One of my favorite phrases when I was a teacher was “other duties as assigned”. That was really just a way of telling staff that you’d be doing whatever you needed to do in the school because there wasn’t always someone else to do it. As a teacher, it included things like mopping in the cafeteria, helping a child find their lost tooth in the grass, fixing a child’s hair on picture day, I could go on.

Now, with my own business as an OBM for ADHD Founders, I do all the typical default things you’d expect for clients: calendar management, inbox clearing up, drafting emails, etc., but I also do unexpected tasks for clients.

My purpose is to support clients with whatever makes life easier so they can show up in their business and personal lives as the person they want to be!

We all have certain tasks that are mentally exhausting, but for people with ADHD, it can be even more challenging. You’re working against your brain, trying to do the things. With ADHD, activation energy can be incredibly challenging. 

When something feels overwhelming or isn’t immediately exciting to your brain, it struggles to create the activation energy needed to start the task. 

5 Unexpected Ways I Support ADHD Business Owners as an OBM

Most of my clients and I meet monthly and we do some catching up. I always ask what’s feeling hard or what they’re avoiding. Chances are there’s something there and I can provide encouragement, support or just completely get the task done. 

Here are some of the unexpected things I’ve done for clients:

Meal Planning and Grocery Orders

Honestly, figuring out what to eat every night for dinner is the biggest scam of adulthood. I posted a Thread about helping with groceries and a client messaged me “you’d do that for me?!”. 

Every Monday, I pick meals for her family for the following week and send her the list plus a grocery form. She fills out what groceries they need on the form and submits it. I add all the groceries to her grocery store pick-up order and let her know it’s ready. Occasionally, I have one or two questions, but it’s usually hands-off for her!

I keep track of which meals they eat each week so there’s variety, I pay attention to the weather where they live so they’re not eating chili when it’s 95 degrees out, and I give them a mix of easier and more involved recipes. 

Found an In Network Therapist for a Client

Another incredibly hard adulting task is finding a therapist especially if you have ADHD. It’s overwhelming, difficult to know where to start and can be incredibly frustrating. Somehow finding mental health professionals is even more of a challenge than dealing with physical healthcare. 

I’ve actually done this a few times for clients. For one client, I found a couples therapist who met quite a list of requirements. 

They needed:

• In network with their insurance
• Currently accepting patients
• Within 15 minutes of their home
• With availability after 4pm on a weekday

I researched, called, and emailed different options and used Maps to see how far offices were. Research Robyn prevailed and I found them a therapist who met all their criteria! 

For another client, I found a psychiatrist who was able to diagnose ADHD so my client could consider taking medication to support her. 

This task is incredibly personal and emotionally charged. I love helping people access the support they are seeking.

Vacation Research

I love travelling. It’s an important part of my family and I’ve learned from the best: my mom. She is truly an expert trip planner. It has rubbed off on me and I have some skills of my own. 

Travel planning can easily be a full time job (it actually is one for some people!). So it’s not shocking that figuring out details for a trip can quickly be bumped to the bottom of your to-do list even if it’s a trip you’re excited about. 

I helped a client find a vacation rental for her family’s Spring Break trip. There were certain requirements around the number of bedrooms, proximity to activities and proximity to her daughter who would be staying separately.

I was able to do the research and provide my client with two options for places for her family to choose from and my quick notes on each. She picked, and had the best time!

Problem Solved Childcare

Oof, another heavy task. Trying to find childcare while also trying to run a business while also trying to manage ADHD is a TASK! This one in particular can be emotionally charged and stressful to figure out the right option.

My client came to me wanting to level up her business, but realizing the limitations of her time. We worked through using her family as some childcare, what that looked like in terms of her driving her kids over to them and how much time she’d be gaining. 

We also talked about a mother’s helper, where she might find one, and how to use one. 

Figured Out How to Get Important Paperwork

My client needed her marriage license to get a real ID. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you this, but any government website is archaic and difficult to navigate. Then when you call, they’re somehow always on lunch break? How can that be possible?

I problem solved, figured out how she could quickly get a physical copy of her marriage license in order to get a real ID and not miss her trip!

Bonus! 

I love chatting with clients, hearing about their partners, pets, and what they have going on in life. I’m a little nosy by nature and somehow a client mentioned she had an Instapot and had never used it. I’m a HUGE fan of my Instapot so I told her all the ways she needed to use hers.

Then she did. 

Need Support for an Unexpected Task?

If you thought hiring a VA or OBM was just for things like email management or calendar organization, my hope is that this blog post changed your perspective and helped you see what’s really possible when you work with a VA or OBM as a business owner with ADHD.

This was not an exhaustive list of all the things I’ve done for clients that you may not expect. 

Here’s a short list of some other things I’ve done:

• Pursued a refund for a subscription and audited subscriptions
• Deep internet research of images available of a client
• Looked at apartment options to help decide if moving made sense
• Found an in-network dentist that had great reviews for dental anxiety

If you’re looking for support with something you just want off your list, I do one-time projects and I’d love to support you! Connect with me here.