wired - chances are you do have some highly innovative and creative ideas worth sharing. When you mention them to the mass neurotypical majority however, you’re met with confused stares. Am I right? Ya, I am. 

Your desk may have everything out where you can see it  - and everything on the floor, too. This is especially the case if you’re in the middle of an intense special interest. That organizational method of having lots of piles strewn around the room might seem very disturbing to someone else. In fact, some people feel anxious around such a system. They may have OCD, they may not, who knows? But to a person who has a neurodivergence when they have all these ideas all at once - and they're in the middle of it, they can visualize quite clearly all the pieces coming together nicely - preferably all at once. Everything everywhere all at once. 

That said, if it isn't right there in front of you, chances are pretty good you might forget that piece, that little bit of brilliance. So, there is a method to what some people see as a madness. Honestly though it’s simply a different way of organizing things.

The challenge is that this “everything everywhere all at once” can lead to overwhelm as well. Your thoughts may be firing off all at once, and, while you’ve got every window and app open on your laptop, you’ve also got every post-it, sketch, book, pen strewn around your workspace as well. No doubt your floordrobe is full.  Let’s say you have this concept for an award-winning film running around in your head. You know exactly what needs to happen in order to bring this concept to the screen. You may even have most of the tools you need to physically bring this film to fruition. Your excitement, energy, focus and interest is primed. So, you hole yourself in your room and eagerly get started. It’s going great! You’ve worked diligently, creating an impressive script and storyboard. You haven’t slept or eaten in at least two days. You are in the zone!

You are doing everything everywhere all at once, And you are going to do it perfectly because that's how you see it. Yet when you really get deep in there, you realize that some of the necessary tasks are, well, boring. Editing is not your jam. It’s too detailed plus you can’t figure out the software. In addition, you find yourself getting angry when a loved one interrupts to ask you to dinner.

Overwhelm takes hold, followed by burnout. Then quitting halfway, and massive doses of shame. Before you know it, you are feeling hopeless, isolated and shut-down. Sound familiar?. 

If you sometimes feel that way, you're not alone. You know, I have my qualms with IQ tests (that’s for another time), but they've done studies that indicate the higher one's creative intelligence the messier their desk. 

If you or someone you love has a very messy desk, remember you may be considered highly creative, gifted or genius. Why? Your brain is fired up! You have a lot of activity going on up there. And you know what?  It feels overwhelming. But guess what? All that activity is a good thing. Like a wild stallion you just have to learn how to harness it. 

So the next time you find yourself overwhelmed and angered over an interruption, give yourself some grace. Breathe. You’re okay, and it’s okay to create things your own way. That said, if your way of “everything everywhere all at once” leads to burnout and unfinished projects, you might want to tweak your methods without sacrificing your busy, beautiful brain. Perhaps set up a schedule with timers to ensure your take breaks to move your body and eat something. Perhaps you chunk the amounts of work so that you focus on smaller portions throughout each day. Perhaps you can set aside time and comfortable space for tackling those tasks you find difficult or boring. And maybe you can instill a ‘body double.’ Or, if you prefer to fly solo, consider giving yourself a long onramp: give yourself extra time. Perhaps you can ease up a little on insisting on perfectly bringing your vision to life exactly as you’ve pictured it. You might be pleasantly surprised. 

If you need a dopamine fix, take a break. Move your body. Eat something nutritious and tasty. Drink water. Play a brief game like Wordle (but please don’t go down any gaming rabbit holes.) Breaks are necessary - think of them as pitstops. Breaks are a time to put some gas in the tank so your engines can purr. 

Don't feel that you have to complete everything everywhere all at once. It was an EXCELLENT movie - however it wasn’t produced with everything, everywhere all at once. Trust the process.  Your mind might see it there and you might feel like you could just grasp it and put it together. You also might know how it should come together, but the process of actually putting something together has a lot of steps that are tedious and time consuming. And, of course, you're going to want to do it perfectly. Please remember: Nothing in nature is “perfect.” Have you ever seen a tree that stands as straight as a ruler and has exactly equally balanced branches with an equal amount of exactly shaped leaves? No. It doesn’t exist. The beauty is in its imperfections. Good enough is beautiful and brilliant. 

Even if you’re anxious and excited to bring your vision to life asap, taking time is fine. It’s equally fine to have all of your ideas out in piles on your desk or floor. If that’s what works for you, embrace it. Warn the naysayers, then ignore them. Their discomfort is theirs.  If everything in sight is how you feel organized for you, that's great. Own it. Nothing wrong with it. 

Just remember to be kind to yourself. Take notes if you need to, if that's what works for you. Sometimes the act of writing something down with a pen helps transfer that information to your long term memory. If you get overwhelmed, take a lot of breaks. Plan for them. Give yourself a timeline if this helps. If it doesn’t, and it isn’t required, don’t use a timeline. Take the time upfront to figure out what methods work best for you. 

If you accomplish just a little bit each day, be sure to pat yourself on the back for it. Your ideas will come together. If you are afraid of putting your ideas out there, it’s understandable. A lot of neurodivergent people experience rejection sensitive dysphoria.
So it’s important you remind yourself that others are not thinking of you. Truly people are too concerned with their own lives to be concerned about anyone else's special interests. They might take pleasure from something you create, or it might not be their taste, but they are not discounting you as a human. It is not personal. Please remind yourself of this.  Your ideas, projects, endeavors are worthy. Do it your way, with customized tweaks to help you shine. You’re a masterpiece.