How DiSC helped me appreciate my Neurodiversity

I was diagnosed with ADHD in the mid-1990s. 

I was a hyper child. I remember my parents would get so frustrated with me when we’d go to dinner. I’d be bouncing around literally everywhere. On my seat, on the floor, under the table, back in my seat…you get the idea. 

Now, my parents were wonderful. However, when I was a child, they were incredibly impatient with my hyperactivity. They didn’t understand it. 

I went through most of my life with the same experience: people didn’t understand me. Quite honestly, I didn’t really understand myself for a very long time. 

I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I grew up. I was told many times by so many people that I couldn’t do something because of my ADHD. 

I remember being told once I couldn’t be promoted to manager because of my attention span and hyperactivity: “You’re too hyper to be a manager; no one will take you seriously.” 

Throughout my career, I encountered many hurdles. I didn’t understand how to interact with people so that I wouldn’t annoy them. I tried my best to be friendly and outgoing, but sometimes, I just rubbed people the wrong way, and I didn’t know why. 

Now, I work with an organization that uses various behavioral assessments to assist teams in promoting a better workplace culture. One of the tools we use is Everything DiSC®, which measures someone’s core preferences and priorities.

Learning about DiSC led me to an introspective look at my DiSC i-style and also brought new self-awareness about my ADHD.

I’ve learned how to recognize my own tendencies and preferences and how they may be received by others. I’ve learned how to adapt my communication style to those that have different styles. And I’ve learned that my ADHD is another part of who I am, contributing to both the strengths and the challenges associated with my DiSC i-style. 

Now, I’m not saying that DiSC helped to diagnose my ADHD. By learning about DiSC, I’ve realized what I bring to the table and how to do that more effectively. 

My iS DiSC Style

I have a primary i-style within the Everything DiSC model. This style places a focus on people, is faster-paced, and displays and appreciates enthusiasm. 

As I learned about my i-style, I learned about my preferences and priorities: how I like to work, how I like to interact, how I like to receive feedback and more. 

Most i-styles have a hard time staying focused on a particular task for extended periods of time, especially when that task is redundant. 

Working on these tasks can be very draining for someone with an i-style. They’ll lose energy and focus and may be drained at the end of the day. 

Because of this, i-styles seek out stimulation. They tend to excel in dynamic roles that allow them to shift their attention and focus to new projects or ideas frequently. 

Also, i-styles tend to seek out social stimulation and will go out of their way to attend social events. They typically like to work in group settings and collaborate as much as possible. 

All of these descriptors ring true for me. I also have a hard time with feedback. In fact, my DiSC report says that I may have a negative reaction to criticism or even perceived criticism. 

I’ve learned that i-styles react more positively when given positive feedback before constructive criticism. 

In summary, with my primary i-style I like to be in social situations where I can think creatively and work with others. I like dynamic, fast-paced roles that allow me to shift my attention frequently. I have a very hard time taking criticism and I dislike being in a dull environment where I’m performing repetitive tasks.

However, just because I have ADHD and an i-Style doesn’t mean that this is the same for all i-Styles. DiSC results can be varied even within the same primary style. 

ADHD and RSD

The book Beyond Diversity Embracing Neurodiversity for Organizational Success, by Melissa A. Walker, Ph.D., provides information about ADHD that reflects my own experience – and also correlates with my DiSC results.

I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Walker in New Orleans this past May for the annual ATD conference. She gave me some wonderful advice both for myself and my daughter. 

Here’s what Dr. Walker writes about folks that have ADHD:

“People that have ADHD can be very creative, energetic, and able to think outside of the box. They might excel in fast-paced, dynamic roles that require problem-solving and innovation. However, they may also have difficulties with organization, sustaining attention, and punctuality, which could impact their ability to manage time and tasks effectively.”

People with ADHD also tend to seek out stimulation. They seek out fast-paced dynamic roles with the flexibility to work on multiple projects or tasks. 

Dr. Walker goes further with some information about RSD, or Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria.

Here’s what she says about RSD:

“This is a term most associated with ADHD, although it isn’t officially recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). RSD is characterized by an extreme emotional sensitivity to perceived rejection, criticism, or failure. Individuals with RSD may experience intense emotional reactions to situations where they feel they have not met expectations or when they feel they have been criticized or rejected.” 

With my ADHD and RSD, I’ve known that I have a hard time paying attention and performing repetitive tasks, and I don’t take criticism very well. However, DiSC has helped me learn to channel my strengths and be aware of my challenges. 

I was curious if there were any correlations between DiSC and neurodiversity, so I reached out to Dr. Mark Scullard, the Director of Product Innovation at Wiley, the publisher of Everything DiSC.

I asked Dr. Scullard about any correlations he has seen with the DiSC assessment, specifically ADHD. 

Dr. Scullard told me that they don’t have any datasets with that as a specific variable. However, he relayed to me that on the Everything DiSC assessment, people with ADHD tend to score lower on the conscientiousness and agreeableness scales with mixed findings on extraversion.

At first, we both felt that this contradicted our own personal experiences and observations of people with ADHD. However, upon thinking further, I think this makes some sense.

Dr. Scullard suggested – and I agree – that people with ADHD externalize more, which could lead to those lower conscientiousness / reflective scores. We tend to process our thoughts out loud, which might inhibit that reflective thought.

As for the agreeableness, that could have something to do with RSD. Dr. Walker’s book reports that most folks with ADHD also have RSD. This really gets in the way of taking feedback and could hinder some interactions where you’re trying to reach agreement. 

Dr. Scullard shared some other resources with me, listed in the Source section below. These are various studies conducted and reported by the National Library of Medicine.

DiSC has provided me with another means to learn more about myself, my tendencies and how those tendencies are perceived by those around me. I feel that I am better educated about myself as a result. I can recognize other people’s DiSC styles and adapt my communication to fit theirs. 

This has allowed me to appreciate my ADHD and even work with it more effectively, which has, in turn, helped me to cultivate a much more fulfilling career and life. 

Sources:

Beyond Diversity Embracing Neurodiversity for Organizational Success – Melissa A. Walker, Ph.D.

Everything DiSC Manual – Mark Scullard, Ph.D. & Dabney Baum, Ed.D. 

Dr. Scullard’s Shared Resources:

“NEO PI-R profiles of adults with attention deficit disorder” – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9458338/

“Personality characteristics associated with persistent ADHD in late adolescence” – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17701339/