How Negative Environments Impact Your ADHD Brain(with Brandon Smith)

Presented by Understood.orgGetting diagnosed with ADHD explains a lot. Then it starts explaining too much.In this episode, Nir Eyal breaks down what happens after that initial relief. When ADHD stops being useful information and starts becoming your identity.He shares how that shift can quietly limit effort, create anxiety loops, and turn every struggle into “this is just how I am.”This isn’t about ignoring ADHD. It’s about understanding the difference between what’s real and what you’ve started to believe about it.Because those beliefs don’t just describe your behavior. They shape it.You’ll hear how to separate facts from interpretations, why beliefs are tools not truths, and how small shifts in how you think can reduce friction and make action easier.What We Cover:Why ADHD diagnosis brings relief, then can create new limitsThe difference between a label and an identityHow “this is just my ADHD” becomes a stopping pointWhy beliefs increase or reduce effort before you even startThe difference between pain and suffering in focus and workA simple way to question beliefs that aren’t helpingIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslabConnect With Nir EyalBook: geni.us/beyondbeliefWebsite: nirandfar.comInstagram: instagram.com/nireyal P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgBad environments can train ADHD entrepreneurs to second-guess themselves long after they leave those environments behind. Brandon Smith shares how years of struggling in school, standardized testing, and constant negative feedback shaped the way he saw himself, and why finding practical work completely changed how he viewed his ADHD brain.In this conversation, Brandon breaks down how environment affects confidence, self-trust, business growth, and leadership. He also shares lessons from building a construction company, learning to delegate, and realizing that many ADHD business owners stay stuck trying to perfect systems long before they actually need them.What We CoverWhy ADHD people often confuse environment problems with personal failureHow Brandon rebuilt confidence through practical workWhy school experiences still affect ADHD adults years laterThe mindset shift that helped him hire and delegateWhy unfinished systems can still move your business forwardIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslab P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou feel seen by something that wasn’t meant for you.Skye and Robbie explore whether Bluey reflects ADHD patterns or just captures behaviour accurately.Using DSM criteria, they break down distraction, unfinished tasks, and how patterns are identified over time.This episode sits right on the line between observation and diagnosis and shows you how to think about both.What We Cover:Where observation stops and diagnosis startsWhy realistic behaviour can feel diagnosticHow ADHD criteria actually gets appliedThe risk of over-interpreting behaviourWhy this conversation matters beyond the showIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslab P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou build a new system, follow it for a few days, then quietly stop using it.Craig Ballantyne has coached high performers across multiple industries and his approach focuses on building systems that survive real life, not perfect conditions.This conversation looks at why most systems fail for ADHD brains. Craig explains how self-awareness, environment control, and honest constraints matter more than motivation.You will leave with a different way to think about systems that actually hold when your brain resists structure.What We CoverWhy most systems fail when they rely on motivationHow to design systems based on how you actually behaveThe role of environment in making systems stickWhy honesty about how you learn changes everythingHow to remove friction instead of adding more structureIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslabConnect with Craig: Craig Ballantyne Coaching: https://craigballantyne.com/Instagram: @ realcraigballantyne P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou get a new idea and immediately want to drop everything else.This episode builds on Wednesday’s research around ideation bias in ADHD. The research suggests people with ADHD prefer the idea phase and are more likely to move on before execution is complete.We break down how this creates the “never-ending pivot” and why projects keep getting abandoned halfway through.You’ll learn how to use minimum viable product thinking to actually finish things, even if your brain keeps pulling you toward the next idea.What We Cover:Why ADHD brains prefer ideation over executionHow constant pivots destroy momentum without you noticingTurning new ideas into small, testable outputs instead of full pivotsFinishing projects without suppressing creativityHow to make ideas small enough to complete before switchingIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslab P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou spend weeks building something before anyone ever sees it.Not because it needs to be that big. Because once you start, it keeps expanding until it feels impossible to finish.This is where minimum viable product actually matters. Not as a business concept, but as a way to stop overbuilding everything and start testing things earlier.ADHD makes it easy to over-scope, get pulled into the wrong details, and delay real feedback. So instead of finding out what works, you stay stuck refining something in isolation.This episode breaks down why that happens and how minimum viable thinking helps you start smaller, move faster, and avoid getting trapped in the build phase.On Friday, we’ll show you how to apply this in real situations so you can actually ship things without burning out.What We CoverWhy ADHD leads to overbuilding instead of testingThe pattern of expanding a task before it ever gets real feedbackHow minimum viable thinking cuts through overthinkingWhy starting smaller makes it easier to stay in motionHow to recognize when you’re building instead of progressingIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslab P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou keep starting new things and abandoning the ones that were working.Katy Weber is the go-to voice behind the Woman and ADHD podcast, reaching millions of listeners and building a multi-stream business from lived experience. Her approach to growth is grounded in what actually works with ADHD, not what sounds good on paper.She explains why ADHD pulls you toward new ideas, how pivoting too early kills momentum, and what changed when she stopped rebuilding from scratch. The conversation also covers how she used her podcast as the foundation for everything else.You will leave with a more stable way to grow without constantly resetting your progress.What We CoverWhy ADHD brains pivot too early and lose momentumThe hidden cost of constantly starting overHow to build around one stable “core” systemWhat changed when she stopped chasing new ideasWhy expansion works better than reinventionIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslabConnect with Katy Weber:Website: https://www.womenandadhd.com/Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/womenandadhdpodcast/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katyweber.adhd/ P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

You keep being told ADHD is genetic, but part of you suspects something in your environment is making it worse.In this next episode of the Research Recap Series Skye and Will (Hacking Your ADHD) discuss research on environmental exposure and ADHD-related behaviors.Together they explore what the science suggests about how certain chemicals may influence attention, impulsivity, and neurodevelopment. The focus stays on association, not certainty, and what that means in practice.The conversation also breaks down how to think about risk without spiraling. What matters. What is still unclear. And how to approach this without adding more pressure.What We CoverWhy research is shifting toward ADHD symptoms, not just diagnosisThe possible role of environmental exposure alongside geneticsWhat endocrine disruptors do and why they matter for brain developmentHow to interpret early-stage research without overreactingThe gap between scientific findings and everyday decision makingWant more of Will’s work?Visit HackingYourADHD.com or subscribe to his YouTube channel. P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou keep improving the idea instead of finishing the project.In Wednesday’s breakdown, we showed why ADHD brains prefer ideation and discount future rewards. Today is about building around that.This episode gives you three systems. A written decision log. A structured ideation window. And a clear threshold for when changes are allowed.These systems help you move from “this could be better” to “this is done.”What We Cover:Why ideas expand until you force a stopping pointThe system that turns decisions into something concreteHow to keep ideation from leaking into executionUsing future logs to capture ideas without derailmentWhy finishing requires leaving your strongest skillIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslab P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co

Presented by Understood.orgYou have a good plan. But your brain keeps pulling you back into new ideas.Skye and Robbie explain why ADHD brains get stuck in ideation.This episode connects real-world behavior to research. ADHD brains perform well in divergent thinking. But they also prefer it. And they value immediate rewards over delayed ones.That combination makes finishing harder than starting.What We Cover:Why ideation becomes a loop instead of a phaseResearch showing ADHD strength in divergent thinkingThe preference for idea generation over refinementHow reward timing affects executionWhy finishing feels harder than startingIf you're enjoying ADHD Skills Lab, you may also enjoy Understood.org’s new podcast, Sorry, I Missed This.Listen here: https://lnk.to/sorryimissedthisPS!theadhdskillslab P.S. Losing work because the admin layer around your business can't keep up with you? Invisible Systems is a 90-day done-for-you sprint where I (Skye) extract the processes from your head, build the operating layer, and find the right person to run it. Six spots left at the founding price, book a call at invisiblesystem.co