EP90 The Gift of ADD, Daily Routines, and Sustainable High Performance with Nigel Bennett

If you have ever wondered why some environments drain you while others bring you fully online, this conversation will land.

Entrepreneur and author Nigel Bennett has spent decades building high performing companies while navigating ADD and dyslexia, challenges that many entrepreneurs quietly share. Over time, he discovered that the key was not trying to eliminate those traits, but building systems that allow their strengths to work in your favor.

In this conversation, Mike Desjardins and Nigel explore what happens when identity, work, and pressure collide. Nigel shares a defining moment early in his career that forced a difficult decision: leave the path he was on or stay and risk losing himself in it.

Nigel Bennett is the author of Take That Leap: Risking It All for What Really Matters. He has been a member of MIT’s Gathering of Titans for over a decade, the Entrepreneurs’ Organization for nearly two decades, and received the British Columbia Institute of Technology’s Distinguished Alumni Award. His company has also received multiple innovation awards for breakthroughs in oil spill response technology.

Together, they unpack Nigel’s GIFT model for ADD, Gratitude, Ignore, Focus, Test, and explore why confidence is often built through experimentation, repetition, and supportive routines rather than certainty.

In this episode, you will learn:

• A turning point moment that changed Nigel’s career direction

• Why ADD can become a strength when you build around it

• The GIFT model: Gratitude, Ignore, Focus, Test

• How fear decreases through repetition and practice

• Why rest is a performance strategy, not a reward

• A morning routine that supports nervous system stability and better decisions

Episode Resources:

• Nigel Bennett’s GIFT ADD model link
• Nigel Bennett’s book, Take a Leap
• BCIT alumni article featuring Nigel’s story

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