How Do I Run a Business?

a
Jan 6
4 min read

I Don’t. Not Well. And Somehow That’s the Point.

I posted a note the other day & my ADHD followers immediately went, “Please write about this.” Because apparently we’re all exhausted by business advice written for people whose brains wake up, stretch, & say, “Ah yes, consistency.”

And honestly? Fair.

Most business advice is built for non‑ADHD brains. Linear brains. Brains that can prioritize without crying. Brains that don’t immediately lose interest the moment something stops being novel.

Which is a shame, because ADHDers are often phenomenal entrepreneurs.

Running a business is full of things our brains actually like:

Passion

Autonomy

Urgency

Novelty

High stakes

Unfortunately, it’s also full of things that make us want to lie face‑down on the floor & dissociate.

Before we go any further, a disclaimer:

I do not have a 10‑step plan. I do not have an MBA. I do, however, have decades of experience in business…. until one day I woke up & felt actual rage toward that corporate hellscape.

So please don’t treat this as gospel.

This is just one ADHDer’s field notes after years of spectacular failure, accidental success, burnout, recovery, & something I call chaotic discipline

Before You Assume I Just Made This Up

I have worked in, run, managed, survived & escaped more businesses than I can count.

I have done this inside massive corporations with polished decks, KPIs, performance reviews & buzzwords stacked on buzzwords.

I have also done this inside tiny operations, including boarding kennels owned by one fragile little old lady where everything ran on duct tape, routine & sheer will.

I have managed people, cleaned literal messes, handled clients, handled crises, handled budgets & handled situations no business book prepares you for.

I have taken courses in business management, human resources, sales, leadership, people management & professional development.

I understand corporate systems. I can speak the language. I can play the game.

And honestly? Most of it is bullshit.

Not because structure is useless, but because most business advice ignores how real humans actually function, especially ADHD humans.

The problem is not that ADHDers cannot run businesses.

The problem is that businesses are often designed around imaginary brains that never get tired, never lose interest & never need recovery time.

1. I Threw Traditional Business Productivity Advice Directly Into the Dumpster

At some point, I stopped believing that business productivity advice applied to me at all.

Most of it assumes:

Motivation can be summoned on command

Consistency is a personality trait

You can simply decide to be disciplined

My brain heard that & said, “Cool story. No.”

Trying to force myself into systems built for predictability made me feel like a broken adult every time I couldn’t maintain them, which was always.

The shift happened when I stopped treating that advice as a moral standard & started treating it like clothes that don’t fit.

If it pinches, it’s not your fault. You don’t keep wearing it out of shame.

2. I Work on Things Out of Order Like a Menace

ADHD brains don’t light up from linear progress. We light up from interesting progress.

So if my brain is obsessed with the ending of something, forcing myself to “start at the beginning” guarantees I won’t start at all.

Now?

If I know the ending, I write the ending.

If one weird, hyper‑specific part grabs me, I start there.

If the middle is spicy, the middle it is.

Efficiency is overrated. Momentum is king.

Once momentum exists, the boring parts become survivable.

3. My Organizational Systems Are Ugly & I’ve Made Peace With That

ADHD brains love building elaborate systems. Color‑coding. Nested folders. Perfect naming conventions.

ADHD brains are also terrible at maintaining them.

This is why I have a graveyard of planners that asked me to track:

Water intake

Gratitude

Energy levels

The moon, probably

Now everything is aggressively simple.

My content ideas live in long, feral notes & half edited docs. No categories. No tags. Just vibes & timestamps.

My calendar only shows:

Where I have to be

When I will be perceived

My file system is broad folders & badly named documents.

Pretty systems are a fantasy. Usable systems keep businesses alive.

4. I Found My Real Focus Window & Guard It Like a Rabid Raccoon

For years I tried to work eight focused hours a day. That was delusional.

On a good day, I have about 2–3 usable brain hours. That’s it.

So I protect them viciously.

Hard things go there

Creative thinking goes there

Nothing easy gets that time

And when the steam runs out? I stop.

Because pushing past the limit doesn’t create more focus, it destroys tomorrow’s.

5. I Have a Minimum Viable Workday (a.k.a. Potato Mode)

Some days my brain is a potato.

I used to fight those days with caffeine & shame. That just created more potato days.

Now I plan for them.

My Potato Day Protocol:

Do only what is truly critical

No new projects

No big decisions

No life‑fixing spirals

Potato days are not for growth. They are for preservation.

When the bare minimum is done, I stop. Fully. Without guilt.

6. I Don’t Have a Content Strategy & I’m Not Sorry

Content calendars bored me into paralysis.

Past‑me would hyperfocus & design a beautiful strategy. Present‑me would look at it & say, “Absolutely not.”

Now I post what feels interesting now.

Novelty keeps me engaged. Engagement keeps me consistent enough. And that’s good enough.

7. I Gave Up on Consistency & Learned How to Restart

Consistency is not my skill.

Restarting is.

My brain is inconsistent. Always has been. Always will be.

So instead of chasing streaks, I practice:

Lowering the bar

Choosing the fun entry point

Doing less than my ego wants

The restart is the win.

8. I Plan Everything for Future‑Me Being Exhausted

Future‑me is tired. She is overwhelmed. She does not want surprises.

So I:

Double my timelines