“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill is one of the greatest men to have lived in the last century and he persevered through great personal difficulties and low self esteem—which was often described as an ‘ego’ problem that made him appear overly secure. Winston Churchill is also considered to have suffered from ADD ADHD; however, his diagnosis at the time of his life was lisp (speech problem) and later also thought to be cluttering (speech/communication disorder). With the information we have today about ADD ADHD and looking back into Winston Churchill’s life, he displayed many of the primary characteristics of ADD ADHD. It is well documented and noted that Mr. Churchill had great difficulty with unimportant details and seemingly ignored such details and now it is believed he simply could not focus on them due to ADD ADHD.
In Winston Churchill’s younger years he was head strong and stubborn and did not get along well with other students. He displayed very little interest in studies of which he was required to learn, especially mathematics. However, Churchill loved to write; he had a passion for it and wrote several books. He was also well known as an adventurer and during his adventures he wrote articles as a journalist. He was a great multi-tasker having both a career as a military officer and journalist at the same time—not to mention that he was simultaneously writing and publishing books. These are all typical Adder traits. What’s most important is that Winston Churchill was born into a famous aristocratic family, because had Winston Churchill been from only a modest family his traits may have not allowed him to succeed and also he probably would have been in serious trouble as a youth which a family of modest means would not have been able to avoid legally. However, it is still likely, no matter his upbringing that he would have eventually been known for his creativity and adventuring through his writing.
Thankfully, in today’s world, even a child of modest means with ADD ADHD can grow up and be something wonderful. Adders are becoming more and more well known as creative and idea geniuses! With proper care from diagnosis many Adders have the possibility of avoiding much of the trouble associated with our traits, or at the least, those traits are better understood today.
No matter Churchill’s difficulties, he made them work for him and so too can the Adders of today! We have great talents and abilities which are unique to our type of minds; we must learn to take advantage of our characteristics not only for our own benefit, but for the benefit of all mankind! We have so much to offer the world. Churchill was a stubborn man and refused to give up in the face of any impediment. I think all of us Adders have a stubborn streak and most of us become successes because we reflexively refuse to give up no matter what happens or what others think of us! Our Adder minds, by their very nature, will not allow for us to just give up—our minds are always working, figuring, contemplating, and finding ways for us to continue in the face of impediments!
“Difficulties mastered are opportunities won”
Winston Churchill
Spoken like a true Adder!
~Bryan
