Activate Your ADHD Potential with Author Brooke Schnittman!

assignment. You're excited because now you're doing something to help you and ultimately help your loved ones too, because everybody's going to benefit once you really are able to harness that power of ADHD because it can genuinely be a power.

have a special guest, Mark Ronak. From ironic media. He has been on our podcast before he is my podcast, producer and coach. And I'm going to do things a little different today because

we're going to be talking about my book that just dropped activate your ADHD potential a 12 step journey, from chaos to clarity for adults with ADHD, which has already been a number one seller, I'm so blessed. It's something that has been on my bucket list for five years. And I'm finally here. And it's out, you can get it on Amazon and Ingram on all different book platforms. But Mark here is going to ask me a couple of

questions. So we can learn a little bit more about the book, who it's for, why I wrote it. And also I can teach you some strategies on it. While you're here listening in to see if these might apply to you. I know this is weird to say, but

welcome to your own show. Brooke, how are you? The Price Is Right. I feel like the new Bob Barker.

What makes this book special and what makes this book really important for somebody with ADHD. And before we dive into it, I want to open with this for you. You've you've been open about your adult diagnosis of ADHD. And that was 2019 and describing it as a major turning

point in your life. And can you take us back to that moment? Like what prompted you to get tested in what what was it like to finally have that diagnosis? If you could kind of take us through that a little bit?

sessions notes. So that was just like one thing that started helping me notice that I might have some of the symptoms and then I started putting the pieces together and I went for the diagnosis and it was a person who is a specialist in ADHD field, and she confirmed that I had combined type ADHD.

Now before I became a coach, I received coaching for a year and that was the first time and it wasn't specifically ADHD coaching but it was the first time that I really was able to with a group understand how my brain worked, how I was showing up for other people how is showing up for myself and how to small Smalley execute steps to create big success, big programs, big events. And that built my confidence because I was able to realize what was

getting in my way. And I was for the first time just even though I didn't know at eight PhD at the time I was able to like, listen and hear what other people had to say and not be so masked by my anxiety that oh, they might be thinking this in me or that because now I know, because I went through the exercises where people actually do think. So, when I got that diagnosis in 2019, I was like, okay, you know, I'm doing a lot of these things already. I, I know how to schedule I do this,

I do that. I think fast forward to a different stage of my life. Once I get married, and have kids, you know, life changed. hormones change, selflessness,

and selfishness had to change. So at that point, then I started really seeing how my ADHD came into play more. And then I started thinking back into other moments in my life, not regretting anything, not wishing I had the diagnosis sooner, but just thinking how my ADHD played out, especially on low executive function days.

how productive I was, which I know so many of us do. And I don't think it's just the ADHD though, I think it's also how I was raised. I came from parents who are high achievers, and in order to get attention, because I wasn't the smartest, I was probably average, too low average IQ. I had to work really hard, that it worked really hard to be the best. And I always wanted to be the best. But that

came at a sacrifice. And that came at me not being able to have like, substantial relationships with men not having substantial relationships with friends. You know, like fairweather friends. There was a lot.

a roller coaster when you're juggling ADHD. Right. So I've been really curious about that process for you. So can you give us a behind the scenes look at your writing journey, like the highs and lows? And maybe one big hurdle that really tested you in this? Yeah. Yeah.

write this overnight. I actually believed that I was going to write a quality book overnight.

things because other people are doing it. But I've been wanting to write a book for so long that I had to get over the overwhelm of it, making it so big. So I made it smaller and said, I'm not attaching too much emotion to this. I'm just writing. And I'm going to come up with an outline. I don't know how to write a book. But everyone keeps telling me you just right. So I am just going to come out, come up with some topics that I know are important for individuals

with ADHD to know about. And I'm gonna use my signature process and give the readers all of the tools so they can go through that process themselves. I did get to a point in the book writing journey where I got stuck, I got up to like 10,000 words, and I had writer's block.

And I had a timeline and like, you know what, I'm not going to meet this timeline. Not because I am so in my own head with everything else that is coming up in life, people Say they take vacations to write so they can get into their creative flow of writing. I didn't have that luxury. So I just stopped, I stopped. Because I knew that if I needed to produce good work that I couldn't do it in the state that I was in, I gave it about a month, I put it on the

backburner. And like, I still have that accountability that I want this out in October, I really wanted out for ADHD Awareness Month, but I can't do it in the state that I'm in. So then I have a business coach, we were working on the different milestones to get the book out to the public. And we had different due dates. So that a weekly accountability for my business coach, you know, after a few weeks, I was sick and tired of saying no, I didn't do anything. Now. I didn't reach

that goal. Now. So eventually, I took it upon myself and I was in a better frame of mind. And I said, Okay, let's go. Let me talk this out with someone. Let me see what I'm missing. Let me see like what other gaps needs to be filled here to really tie the bow. And then I started flowing again. And what also stopped me even when I started flowing again, especially that last 5% that US ADHD ears can

get so stuck with is oh my god, is it going to be good enough? So I'm at the 95% mark, and I'm an editor. I am a proofreader. I have my designer, and they're like, Okay, you ready? Brooke? You ready? We're gonna get it out. Now. I'm like,

decide, at one point. This is good enough, people are gonna like it. It's never going to be perfect. This is my deadline. And I was actually told by my

husband who typically doesn't do this. He's like, maybe you should push off the date of the book. I'm like, no. My books done. It's me. That's the problem. I just need to be okay with releasing it, and getting whatever type of feedback I'm gonna get whether it's good, bad, ugly, life changing. Hopefully, it's life changing. But, yeah,

forcing it. And when I take the break, sometimes I don't acknowledge that I have a deadline, or I don't put a deadline on it. And then I just sit there and I kind of live in guilt for a little while. Right. So that's why I wanted to point that out is because you said yeah, I am going to take some time off. But I am also going to hold myself accountable. I'm going to stick to that date. And so I also appreciate the fact that that gave came to you and said, You know what, maybe we

should push this out. And you're like, nope, nope. So I appreciate that commitment to yourself and to the work.

know, commitments are scary. And in order to get anything done. You have to be accountable. And very often I'll say to people, oh, just share things on social media share that you're gonna get it out there, share it with your friends and loved ones, and then you're gonna feel like crap if you don't get it out, right. You know, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. But I knew that everything I needed was in

that book. It was just me, being me, and that perfectionism and that impostor syndrome that can came up a lot, a lot. Like, why should people read this book? Why? There's a million other ADHD books out there? Why was this me? But then I looked back. And I said to myself, wait a second 1000s of people have gone through my three C activation program and said it was life changing. So why shouldn't people get the access to that program for $17.99. So they can

do it on their own? As many times as they want, and have a community to, with our body doubling community that they get access to, there's a lot they get access to with this book. But why couldn't they be successful to through going through this journey? I already have proof that it works.

an audience that has ADHD, at least it is for me, I find certain things like a book, for example, can really ignite my enthusiasm, right? I'm genuinely excited to pick up that book, learn, get more insights and strategies, and especially with your book, and thank you the ADHD conundrum, for me, is and I believe this for other people with ADHD is that initial hurdle to actually then sit down and open that book and start reading

it. So I'm curious, do you have some pro tips for people like us to jump in and pick up that book, finally, and open it and read it

ask you. And the way that you answer it is where you're going to start in the book. And know that these are really like bite size things. So this isn't something that you're going to consume, though all in one day, either. She's not like an overnight book that you read, this is something that you need accountability for. And you're going to need to pace yourself out to do the activities to get to that stage of confidence.

great approach. So let's talk about the book. Will you share

maybe like maybe we can start with sharing kind of your the main theme or message you're looking to convey through the book.

everything. So when we're underwhelmed, then we're looking for the next thing to get the dopamine. So we're now looking for a new exciting idea once we get over the old issues that we were dealing with. So once we get that new, exciting idea, we hyper focus on it. And once we hyper focus on it, we shut down because very often we can't regulate our hyper focus. So we get overwhelmed. We then lose dopamine, we have rejection sensitive dysphoria, we start comparing ourselves to others.

And this is essentially what happened to me closer to that five last 5% of the book. I'm like, it's happening. I'm overwhelmed with emotions, right? Like I'm reading all these edits, and I don't know I can't say it anymore, right. So I shut down and my body stopped. Really it was, you know, I'm sick now. But yeah, it happens

to all of us. It could happen multiple times a day could happen multiple times a week, multiply that times a month, but this book helps you wherever you are in this cycle from overwhelmed to underwhelmed to help you stop quicker and realize where you are to get out of it and build your momentum. So we're going to start really small, we're going to understand our hierarchy of needs as ADHD years. In order to be productive and confident, we have to take

care of ourselves. And we have to figure out what we're not attending to first. And then we can get the overwhelming thoughts out of our brain onto paper and with the strategies and the tools in the book, figure out where to start first, and how to make that decision to start. From there, then we build on it and ultimately give you time management strategies that may or may not work for you. So you give lots of different ones

with your goals. And at the end, then we give you the tools because you're at a place of greater competence. You've been building small actions along the way, you've been showing up differently, that at the end, you're going to have uncomfortable conversations you've been avoiding, you'll get all the framework for that. I know, it's so hard for us to get out of our shell and feel like we are confident enough to have those uncomfortable

conversations. But because you've done all this work already, you're likely in a place of Whoa, I didn't know I could do this. And you're feeling competent to delegate have uncomfortable conversations you've been avoiding stretch those goals and be an even higher performer, not just a high achiever.

based on something you said the you said, the F's, right. The freeze flight, fright one, you mentioned a couple of others, and they weren't as familiar to me. So I'm curious, will you share a little bit what were the others?

We can get into that. F trauma responds when we shut down from the overwhelm that we have with our ADHD.

what's one, gold nugget or transformation that you're hoping your readers will really latch on to from your book, specifically?

legitimately shuts down. And we try to ignore that. And we get overwhelmed and our thoughts of like, oh my god, I have all these things that I said yes to and all these commitments that I committed to, and I'm not going to do any of them and I'm a failure. And then all of the negative biases that you had from your past are now coming back up for you. So we need to switch the script and forget about starting with the productivity start with yourself, and then you will be

more productive. But we need to reframe that and we need to take a look at these tools and like literally just go through them every time you feel overwhelmed. What am I missing? What did I eat today? Did I drink water today? Did I sleep? Why am I having a bad executive function day? Why do I feel like I have to accomplish 50 things and I just can't physically get out of bed.

This one thing I would normally be so excited about, and I just didn't have the enthusiasm and excitement. You weren't lit up. Yeah, I wasn't lit up, I wasn't feeling lit up. And I think in your book, I mean, a big chunk of your book is about that 12 Step. Program. Right. So, and

that was a big help to me to going through coaching with you. So talk a little bit about the 12 step program, and maybe give us one piece of advice you'd want to give to somebody who's just starting on that, on that journey of those that 12 step process.

in there. But then from there, you also have to make sure that whatever you're doing is aligning with your values, your strengths, and your passions and your motivations towards these things. So there is very actionable activities on how to figure that out. Now go back to your goals that you are going to evaluate in lesson one and a half, I think it is, I combined a couple of lessons. But go back to your goals and say, okay,

these were my goals. Now I know my values, I know my strengths, I know my motivation towards things, am I using my values in here, or do I not value this anymore. And that's why I am just rejecting it. Because if you don't value something, you're not going to do it. If you as an ADHD or do not believe in something, you are just not going to do it. So your values can shift your core values

typically do not shift. But once you go back and you take a look at that, and you become more self aware of why you're doing certain things. And perhaps maybe it's because other people thought you should do it. Maybe you got that message growing up from your family or your friends or teachers or even on social media because a competitor is doing it. That doesn't mean that you have to do it. That doesn't mean that Mark values this mark was just dry it like driving himself on emotion to make him

execute something. But once it's executed, then what? So many people come to coaching and they're like, oh, I need to get that job that I had a few years ago, it was making me a lot of money. And I need that job. And I'll say like, why do you want that job? You quit that job? Or you got let go that job? Why did you let get lucky? Oh, because I wasn't passionate about it. So why would you want to go back into it? For the money, is that enough? Can you make money doing something else that you're

passionate about? So I know it sounds crazy. And I'm sure you've thought about this before. But there are people who are passionate about what they do. And they make good money because they are driven and passionate about it. And with ADHD. If we are underwhelmed and we're bored, and we don't value what we're doing anymore, and we're not leveling up, it's time to move on.

ago was awareness, right. And that idea of really connecting, being aware with what's making you tick, and maybe not making you tick. And for me, and I know I've shared this with you even probably on that episode when I was your guest. That piece was huge for me just to start building an awareness when I would work with you weekly, and work on your different tips and strategies. It would help me become more and more aware of when it's ADHD versus me, right.

So and I think that this book is going to help people if nothing more, in my opinion, help you raise that awareness. And that I think then leads to being able to work with your ADHD. My question to you is, do you recommend a spouse or a loved one have somebody with ADHD read this book too? I asked you that because I know working from working with you endure Actually, it was helping my wife, Amy was starting to be able to say, You know what? That's not mark. Mark's not

being lazy. He's not intentionally ignoring the laundry that needs to get done. Right. That's his ADHD same?

work. Right. But yeah, I think that in any relationship, whether the partner has ADHD or does not have ADHD, it's nice for them to get a glimpse into what you are dealing with on a day to day basis. And you know, what you're working on, because you want to know what Amy is working on too, right? Like you want to be able to support her. She doesn't know she has ADHD, but you know, you want to be able to support her in whatever

her goals are. If she doesn't know how to support you, this book can help her understand how to support you. So yes,

with your 12 STEP program, it's got to be a big win for you, right? I know, as a coach myself, when when people have those moments, those aha moments, it's really rewarding as a coach, are you open to sharing and I imagine you are based on what I've read in your book, any client stories that really hit home for you, that made you think, yeah, this is why I do what I do.

master's in his thesis. And so we worked on timelines for his thesis, and he, he graduated, and then he ended up becoming an ADHD coach after he went through the three sets of Asian program, because when he discovered his values, he understood that he wasn't in the right profession when he was a restaurant owner, like he didn't know what he wanted to do when he was graduating school. But he had gone through it and finally had the clarity that he needed to know what was right for him. So

that was super cool. I had other people who have tripled their income in one month. As a business owner, I've had clients actually set dates and milestones for their thesis and go through that I have had doctors who have finished their notes, which most ADHD doctors hate notes, and they're there to have that relationship with the client and help the clients and spend more time than they're advised to spend with their

clients. So helping them manage their time and be able to come home to their loved ones and not fall asleep on the couch doing their notes, but actually have a relationship with their partner and feel revived and refreshed the next day. I actually just spoke to some clients who are currently in the three C activation program and they're halfway through. One of the big things for them was that awareness piece that Whoa, okay, now I get it. Now I understand my brain. And now I'm showing up

a little differently. Now I need to help my partner understand how do I do that. So there goes to your point of having them check out the book as well. But there's been so many different success stories and I'm forever indebted to you know, all the people who've supported me in this through the activation process along the way and who believed in the program, because before the book was the program, and I didn't of course think that the program was good

enough, right? Never. And I had someone flat out tell me are you kidding me? You have gold in your hands? I've had like multiple people tell me that over and over again. And finally I believed it.

book, we can obviously get it on Amazon as a as a paperback. They could get it on

read it. And I think that awareness will absolutely kick in, and then you'll, it makes going through the steps as somebody with ADHD so much easier and more exciting, right, you don't feel like this is just you're going through these motions. This is just an assignment, you know, kind of

thing. You're, you're excited, because now you're you're doing something to help you and ultimately help your loved ones too, because everybody's going to benefit once you really are able to harness that power of ADHD because it can, it can genuinely be a power. So I recommend it. I, I really adore you, Brooke and I, and I think you I can't thank you enough for all you've done for me, in my journey. And even to this day, you know, we coach each other.

Right? Wait to be with the podcast, you helped me with the ADHD. And it's been a it's been a blessing. So thank you. And I'll give you the floor to wrap us up.

of today's successful with ADHD episode is that if you're struggling with ADHD, and you feel stuck, there's hope. You know, you can get out of that chaos of your ADHD brain, you might not think it's possible now. But I promise you, I have and so many other people have, you can stop yourself. And you could live a highly functioning life and you could thrive because very often, we are so capable, we are so capable, but we get stuck at that 95% mark. So there is hope, whether you

buy my book or not. These strategies are you know, in my program, I also post it on social media. Just believe in yourself, know that you're not alone. There's a whole community who's listening right now, who's out there, who is going through this with you. And if you don't choose to take this course or method or book, find a friend, find a support group that is going to help you along the way and feel that hope and that confidence.