In this episode, Asher and Dusty explore the complexities of organizing for people with ADHD. Asher shares insights from his background as a professional organizer and ADHD coach, emphasizing that traditional organization methods often don’t fit the unique needs of ADHD brains. They discuss the difference between situational and chronic disorganization, highlighting that organizing is not a one-time fix but requires ongoing maintenance, especially for those with ADHD. Dusty introduces the concept of chores as cyclical care tasks, helping shift the mindset away from “done or not done” thinking, which can reduce overwhelm and perfectionism.

The conversation also tackles common challenges such as inventory management, limiting beliefs around decluttering, and the importance of customizing organizing systems to individual needs rather than aspiring to unrealistic standards. Strategies such as breaking projects into smaller pieces, sorting belongings into friends, acquaintances, and strangers, and using “partway gone” boxes are shared to help manage belongings thoughtfully. The hosts underscore that organization looks different for everyone and encourage listeners to find practical solutions that work for their lifestyle while balancing priorities and self-compassion.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

In this episode, Ash and Dusty explore the concept of humility as a vital strength for people with ADHD. They discuss how humility differs from shame and self-deprecation and how it can help individuals manage the real impacts of ADHD symptoms, such as impulsivity and missed commitments, without falling into harsh self-judgment. Dusty shares how humility is an essential coaching tool that fosters cognitive flexibility, accountability, and authentic self-awareness, allowing clients to approach challenges with curiosity rather than ego or shame.

The conversation also delves into how humility can counteract imposter syndrome and rejection sensitivity, common struggles for those with ADHD. By embracing humility, individuals can let go of perfectionistic standards, accept their imperfections alongside others’, and build healthier relationships with themselves and those around them. Ash and Dusty emphasize the importance of modeling humility, owning mistakes honestly without shame, and understanding failure as a natural part of growth on the ADHD journey.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

In this episode, Asher and Dusty explore the complexities of frustration tolerance and emotional regulation, particularly as they relate to living with ADHD. They discuss how frustration often arises from a misalignment between expectations and reality, especially when tasks take longer or prove more difficult than anticipated. Dusty shares personal experiences, including being "trapped" in Costco, to illustrate how emotional dysregulation can derail plans despite careful preparation. Both hosts emphasize the importance of managing expectations by either frontloading disappointment or detaching from specific outcomes to reduce the emotional impact of setbacks.

The conversation also delves into practical strategies for coping with frustration, such as pausing, disrupting negative thought patterns, and pivoting to self-soothing activities. They highlight the value of breaking down tasks into manageable steps, using written lists to counteract working memory challenges, and recognizing when to step away from a task to regain emotional control. Ultimately, the episode offers a nuanced view of how ADHD affects planning and emotional responses, encouraging listeners to develop patience, realistic expectations, and resilience in their daily lives.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

This episode explores the core idea that ADHD brains are wired for context rather than linear order. Ash and Dusty explain how people with ADHD often struggle with outlines, step-by-step plans, and standalone documentation, because their meaning-making is dialogic and contextual. They describe common challenges—difficulty starting projects from an outline, trouble following instructions without the chance to ask clarifying questions, and cycles of avoidance or acting from desperation when outside pressures drive behavior. Practical examples include classroom learning, workplace documentation, and personal projects where contextual cues or real-time conversation make the difference between understanding and confusion.

The hosts also highlight the strengths that come from contextual thinking: creative problem-solving, rapid performance in crises, and the ability to bridge different perspectives. They show how coaching can help by surfacing hidden contexts—values, cultural expectations, and assumptions—that drive unhelpful patterns, so clients can choose actions aligned with what actually matters to them. The episode closes with a reminder that “simple” ideas aren’t always accessible without the right context, and that recognizing how ADHD thinkers search for meaning is key to better learning, productivity, and self-understanding.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

Asher and Dusty explore how ADHD-related experiences—repeated negative feedback, rejection sensitivity, and a focus on weaknesses—undermine self-esteem and self-worth. They explain how people with ADHD often dismiss abilities that come easily, assume others are more capable, and measure themselves by low moments rather than by peaks of high performance. The hosts emphasize the importance of recognizing ADHD patterns (peaks and valleys), valuing strengths that feel “too easy,” and reframing accomplishments so people see their role in their own story instead of attributing successes to luck.

Those with ADHD also connect self-worth to relationships and boundaries: chronic people-pleasing and fear of rejection invite boundary-pushing others and can erode self-respect. Practical approaches offered include perspective work (imagining how you treat friends with flaws), inventorying where life already feels easy, and choosing relationships that match realistic expectations (e.g., not expecting people to be “on demand”). Together these shifts—understanding ADHD, celebrating strengths, setting limits, and changing perspectives—help rebuild healthier self-esteem and sustainable boundaries.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

In this episode, Asher and Dusty introduce and unpack a practical coaching tool—“yours, mine, and ours”—designed to help people with ADHD (and their partners or coworkers) distinguish which parts of a conflict or problem they truly own, which belong to someone else, and where there’s real opportunity to collaborate. Asher explains how the model prevents the common ADHD pattern of blame-sponge behavior (automatically assuming fault), restores perspective, and helps people decide whether they can co-create a solution or need to make a different choice (for example, stepping away from a job with an immovable boss).

The hosts use real coaching examples—two business partners with different ADHD presentations and a client who left a job after recognizing her struggles were her boss’s responsibility—to show how the model shifts conversations from reactive guilt to clearer agency. Lastly, the hosts discuss how the framework helps in marital situations, especially when ADHD intersects with an anxious partner, by promoting healthier communication, individual pause-and-reframe strategies, and clearer requests for support.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

In this episode, Ash and Dusty introduce the conversational labels "big brain" and "fast brain" as alternatives to inattentive and hyperactive ADHD descriptors. They explain how big brainers tend to get stuck in planning, perfectionism, and idea-generation—always needing the full picture before starting—while fast brainers rush into action, overcommit, and underestimate time and bandwidth. Through client stories and personal examples, they show how each style creates different practical problems (paralysis vs. toxic optimism) and why the internal experience matters more than external labels.

The hosts offer concrete coaching approaches: for big brainers, set committed milestones, decouple long-term product ambitions from immediate learning goals, and create low-stakes experiments to break inertia; for fast brainers, treat time and energy as finite resources, practice saying no from values, and build constraints that prevent constant overcommitment. They emphasize that few people are purely one type—many move between both—and the goal is finding the "middle gear": practical strategies that move projects forward while preserving presence, quality, and meaningful connection to others.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

Asher and Dusty revisit the core coaching model—understand, own, translate—and show how it helps people with ADHD move from surface symptoms to real, usable solutions. They emphasize that common tips (planners, timers) often fail because they don’t address individual causation. Through concrete client stories—one about “hard emails” that caused compulsive inbox checking and another about preparing for a job interview— they show how coaching discovers the hidden emotional or cognitive drivers, creates language that makes sense to the person, and builds actionable, personalized strategies (calendar blocks, transition rituals, playlists, prepping materials).

The hosts also explore ownership and self-advocacy: accepting ADHD as an ongoing part of life without falling into “all my fault” or “not my fault” extremes; learning to separate past patterns from present progress; and translating self-knowledge into clear requests and boundaries with others (partners, coworkers). They describe how externalizing—talking aloud, journaling, or “talking at” someone—helps clients notice patterns, pause reactive cycles, and practice communicating needs so supports can be reshaped rather than expecting to simply “fix” oneself.

• Join the Community | Become a Patron
• Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate.
• About Asher and Dusty

• Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode
• Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD
• Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com