The flip side of many of our failings is a gift. We’re typically lousy with the little details of life – I may forget a doctor’s appointment or a meeting or birthdays and the like, but I can dream and see the potential of a project like there’s no tomorrow. Sometimes this leads to disappointment, but it can lead to great joy and accomplishment, too. If we set our minds to something we want and get a little help with the details, then an ADDer can be quite successful whatever endeavor he or she chooses. This is definitely a gift. I am amazed at my husband and friends who can only see the details. I rarely look at the details of a project, but at what the end result has the potential to be.
Let me give you a real life example. My church may have the opportunity to start an after school program. It’s in the very beginning stages and we’re just gathering information at this point, but I see the potential for reaching into the community with this program and really seeing some amazing results in reaching the children as well as the parents. I see parenting classes evolving from it and phenomenal growth as people in the community see that we care about them. However, there are others who don’t see anything but the details – who will administrate the program, what rooms will we set up for the program, who will be the tutors, what will it cost…and on and on….
Now, don’t get me wrong, details are very important. In fact, one of the coping skills I developed over the years was to get help with the details in many areas of my life. Sometimes details are discouraging, though. I’ve learned that there has to be a balance between details and dreams. You can get so bogged down in details that you lose your dreams. That’s where that gift of persistence comes in again. Use it. You’ll be glad you did when your dream is accomplished.
