Supporting a Senior Leader
with ADHD in Transition
Issue
When Anna (alias) stepped into a demanding senior role, her calendar was already a battlefield—back-to-back meetings, overflowing inbox, and a neurodiverse team looking to her for clarity.
On top of this, she had just received a late ADHD diagnosis, which helped explain years of struggle (especially since perimenopause) with overwhelm and self-doubt—but also left her wondering if she could keep up the pace without burning out.
She described feeling like she was “always two steps behind and three steps ahead—never in the present moment.” Imposter syndrome was constant, and her team had begun to notice the strain.
Approach
In our coaching sessions, we started with the 3 A’s Framework to bring both relief and structure to her situation, and she also benefited from profiling both her and her team’s strengths and preferred ways of working (We used DiSC and Strengths Profile).
Awareness. She learnt to pause and name what was actually happening. The racing mind. The “not good enough” story. The drain of constant decisions. We strengthened her focus on her gifts and gently exposed the inner critic running commentary.
Accept.
Through mindfulness and self-compassion, she stopped fighting her wiring. There was grief for the years of masking and overdriving. And relief in allowing a different way.
Agency.
We simplified how she led. Clear priorities anchored to values. Practical scaffolding for her and her team. Short resets in long meetings. Smarter use of energy cycles. Stronger boundaries. Light-touch accountability that supported focus without white-knuckling it.
Less force. More alignment.
Outcome
Over 12 sessions, Anna moved from running on adrenaline to leading with intention. Anchored in her values, she delegated with more confidence and reclaimed space to think, not just react.
Her team felt it. Communication sharpened. Boundaries steadied. Trust strengthened.
Most importantly, she stopped trying to fix her ADHD and began integrating it into her leadership. It became part of her design, not a flaw to conceal.
As she put it, “I can lead without pretending. This is me. And it works.”
“When self-awareness meets self-compassion, sustainable leadership becomes possible.”