George Sudarkoff with George Sudarkoff, LLC

Intro: [00:00:06] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in the Bay area, it’s time for Bay Area business Radio. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:18] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Bay Area Business Radio, and this is going to be a good one. Today on the show we have George Sudarkoff, who is an Executive Coach for Leaders with ADHD. Welcome, George.

George Sudarkoff: [00:00:32] Thank you for having me.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Well, I’m so excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about your practice. How are you serving folks?

George Sudarkoff: [00:00:38] Well, as you said, I’m an executive coach and I spent a good 30 years in tech myself. I went from an individual contributor all the way to CTO of my own company, and that switch from individual contributor to a leader and executive was a pretty rocky one for me, and I. I struggled and, uh, when I left my W2 job in 2019 to start a company, I also discovered that I have ADHD myself and kind of losing that structure and support once again, I struggled again, and people have been telling me for literal decades that I should teach or coach. So I decided to try. And the rest is history. I work with founders and executives with ADHD and help them to transform their ADHD from a liability into an asset.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:32] So what are some maybe clues that you might be suffering with ADHD?

George Sudarkoff: [00:01:38] Well, the trifecta of symptoms is distractibility, impulsivity and hyperfocus. Obviously, if you want to get a officially diagnosed, there’s a DSM five manual. It’s a manual that psychologists psychiatrists use to diagnose. But this trifecta is is a pretty good clue that maybe you should look into it if you keep getting distracted, if you can’t focus on on a task, and at the same time you get hyper focused on something that maybe you shouldn’t be doing at that time. Those are pretty good clues.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:14] Now, how do you define either the focus part or the distracted part? Like is it something that happens once or like, are you distracted for hours at a time? Like how? Like there has to be kind of a spectrum to this, I would imagine.

George Sudarkoff: [00:02:30] Oh yeah. There’s a there’s a big spectrum. You know, there’s a classic story of you’re trying to focus on something and oh, squirrel! And you go in a completely separate direction. And you might have also heard some people like the way they tell stories. They jump from tangent to tangent to tangent. That is another way ADHD and Distractibility sometimes manifests. Doctor Hallowell, who’s a world authority on ADHD. He wrote the book ADHD 2.0, compares ADHD to a Ferrari with a bicycle brakes. So you have this powerful engine, you can go fast, but you constantly seem to lose control and drive off the road. So that’s that’s the experience.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:19] So how do you help your clients? Kind of like you said, uh, make this from a take it from a liability into a strength. How do you kind of, uh, harness this so that you can leverage it to your benefit?

George Sudarkoff: [00:03:33] Yeah, I love to look at it from the ability point of view. I really don’t like calling ADHD a disability, because if you go back to this metaphor of having a Ferrari with bicycle brakes, you already have the most powerful, the fastest one of the kind car. And maybe you’ve seen those videos. People getting in. Somebody else’s supercar and wrecking it within seconds. We don’t call it the car’s fault. We. Instead, we think maybe the person should have taken the car to the track and learned how to to control it. I see ADHD very much the same way. Adhd is a is a big bag of gifts. Uh, they’re, uh, difficult maybe to unpack sometimes. But if you look at this trifecta of symptoms that I mentioned earlier. Distractibility impulsivity. Hyperfocus. Every single one of them has a brighter side. Distractibility, for example, is a curiosity on the other end of the spectrum. Impulsivity is creativity. You can’t be creative on command. You can’t schedule a 12. I’m going to come up with a brilliant new idea. It just does not work that way. And hyperfocus on the on the positive end of the spectrum is just boundless energy. Being able to dedicate inhuman amounts of focus and dedication to to a particular topic.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:08] So now in your work are people, um, like, what’s kind of the impetus of of calling you like, there’s something happened that they’re like, look, I got to get a handle on this, or are they, uh, not happy? Like, what is kind of the the reason where they’re like, I need a coach to help me kind of navigate this.

George Sudarkoff: [00:05:31] Yeah, yeah. Well, often happens with ADHD folks when we grow up, we hear. And there’s a very common phrase that you have so much potential, but you’re wasting it. If only you could focus. If only you can apply yourself. I’m the guy to call when when you’re tired of being that fuckup who constantly seems to. And go through the all out, followed by burnout cycle.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:01] So the person that maybe isn’t living up to their potential, or they’re frustrated that maybe they’re at a plateau in their career or their life may be that the ADHD is kind of the culprit or is lingering around this, that you need a coach to kind of help you navigate this.

George Sudarkoff: [00:06:20] Yeah. And I work with founders and executives, and we address leadership issues as well. But, uh, a lot of the leadership issues when you have ADHD have a particular flavor. If a lot of my clients, um, profoundly gifted, so they, they can read a book, they can take a course and they can figure out how to address a problem. It’s not the lack of knowledge. It’s it’s this other thing that the executive function, being able to take that knowledge and turn it into something. Um, in the real world and do it consistently. And that’s just, uh, one month you’re you’re all out, and then you burned out for the next six months.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:07] So what does, um. What does it look like when someone begins an engagement with you? What are what is, uh, kind of. Can you walk me through what the beginning of a relationship looks like?

George Sudarkoff: [00:07:19] Yeah, yeah, we would spend the first few sessions just to get to know the the particulars of this person’s ADHD. The presentation, because there’s a as you mentioned at the beginning, there’s a big spectrum of how it, um, presents in life. So we will we will try to understand. Exactly the exact flavor that this person has and how it gets in the way, how it, um, prevents them from achieving their goals. And over time, I don’t like to follow a, you know, a specific program because, um, every person is unique, every person, every challenge that they have is, is unique and different. Um, so I like for the relationship for the coaching relationship. So. Um, to grow organically. And, uh, we will address the, the issues that they might face in that moment. Um, and the ADHD itself is going to be the, the bigger theme that we’re trying to tackle. And ultimately I, I want them to learn to manage the. This Ferrari, that they have learned to drive it completely on their own, so they don’t need me.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:44] Can you share a story? Maybe don’t name the name, obviously, but maybe the reason somebody came to you and then how you helped them get to a new level and maybe manage this so they can kind of control the Ferrari and get kind of the best outcome from having a Ferrari.

George Sudarkoff: [00:09:00] Yeah, yeah, a very typical scenario. And I have a particular person in mind who is still my client. Um, is they, uh, a profoundly gifted? They’re very gifted. They have lots of fantastic ideas. They start a company, um, with a co-founder, um, and they find themselves in a situation where, um, the way they. Operate. The way they approach work creates a lot of friction and a lot of, um. Conflict with the co-founder because they cannot be consistent. They cannot be relied on. Um, and so that becomes the, the first focus for our work. And we figure out exactly, um, where. There may be some additional support is needed. And at the same time, um. Maybe a re design re engineer and renegotiate the responsibilities that the two co-founders have in their company.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:13] So then you help them kind of, um, maybe re maybe just adjust the way that they each deal with themselves and maybe with the projects on hand and maybe align their skills and strengths accordingly. Yeah.

George Sudarkoff: [00:10:29] Yeah, we all have strengths. And if we approach work with strengths in mind, um, it’s a lot easier to be productive and happy at the same time, right? Because a lot of us with ADHD, we learn to use anxiety as our coping strategy. And even if you master. Using anxiety as your motivation. Um, in at the end of the day, it leads to burnout and you become unhappy with the work. And, um, it does not lead to a lasting, productive relationship.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:05] So is this something that, um, you’re cured of, or is this something you manage, or is there something that how does it work? Like what’s the long terme kind of, uh, prognosis when you are diagnosed with ADHD?

George Sudarkoff: [00:11:20] Well, ADHD. Um, it is called, um. Um, a disability by by the medical establishment. I don’t see it as a disability, but it is just, uh, my point of view. Um, there’s medication that you can take that, um, can help you using the same metaphor of Ferrari with bicycle brakes. Maybe can strengthen your brakes and medication. Um, could be a really important part of of the of this process. Um, but ultimately, it never goes away. It’s it’s genetic. Um, some even believe there’s a, um, evolutionary advantage. Um, as a matter of fact, if you have ADHD, you’re 32% more likely to become an entrepreneur and to start a company. At the same time, you’re 27% more likely to end up in jail. Um, so it does come. There’s benefits and, um, and they’re costs. So. I think ultimately it’s about learning to to manage what you have. But you are never cured now.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:33] Now, um, is there any advice you can give to somebody who’s listening that maybe is seeing themselves in this conversation? Is there some low hanging fruit that an individual, uh, can be doing, or some actions they can be taking today to, um, either assess or improve their situation?

George Sudarkoff: [00:12:54] Yeah. Yeah, it’s. Well, that’s such a good question. It’s hard to pick just one thing if I, if I wanted to, like, deliver just one idea to your listeners, it would be to. Really try and see the positives in ADHD symptoms and and be more gentle with yourself and um. Forgiving. Maybe there’s a balance we don’t want necessarily to let ourselves off the hook. We’re still responsible for the things that we’re responsible. But finding the way. Um, when we can use our strengths to, to to get to our goals. That’s that’s the ultimate.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:40] Well, if somebody wants to learn more, have a more substantive conversation with you or somebody on your team, what is the website? What is the best way to get Ahold of you?

George Sudarkoff: [00:13:50] Uh pseudo.com is my website. Uh, there’s a button to schedule a free consultation with me, and I would be happy to talk to everybody.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:00] And that’s s u d a r k Ofcom. George, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

George Sudarkoff: [00:14:10] Thank you so much for having me.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:11] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Bay Area Business Radio.