Magician and speaker John Michael Hinton grew up full of energy. As a kid, he lived abroad and stood out for his high energy. His parents noticed early on that caffeine seemed to calm him down, a clue that something deeper might be going on. John Michael — who performs a few magic tricks in the episode! — talks with host Laura Key about how things fell apart academically in his freshman year of high school, leading to a 1.7 GPA. An ADHD diagnosis helped him get the support he needed. The biggest turning point came thanks to a mentor who encouraged him to stop living in “Ready, FIRE, Aim” mode and start thinking “Ready, AIM, Fire.” Now a husband and father of three (all with ADHD, too), John Michael explains how ADHD fuels his creativity, curiosity, and performance style. Related resources John Michael’s website, www.johnmichaelhinton.com ADHD and creativity ADHD and rejection sensitive dysphoria Timestamps (00:00) Intro (01:01) Growing up undiagnosed while moving around internationally, and being diagnosed in the states as a teenager (06:19) College, rejection sensitivity dysphoria, and creativity (09:01) Magic trick break #1 (11:15) ADHD and performing magic on stage (13:15) Being remembered as the “weird kid” and using mentors to mature (16:12) “Ready, aim, fire” instead of “Ready, fire, aim” (17:50) Magic trick break #2 (19:15) Incorporating ADHD into his magic acts (21:13) Home life with an entire ADHD family (22:42) A message to all the other “spazzes” out there (25:19) Outro and credits For a transcript and more resources, visit the “ADHD Aha!” show page on Understood.org. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at
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