Y'know...writing the ADHD Love Notes was simultaneously one of the easiest and most difficult tasks I'd done in a while. For the longest time ever, I had wanted to create something which would help others, but wouldn't be seen as me trying to...force my opinion on someone.
Which is ironic, because a lot of the ADHD Love Notes are me telling you how bloody brilliant you are, with or without ADHD.
(Personal opinion? Sure.)
(Absolute facts? No question.)
The initial idea for them came about because I was working with Amy Porterfield, doing her Digital Course Academy. I knew I wanted to created a digital course which would make me as accessible as possible as an ADHD Life Coach, to people who needed an incredible service and facility, but perhaps weren't ready to pay for my 1:1 ADHD life coach and mentor services. In the 10 weeks of training, we talked about loads of different business terms, others talked about 6-figure-launches, whilst some discussed advertising, webinars, and all sorts of things which...kind of went over my head a bit. Something was lacking in terms of grabbing my interest. Something was tugging at my heart-strings, and I couldn't quite figure out what it was.
All I knew, was that I wanted to create something which was going to massively help people like me. People with ADHD who, for one reason or another, needed some kind of boost. People who needed emotional and mental support and/or space. People who maybe needed to be able to tell themselves how freaking awesome they are.
People who need a regular reminder that they really are doing ok (and quite often, more than ok).
I remember being down by the sea one weekend last year, with my beautiful and incredible partner, ideas whizzing around my head at lightning speed, like moths flittering crazily around the perfect glowing lamp. I had my favourite Paperchase note book in front of me, already rammed full of scribblings and thoughts and...all sorts.
I already had the outline for my amazing (if I may say so myself) Love Me, Love My ADHD course, and I could see how it was all coming together...but something huge was still missing, something which this entire course could nestle into perfectly.
"I need to...address...some of the main pain points which might plague the life of a person with ADHD..." I pondered out loud.
I was frustrated - my ever-present NEED to help others was pretty much all-consuming by this point. I think I may actually have been a wee bit blinded by it, and I couldn't break through the fog.
"I can't...cure things...but I'm very certain that I can make some things better. I can make things more manageable for people. So...what are those things...?"
And that's when it began. I started to think about ALL the things I knew I had wanted to hear as a kid...all the things I had wanted to make better, to soothe, to believe in, to understand, to recognise...
It became a list of all the things I had wanted - and had needed - to hear for myself. Many of the things I wrote were things I still tell myself today.
A list of 40 very short and simple mantras appeared in front of me - with some helpful gentle nudging and reminders from my partner - and before I knew it...the ADHD Love Notes had begun.
Not gonna lie...I felt oddly terrified whilst also calm. That's a weird combination, but I knew I'd just created something pretty amazing.
I think I'd also just tapped into some of my most creative energy, and that felt AMAZING. Knowing that I was able to use this to produce something awesome for someone else, and help support myself emotionally and mentally at the same time?
HELL YEAH. That right there is the GOOD STUFF.
Having unlocked this incredibly powerful list of ADHD supportive mantras, everything else came incredibly easily. A couple more "mind unlocking" sessions with my own coach (seriously. Do NOT underestimate the power of a life and mindset coach), and everything was flowing and I actually struggled to keep up with myself a wee bit.
When my energy is on the move, well...to say I had better strap on my rocket skates would be an understatement. Thank goodness I'm also coached and mentored to know how to use that energy.
And so, the ADHD Love Notes were born. I whittled these life-changing statements down to a total of 28, so I could have 1 per day for 4 weeks, or one a week for a year plus some change...or just mix them up as I needed. I knew that my audio processing is a wee bit janky, and my visuals only work if I'm constantly looking at The Thing. So I jumped into my beloved (and regularly used) Canva Pro account, created the phone screen templates and then cranked open Ableton Live and recorded them ready for my course.
And then I realised that more people would need these outside my course, so I bundled them into one awesome download and made them available by creating a purchase link inside my Kajabi platform.
Also? Quick shout out to Kajabi for creating a space where I can offer my clients - you, that is - a brilliant selection of freebies to help and support you. Where was this when I was struggling with mental health crap so many years ago?!
Having them available for anyone who might need a pocket cheerleader at any given moment, just felt like the most logical and natural thing I could possibly do for anyone like me. It just. Made. Sense.
I'm not a huge fan of pushy sales techniques.
So I created them, put them on my site, dropped a couple of posts on instagram, sent out an email to my subscribers, and then... sort of... ran away/switched my focus to other things.
And then immediately felt bad. Because what's the point of creating something so powerful, so amazing, so brilliant - YES I AM BLOWING MY OWN TRUMPET HERE, AND I DAMN WELL SHOULD DO - and then shoving it under a bloody rock??? Why the hell would I keep it hidden? What's the point in wanting to help people, but not telling them how I can help them?
FFS.
So...here I am sharing it. With you. The ADHD Love Notes...one of the most brilliant things I've "birthed" since I actually birthed my own (utterly brilliant) kiddos. Something I am actually incredibly proud of, and adore so much, it makes my chest hurt a wee bit with how lovely they are.
(The feedback has already been pretty awesome too; people on my Love Me, Love My ADHD course have talked about how they too wish they had had these over the years, and how much emotional support they had found in them.)
There is no pressure to purchase (hell, you can listen to one of them for free if you like).
There is no pressure to share them with the hashtag.
Hell, you don't even have to listen to them.
But I will say this...they're goddamn amazing. And I know this, because I've actually been using most of them my entire life, and they're partly why I'm so damn successful today. Before and after ADHD diagnosis.
I hope you love them just as much as I do. <3
Download The ADHD Love Notes here, or just listen for free! Seriously, the BEST pocket cheerleader you could ever ask for.
