Men don’t like to ask for directions. Research has shown that’s at least partly related to a difference in our brain wiring. Maybe that’s doubly or more true of men with ADD or ADHD. If I ask for directions, I can’t make much use of them. “Go 2 miles straight ahead, then turn left at the big green sign, go on until you see Mayberry Road and turn right there, take the first left and then left into the driveway with the blue mailbox.” Huh?
I can take in and remember 2 miles straight ahead (on a good day), then the rest of it sounds like gibberish. My brain glazes over. I’m not good at judging 2 miles, but sometimes I remember to look at the speedometer. I could get the informant to repeat it slowly and write it down, if I had the patience (but I have ADD) and they had the time and I wasn’t too embarassed.
Same with written directions. Just had to install a multifunction printer. Ugh! The trick is to read one sentence, try to digest and apply that, then the next sentence. One step at a time. (patience). Got it working though, after 3 days. Not bad. Usually I try the “when all else fails, read the directions” approach. Works sometimes.
doug
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