They call it: ~~Can’t sit still~~ We call it

Turbo Engine

Also known as high energy.

The short version You have a motor that keeps running. Aimed at something you care about, it’s stamina.

Sounds like you?

You pace while you think and talk with your hands.
You’re still going at practice when everyone else is done.
You look calm on the outside while your mind runs laps.

Why it’s a power

“Hyperactive” describes the problem a classroom has with your energy. It leaves out what the energy is for. Pointed at something you care about, the same motor is drive.

People with ADHD name it as a strength. Asked about the good sides of ADHD, 63 of 206 Dutch adults said “energetic”. Only “creative” came up more.^{Source 1} In group interviews across five countries, energy and drive were among the strengths named most.^{Source 2} One honest wrinkle: in a survey of 400 adults, people with ADHD didn’t rate their energy higher than others did.^{Source 3}

Movement can be your brain helping itself. In one experiment, 29 boys with ADHD did better on a memory task the more they moved. Boys without ADHD did slightly worse when they moved more.^{Source 4} Plenty of people with ADHD aren’t bouncy at all. Their motor runs on the inside.

Lived experience

Energy is one of the strengths people with ADHD name most. In one survey, though, adults with ADHD didn’t rate their energy higher than other adults did.

Where it shines

Sports, dance, drama, building
Jobs where you’re on your feet
Launch weeks and very busy days

The flip side

A motor with no off switch makes rest and sleep hard, and sitting through slow things can feel like holding your breath. Engines need pit stops.

Power-up: try this today

Move for ten minutes before your next sit-down task: stairs, a walk, a dance in the kitchen.

Say it to a kid

You have a race car engine inside you, and it likes to go. Running and jumping first can help it idle when you need to sit.

Someone who has this one

Michael Phelps

Swimmer with 23 Olympic gold medals

It’s something that I’m thankful happened, and I’m thankful that I am how I am.

Said in: Phelps, 2017

Michael Phelps won 23 Olympic gold medals, more than anyone in history. As a kid he could never sit still, and a teacher told him he would never amount to anything.

Turbo Engine Laser Lock Bounce Back

Ty Pennington

Carpenter and TV host

Once I figured out I was pretty decent at art and people were interested in hiring me, I realized I had a skill besides injuring myself.

Said in: Pennington, 2012

Ty Pennington hosted Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. When he was a kid nobody had a name for what he had. Art and building became the place his energy went.

Turbo Engine Quick Wit Remix Vision

Where this comes from

Schippers, L. M., Horstman, L. I., van de Velde, H., Rodrigues Pereira, R., Zinkstok, J., Mostert, J. C., Greven, C. U., & Hoogman, M. (2022). A qualitative and quantitative study of self-reported positive characteristics of individuals with ADHD. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13, 922788. Read it
Mahdi, S., Viljoen, M., Massuti, R., Selb, M., Almodayfer, O., Karande, S., de Vries, P. J., Rohde, L., & Bölte, S. (2017). An international qualitative study of ability and disability in ADHD using the WHO-ICF framework. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 26, 1219-1231. Read it
Hargitai, L. D., Laan, E. L. M., Schippers, L. M., Livingston, L. A., Fairchild, G., Shah, P., & Hoogman, M. (2025). The role of psychological strengths in positive life outcomes in adults with ADHD. Psychological Medicine, 55, e278. Read it
Sarver, D. E., Rapport, M. D., Kofler, M. J., Raiker, J. S., & Friedman, L. M. (2015). Hyperactivity in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Impairing Deficit or Compensatory Behavior? Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 43, 1219-1232. Read it

No. 11: Game Maker

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