Win with ADHD: David Moss-Cornett
The key to this ADHDer’s success is to constantly keep busy with multiple projects and careers.
At 34, David Moss-Cornett’s busy and curious ADHD brain serves him well. This wasn’t always the case. In third grade, he finished his schoolwork in half the time it took other students. Instead of sitting idly by, “I would get up and build things, but I was ordered back to my seat, because it wasn’t building time,” says Moss-Cornett. His teacher noticed that he was easily bored and always active, so she contacted his foster mother. He was diagnosed with ADHD and was prescribed Ritalin.
Moss-Cornett, whose single mom passed away when he was six years of age, was adopted at age 12 after living in several foster homes. His new family doctor took him off his ADHD medication, which hadn’t been effective. Now, he manages his ADHD primarily by keeping busy with work that stimulates him. This includes being a photographer, a licensed wedding officiant, and a music events producer for his own company, Mossy Gatherings. He says that three cups of coffee help, too.
Before working for himself, Moss-Cornett found that nine-to-five jobs stymied his creative thinking. Procrastination was also a problem. “When I give myself due dates, I meet them,” says Moss-Cornett. That’s not always easy, though. He is a perfectionist. In high school, this almost led to his failing biology. When he didn’t turn in his assignments, Moss-Cornett told his mom, “I’m still working on them, but they’re not good enough yet.”
Moss-Cornett says, “I have more motivation when I work on more than one project.” This helps him overcome procrastination and boredom to get things done. “In the course of a week, I’ll work on five different projects.” A typical day finds him switching tasks often – photography in the morning, his wedding business in the afternoon, and booking musicians for Mossy Gatherings events in the evening.
Learning about your ADHD is the best thing you can do, says Moss-Cornett. “When you know what ADHD is, then you’re not going to be as hard on yourself. I am able to explain my ADHD to people, if I need to, so that they understand how I tick. If you don’t understand how you tick, you can be hard on yourself. This will lead to a lack of self-esteem and failed relationships.
“For me, it’s like, I am normal. I’m just normal with ADHD.”
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In Their Words: Lena Dunham
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