Josh Adler says hiring neurodivergent talent is a success hack that pays out big for companies and is redefining the top-tier talent search. Josh Adler says hiring neurodivergent talent is a success hack that pays out big for companies and is redefining the top-tier talent search. Josh Adler says hiring neurodivergent talent is a success hack that pays out big for companies and is redefining the top-tier talent search. The days of hiring and training a generalist to grow into a specialist role are being replaced with smarter hires that can go further and do more, all before you’ve had your morning coffee. Hiring managers that recognize and reward the skills and abilities of neurodivergent people are placing a bet on talent that can fast-track the success of their company. This is especially true in the agile framework of startup companies where hiring people with the ability to assess options across disciplines quickly is crucial for scalability. Neurodivergent and ADHD people are uniquely gifted and hiring managers should be tapping into the complex skillset that comes naturally to them. The old ADHD stereotype: chaotic, disorganized, risky. The new perspective: creative problem solving, fast decision making, good at independent, self-directed work. This gives them, and the companies they work in, a competitive edge. Leading this innovative perspective-shift is Josh Adler, serial entrepreneur and author of Hyperaware, a memoir of his successful startup experiences. Adler knows a bet that can pay off big for businesses: ADHD employees are often the most likely to bend reality, unlock new markets, see the vision for what could be that others are unable to, or refactor your codebase at three a.m. without being asked. Josh Adler “ADHD isn’t a liability,” he writes. “It’s a high-variance bet. If you’re a startup, don’t hire for consistency. Hire for intensity.” Hyperawareness at Work Hyperawareness at Work Several studies have found that adults with ADHD consistently outperform neurotypical peers in divergent thinking. This includes idea generation and iteration and breaking boundaries that neurotypicals might prefer to stay within. Divergent thinkers generate new ideas across multiple areas of focus and deep-dive to become masters of a subject where others might only see a roadblock. That’s not a soft skill, but the core of innovation. In fact, one of the defining features of ADHD, which Adler calls hyperawareness, can result in intensive individual work sessions that outperform entire teams. According to Adler: “Someone will go dark for three days and come back with a forty-page API at three-thirty a.m. on a Sunday.” What looks like unreliability on the surface is often the catalyst a team or company needs for a breakthrough. So, why are we not talking about this more? Because for too long, people with these skills have been misunderstood and mislabeled. In his book Driven to Distraction, Psychiatrist Edward Hallowell teaches that ADHD is “a trait, not a disorder.” Managed properly, he says, it can heighten creativity, energy, and entrepreneurial drive. This is an exciting way to look at these skills, especially in an entrepreneurial environment. Research has shown that ADHD traits, entrepreneurship, and performance are linked. Driven to Distraction Where does all this lead? Making the right hire, especially in startups. Startups Aren’t Built for Stability Startups Aren’t Built for Stability This new way of seeing employees with ADHD is gaining traction in venture-backed circles. Modern startups with their eye on the unicorn don’t need a team to quietly tick boxes or settle for status quo. They need people who think outside norms, or invent new ones. Often, the people with the most innovative perspectives are neurodivergent, some with ADHD. Let’s expand on the secret hack of seeking out the skills of neurodivergent people. Research is showing that hiring employees with cognitive differences can produce better outcomes in roles requiring pattern recognition, big-picture thinking, and creative problem-solving. This turns the conversations of hiring managers to work performance and value add, not just inclusion. Take the “risky” hire Adler made that saved time and money for one of his companies. He recounts hiring a twitchy, distracted engineer who bombed the interview but within a month had rebuilt the company’s backend, without being asked. Adler says, “He saved us three months of tech development.” That’s not just a good hire. It unlocked a significant leap forward for the company. It demonstrates a key mental shift hiring managers should make: the value of hiring for intensity rather than consistency. Measurable Outcomes of Hyperawareness Measurable Outcomes of Hyperawareness So, what about the other side of neurodivergent hires? The part where the sight of a to-do list demotivates or the deadline pushed upon them pushes them onto a non-priority project? This comes down to management, just as it does with neurotypical people. Knowing how to manage your team is a skill all of us should have. It’s true, most if not all ADHD employees aren’t necessarily good at to-do lists. These aren’t the type of check-the-box people we would want to ask to organize our Google Drive. But when they care about something? Secret hack unlocked. They can’t stop. And if you’ve never felt that type of hyperfocus, productivity expert Chris Bailey, in his bestseller Hyperfocus, has. He defines it as “a state of deep and effortless concentration.” When a team member enters this state, he says, distractions limit breakthrough thinking and narrow mental bandwidth. Hyperfocus Intense brains desire that type of “deep and effortless concentration.” They get into the zone and can self-direct, self-motivate, and produce spectacular outcomes that are measurable and can be astounding. Sure, there are challenges. But every type of brain has its own challenges. It comes down to management. Managing the Skills Underneath the “Chaos” Managing the Skills Underneath the “Chaos” Managing a team of people is not one-size-fits-all. This is especially true with the intensity and skill set neurodivergent people bring to the team. Managing neurodivergent talent is a necessary skill that takes intention until you get the hang of how to motive them. Adler offers hiring recommendations that should be the backbone of the process. Define outputs, not hours. What matters isn’t when they work but what they produce.Protect focus. Meetings are the enemy of productivity. Block deep work time.Expect sprints, not marathons. They won’t pace. They’ll burst.Be direct. Clarity beats subtlety. Don’t hint. Say it.Give them ownership. Nothing kills ADHD faster than micromanagement. Define outputs, not hours. What matters isn’t when they work but what they produce. Define outputs, not hours. Protect focus. Meetings are the enemy of productivity. Block deep work time. Protect focus. Expect sprints, not marathons. They won’t pace. They’ll burst. Expect sprints, not marathons. Be direct. Clarity beats subtlety. Don’t hint. Say it. Be direct. Give them ownership. Nothing kills ADHD faster than micromanagement. Give them ownership. SAP and Microsoft have discovered the benefit of these types of hiring and managing processes through their neurodiversity hiring programs. These programs consistently outperform traditional pipelines in creative output, problem-solving, and tech contributions. neurodiversity hiring programs The secret hack is to empower, not inhibit. To release and trust, not to micromanage and question. Every manager should expand their understanding of neurodivergent talent and their skill set to effectively work with these members of their team and not try to make them conform to old norms. Safe Doesn’t Scale Safe Doesn’t Scale The agility of startups supports this final part of embracing the hyper talent of ADHD and neurodivergent people. And this is perhaps the most important takeaway: If you’re optimizing for safety, you’re not optimizing for scale. The safest hire might help maintain your current business. But that eccentric, obsessive candidate? They might reinvent it. So, if you're a hiring manager, founder, or investor, it’s time to ask yourself: Are you hiring to avoid risk, or to dramatically scale the value of the company? Josh Adler lays it out plainly, “If you aim to build something that matters… look for bold, wild, brilliant people.”

This story contains new, firsthand information uncovered by the writer.

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Why Startup Founder Josh Adler is Betting on This Secret Hack: The ADHD Hyper Talent

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