The ADHD Skills Lab
Navigate each day in an ADHD-friendly way – with research-backed strategies, real-life experiences and expert advice. Each week, UO founder Skye Waterson chats with expert guests, reviews the latest ADHD research, takes your questions and offers practical support to help you move past whatever may be holding you back.
Skye Waterson is a former academic turned coach, podcast host, and founder of an international ADHD support service, Unconventional Organisation. After getting a surprise ADHD diagnosis in the first year of her PhD, Skye turned her struggles into research-based strategies. She researched and wrote over 50 articles with a combined readership of 250,000+ and then began her next phase of disseminating these strategies around the world.
After being invited to share her strategies with the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) in 2022, Skye has supported late-diagnosed healthcare professionals, professors, lawyers, reporters, fortune 500 directors, and entrepreneurs. She crafted her vision for Unconventional Organisation after realizing how few personalized ADHD strategies were available for adults following her diagnosis.
Episodes
120 episodes
Focus, Flight, and Figuring It Out: An ADHD Founder’s Journey
Skye sits down with Carly Braker, founder of Avialan Blue, to talk about building a high tech areospace engineering consultancy while navigating ADHD. Carly shares how she masked symptoms growing up, why the “real world” hit harder, and ...
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45:00
ADHD Strengths and Success: The Evidence Behind the Myth
People love to say ADHD comes with superpowers. The research is more nuanced.In this Research Recap with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD, Skye and Will examine two papers that look at ADHD strengths in careers. They d...
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Season 1
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Episode 116
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24:14
The ADHD Shift: When Everything Suddenly Adds Up
Most people with ADHD have one moment that stops them in their tracks. For Laura, it was finding her childhood journals filled with the word “focus” scribbled in every possible way.In this conversation, Skye talks with Laura Key, ...
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Season 1
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Episode 115
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41:51
ADHD, TikTok, and the Misinformation Trap
Can TikTok actually teach you about ADHD - or is it just feeding you misinformation?In this Research Recap with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD, Skye dives into a 2022 study analyzing the quality of ADHD content on Ti...
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Season 1
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Episode 114
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20:24
ADHD, Momentum, and Other Mythical Creatures (with Russ Jones)
This one’s real, hilarious, and way too relatable.Skye sits down with Russ Jones, ADHD coach, creator of the Ready, Set, Go framework, and host of the *ADHD Big Brother...
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Season 1
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Episode 113
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46:40
The Science of ADHD Creativity: Why Your Ideas Work Differently
Are ADHD brains more creative, or is that just a myth?In this Research Recap with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD, Skye breaks down a foundational study on ADHD and creativity, exploring how ADHD brains innovate, imagin...
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Season 1
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Episode 112
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13:23
Understanding ADHD Medication: A Balanced Look at the Science
ADHD medication can be a controversial topic online. Is it safe? Does it change who you are? What does the science actually say?In this episode, Skye talks with Dr. Ryan Sultan, psychiatrist, researcher, and founder of Integrative...
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Season 1
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Episode 111
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40:01
Delay Aversion and ADHD: Why Waiting Feels Like Torture
Ever feel restless in a meeting or line and want to bolt? That’s not impatience, it’s delay aversion.In this Research Recap with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD, Skye explores new research showing how delay aversion con...
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Season 1
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Episode 110
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22:50
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High-Performance Habits for ADHD Brains: Clarity, Motivation, & Champion Wins
World-champion habits aren't just for athletes - they're the secret weapon for ADHD executives juggling chaos and big ambitions.In this episode, Skye chats with James Laughlin, 7-time world champion musician, bestselling author of...
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Season 1
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Episode 109
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45:15
ADHD, Anxiety, and Exercise: What the Research Says
Can exercise really compete with medication or therapy for managing ADHD symptoms?In this Research Recap with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD, Skye and Will break down new findings on how exercise supports emotional reg...
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Season 1
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Episode 108
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14:04
ADHD, AI, and the Future of Focus
AI is redefining work, but for ADHD founders, the question isn’t whether to use it, it’s how.In this episode, Skye sits down with Ryan Brazzell, entrepreneur, founder of Assistant Launch, and system/AI strategist who help...
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Season 1
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Episode 107
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38:07
Executive Dysfunction and Early ADHD in Preschoolers
Why does time blindness show up so early in life?Welcome to another episode in our Research Recap series, co-hosted with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD.In this episode, Skye and Will unpack a study of preschoole...
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Season 1
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Episode 106
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16:56
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ADHD Alchemy: Turning Distraction Into Award-Winning Success
Dr. Jacquelyne Read, a chemistry professor and ADHD trailblazer, joins Skye to reveal how she transformed her postdoc struggles into a tenure-track triumph and a top publication award. Discover the actionable systems like breaking down overwhel...
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Season 1
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Episode 105
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42:06
Research Recap with William Curb - Why ADHD Is Still Missed in Women: The Swedish Study That Proves It
Why are women still diagnosed with ADHD years later than men?Welcome to the next episode in our Research Recaps series, co-hosted with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD.In this episode, Skye and Will unpack one of ...
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Season 1
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Episode 104
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20:52
Research Recap with William Curb: ADHD & Hot and Cold Executive Function
Why can you plan your day perfectly, then forget everything the second something stressful happens?Welcome to the next episode in our Research Recaps series, co-hosted with William Curb from Hacking Your ADHD.In this...
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Season 1
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Episode 103
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17:08
Precision Systems for ADHD Founders: Chaos, Metrics, and Million-Dollar Growth
In this episode, Skye is joined by Matt Verlaque, SaaS founder, entrepreneur, and author, to unpack how to scale a business when your brain is wired for big ideas and fast starts, but struggles with structure.From leading startups...
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Season 1
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Episode 102
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48:28
Research Recap with William Curb: ADHD and the Default Mode Network
Ever zone out in a meeting and wonder where your brain went? That might be your default mode network. And for people with ADHD, it doesn't always switch off when it should.Welcome to the first episode in our new Research Recaps...
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Season 1
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Episode 101
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16:25
The ADHD Guide to Delegating - Why You Can’t Let Go (and How to Fix It)
Think you're just bad at delegating? You’re not. ADHD makes it harder to translate thoughts into steps, hand things off, and feel safe letting go.If you’ve got a team (or want one), this is your ADHD-friendly shortcut to working less and...
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Season 1
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Episode 100
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15:27
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ADHD and the CEO Mindset: Systems, Self-Care, and Letting Go
Most ADHD entrepreneurs build their success on hustle—until the cracks show. In this episode, Skye talks with Dr. John Torrens, professor, founder, and author of Lightning in a Bottle, about how he built (and sold) multiple companies b...
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Season 1
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Episode 99
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34:36
The ADHD Entrepreneur’s Guide to Profit (Without the Spreadsheet Spiral)
ADHD entrepreneurs are smart, capable - and often pricing themselves into burnout.In this episode, Skye interviews Marcel Petitpas, CEO of Parakeeto and the guy behind the numbers for hundreds of agencies. They dig into why most service ...
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Season 1
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Episode 98
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32:48
Why You Always Underestimate Time (Even When You Swear You Won’t)
Think something will take 15 minutes? Bet it takes 45.You’re not lazy - you’ve got ADHD. And you’re probably struggling with time blindness.In this episode, Skye and Sarah dive deep into three new studies on ADHD and time perception,...
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Season 1
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Episode 97
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33:56
I Walked Away From $48K and a PhD: My ADHD Origin Story
Before Unconventional Organisation, before the coaching, before the 82K followers - there was burnout, academic pivots, and a year spent working in a bakery just to recover.This is the story Skye's never told.In this episode, dating ...
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Season 1
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Episode 96
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44:23
Your ADHD Toolkit Is Missing Something: Meet the Vagus Nerve
You’ve got strategies and systems, but you still feel like your brain is always “on.” You might be overlooking your nervous system.This episode introduces a fast-rising body of ADHD research around polyvagal theory and nervous sys...
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Season 1
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Episode 95
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31:42
Adrenaline Isn’t a Business Strategy: The ADHD Growth System That Lasts
You can scale a business on sheer force... for a while. But eventually, ADHD founders burn out, blow up, or walk away.This episode is your map out of the cycle. Skye shares the behind-the-scenes process she used to stop relying on urgenc...
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16:50
