Brett Whitmarsh

Autism and ADHD in the Workplace: Setting Achievable Annual Goals

Annual goals are more than just checkboxes; they can be a roadmap to your professional growth and success in the corporate world. As neurodivergents, understanding goal setting is helpful for thriving in our careers.

Understanding Annual Goals:

I’m going to walk you through how to approach your annual goals. Everyone approaches goals differently. Some think of them as an annual box to check that are set early in the year and then forgotten until the end of the year when HR reminds us to do the self-review. 

Others look at them as an opportunity to grow and enhance their learning. And many see them as a key part of growing their careers and utilizing the annual goals to look for a promotion or at the very east, work towards getting a more significant raise that goes beyond a cost of living raise.  

Many HR departments hope that we will treat the annual goals thoughtfully and in a way that help us do some professional growth.

The Language of Goals: 

Every’s job and every corporation is different. Many might use various terms to describe goals, but a goal is still a goal. That said, be sure to talk over with your boss if there are higher level goals that impact the goals you set. 

  • Before we start with this year’s goals, let’s take a moment to reflect on what we did last year? You may have been asked to do a self assessment on last years goals. If you did or didn’t, put that on hold for a moment. 
  • Instead, let’s just do a free think and make a list, just do a brain dump and it doesn’t have to be perfect, but think and list all of the things you did. There are no wrong answers here. It doesn’t matter if it was big or small, but just list out everything you did. 
  • Sometimes I find looking back at my calendar helps remind me what I did and who I might have worked with. Give yourself some thinking space to work on this, but don’t over think it.
  • Once we have our list: 
  • What stands out to you? 
  • What brought you joy or 
  • What maybe jumps out that you’d rather not do again? 
  • Take a few small notes as to why or why not you have joy or annoyance at any of these items:
  • As you look at the things you liked doing — what if anything could identify as an area where you had some growth, did some learning or maybe even expand your role a little more?
  • Likewise if you had areas of frustration, why? Did you need more learning or experience or skill building one tat thing? Is that something you’d like to do this year? 
  • Save these notes for our annual review, but for the moment let’s set those notes aside. 
  • As we review last year’s goals — what aligns with your list of things we got done? Do you see any of your goals on the list? Why or why not — and don’t judge yourself as you think about it. Just stick to the facts of why or why not — this will help us in our annual review conversation too.
  • Do we see any themes, any patterns anything that jumps out to you? Anything that would be helpful to pull forward to this year or anything you’d rather leave to last year?
  • Sometimes when we look back we might see good ideas that didn’t work out because our priorities shifted. That’s OK. Or maybe we see something that sparked an interested but we didn’t have time or we got distracted. Note all of that as possibilities for this year’s goals. 

Reflect on the goals of the last year:

  • Take a moment to reflect on these things, and ask yourself, what do I want to do this year? What can I build off of from this list? 
  • Now lat’s also pause to reflect on what we also HAVE to do this year?
  • For many people this is where that hopeful inspiration gets a little disheartening because we can be overwhelmed by an ever-growing to do list.  
  • Here’s my challenge to that — can we find an intersection between what you have to do and what you want to do? It could be small and it might always seem obvious at first, but see if you can find. Way in?
  • And what about career growth? Is that something you want to think about? 
  • And saying no, not right now, is an OK answer too. Maybe you want to just grow within your role? That’s great too.

What’s expected of me at work?

  • When I do this exercise with my team we hone in on the question:
  • “What’s expected of me.” This is a question Gallup uses every year within their employee satisfaction surveys. It’s often the biggest question employees struggle with if they’re overwhelmed or just having frustrations in their job. It’s also a great topic to talk about regularly with your manager in your check-ins.
  • If you have it during the goal setting window; it can be a moment to confirm with your boss if you both have the same expectations of what your role is and what each of you expects from one another 
  • This could generate a conversation on how you are either growing in your role, need to grow or how the role itself is evolving. 
  • it could be a good moment for you to better understand if the growth your feeling is aligned with your manager’s perspective. 
  • There’s is of course that 10,000 ft view of “what’s expected of me” which means yes this is the basic general idea of my job; for example, your job title might be video editor or writer. So I generally, as your manager, would expect you to be editing or writing. But if we both also expect for you to grow skills associated with your job and the projects, this is a good time to talk about those. Or if you’ve been a video editor and now you want to be a producer, this I also a good time to talk about how to work towards that.

Questions for you and your manager:

  • Some questions to consider or talk over with your manager (and note these same questions can work for that annual review conversation too): 
  • What new skills do I want to grow in the new year that are associated with the work I am already doing now? 
  • Will I have the time from my manager (and the OK to do so)? 
  • How can I track and document this work so that it’s seen in my annual review? 
  • Are there any funds from the company or our department that can allow me to maybe take a class or something more to help me grow or gain more skills? 
  • What might be some projects we have coming up where I can implement both the opportunity to try these or can take more time to learn something new? 
  • Or work with someone else who might be able to teach more about what they’re doing that I might like to learn more about? 

Tips for goal settings

  • If you’re really overwhelmed with an endless to-do list, make it easier on yourself and look for all the entry points in the work you’re already are doing or plan to do in the new year. The goal here is to avoid taking on too much extra work and feeling more burned out. Instead we’re looking to find small ways into the work you’re doing now. 
  • This is also a good question to think about if your company requires anything specific from your annual goal settings? 
  • Where can you find alignment in your daily work to something that is being asked of you?
  • Yes, you totally can take on those big things too, and I always tell my team but, manage expectations for yourself around the work you have to do.
  •  If we say yes to this big thing, what are we saying no to? Again, the goal is to avoid burnout, overwhelm, or not getting something done. It’s not a perfect system, but if we try and think about it now, it might help us if or when the stress hits later.
  • How do I make this stick and not have it be a wasted exercise? 
  • This is the critical part of making it all stick! Again, the check in with your boss 
  • As you do check-ins throughout the year, bring the progress on these goals back with you to your manager. You will need to make a point to own these topic. 
  • You always want to be your own advocate for growth and advancement. And if your goal is to grow into a new role, check out the next video in this series about that… BUT as I said earlier you don’t want any surprises at your annual review, so if these topics are being reviewed and talked about as part of your check-in then you and your manager should ideally be on the same page for the expectations of your role at work and be having those conversations regularly. 
  • Remember in your check -in with your boss, you can bring agenda items too if you’re not. And if you’re not doing check-ins with your boss? Maybe look into how to start that. Our brains need the structure of things like a check in… 

ADHD and Autism (AuDHD) Task Initiation Tips for Neurodivergents at Work

Introduction:

One of the hardest parts of being neurodivergent is we sometimes hit these walls where we struggle to get started even if it’s something we want to do.

We sometimes need help to start something, especially if our brains find it boring, but it even happens with things we want to do. So, how do we do the thing? That’s our topic for today’s video.

Meet Brett, the AuDHD Boss:

I’m an autistic ADHDer (also known as AuDHD), and I’ve been a manager in various corporate settings for over 15 years. Here, I apply my lived experience and leadership training to help neurodivergents in the workplace. Take what works for you and leave the rest. Not everything I say will work perfectly for you, but there might be something that helps.

“Task initiation” (or how we just do the thing?) refers to determining how to accomplish a particular task or objective. In other words, it is the initial step in figuring out how to do something.

Jessica McCabe writes in her excellent book, How to ADHD, that our brains need different motivations to start a task. Even when it’s something we want to do.

Sometimes, we can launch into something when it’s new or exciting, our special interest, or a new hyper-focus. Then, other times, we might struggle to get started, even when it’s something we want to do… writing this post, for example… 

Sometimes, we also need a challenge for our minds or a deadline. 

Even so, we might have a deadline at work, and we still don’t want to do the thing, or we avoid it until the last minute. The panic from that can give us the adrenaline we need, but then we crash hard on the other end. 

Or worse, we just can’t do it and feel bad about ourselves. 

So, what can we do to do the thing when we don’t want to?  

Before I launch into the tips and strategies, I will again recommend How to ADHD by Jessica McCabe. Over on her channel (and in her book), she walks through the emotions behind these barriers and how to investigate within yourself how to tackle this issue in general. 

Find out why?

Let’s reset what we’re doing? What is out why? Or maybe there is something here where we can find that spark of interest or our way into whatever the project is? 

What is our ultimate goal for this project, or what is our intent? Let’s not get lost in what everyone else is doing; that’s an easy trap to fall into and not the kind of thinking that will help us do our thing — let’s focus on what we are trying to do and why?

Break down the steps.

Next — let’s break down the steps. Sure, there might be a lot or even a few, but let’s break them down into a checklist so we can capture our thinking and not miss anything — this does not need to be in any particular order — just write down the various steps that come to mind. 

Side note here: 

Sometimes, all the steps to take on a project can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re AuDHD. Ask for help; there is no shame in asking a boss, friend, partner, or colleague to sit with you and be a thought partner to help break all these steps down and help prioritize what’s needed — maybe even make a visual. Sometimes, we just need to talk to process these things out loud. If I can’t find a thought partner, I speak to my cat, dog, or myself. For me, it’s about the vocal processing. This is a form of body doubling that helps me a lot. 

Prioritize the list

OK — NOW we’re going to organize these steps — what do we need to prioritize, what can we start with? Does it all have to be done right now, or are there some smaller steps we can do first to get us started or even motivated before we take on some of the more intricate or significant stuff? Does any part of this have its deadline or require someone else, like your boss, to review it before we go to another step? Do we need any help or partners to join us? If so, which parts need that? Let’s note that on our list and figure out when we will go to all of them to get that help.

OK, let’s get started… or take a little break.

We have our list and order, more or less; what else do we need to get started?

Measured rewards

This is critical because sometimes, just organizing our thinking can make us feel so accomplished we stop there. Try to avoid that. Here’s an option — either we take a small break and reward ourselves because we’ve made this list — find a small break or get a small reward or treat for doing what we’ve done so far OR start the smallest, most simple task on the list so we can cross it off and then tell yourself, we can get our treat after we do that one small thing. — You decide, but hold onto that because we must make a deal with our brain to return! That’s critical 

OK, now maybe we’re struggling to come back, or perhaps we’ve done our treat, and we’re ready to go to the next step. Let’s consider what other little rewards we might be able to give ourselves if we can get through a few more steps or half or whatever works for you…But make the reward matter. 

Sometimes, all of this is still not enough, or you get started and find yourself hitting a wall. Let’s talk about body doubling. 

Sometimes, it’s easier for me to finish something for a team member when they sit with me and help me complete the task. For example, if a team member needs me to write an email to someone or help review something, it allows me to have them sit with me while I take that task on. One of our sort of funny moments is what we call “time for writing an email with Brett!” 

It’s pretty simple: someone on my team sits with me while I compose a carefully worded email, or a message, to whoever needs it. I write aloud, and they chime in with their thoughts or edits. This is a form of body doubling. I sometimes require them to sit there with me to complete it. And their feedback really helps me, too. 

Body doubling can be so helpful when you need to work on something, and having that other person either doing their own thing or just being there if you need the support is such a gift. A lot of ADHDers will jump on an Instagram or YouTube live and just do body doubling for anyone who needs it. 

Finally, take a break. Go for a walk or go do something and then come back. Reviewing the work later on gives you a fresh perspective and more ideas. Know when to break hyper-focus to help the work. 

A few other thoughts: 

Set times for the deadlines during hyper-focus, and have an accountability partner, someone who can gently check on you but not in a way that feels like they’re being critical. Be sure to inform your accountability partner so you don’t hit any rejection sensitivity and have that set you back. 

One other thought… sometimes our mind can have these little voices come up and tell us something isn’t good enough, or it won’t be what a boss wants, or someone else could be doing better. As hard as it is, try to tell those little thoughts or voices to be quiet. In the meditation world, it’s often suggested we give that voice or those narratives a name and just say, OK, Jeff, thanks. Take a seat, and I’ll get to you later. Or just OK, note thanks, and get back to work. Try not to let those get to you. It’s so hard with all the ways things come at us, but you need to put your unique mark on this project or that thing. Only you have your perspective, and that’s what the world is looking for. Besides, I’m sure all of those other folks have their doubting voice too — I sure do, so just try and tell yourself you can do this, and we need you to do this.