About me
Catherine Avery is the ADHD Productivity Coach and the host of The Uncluttered Office podcast. She has been featured in the media on productivity, ADHD, mental health, and office organization, including ADDA, CHADD, and The Washington Post.
A former queen of clutter, recovering Type A Wall Streeter, and cancer survivor/thriver, she was diagnosed with ADHD later in life. She works with clients virtually worldwide to help them own a new story about their differently wired brains.
In her free time, you can find Catherine with her family on the slopes, on the water, or traveling this wide wondrous world. And when she’s not in the kitchen making soup, you’ll find her curled up with her cat and a great book.
What do you do and why do you do it?
I coach women who have ADHD or other brain-based challenges who are overwhelmed and struggling with getting things done at the office. They never have extra time for themselves and they dream of balance. They think their brain is broken or worse yet that they’re broken.
I became a coach when I realized I too have ADHD, even though I wasn’t officially diagnosed until 55. My heart broke for all the many women, who like me, got all of these other diagnoses – anxiety, depression – but never got to the heart of the problem. They’ve been stuck in the struggle and overwhelm for years. They’ve heard 20,000 more negative messages than their neurotypical peers by the age of 12 and they still hear those negative voices in their heads. I know that so many ADHD women want to be heard, understood, find strategies to deal with the struggle, and have a community. I want you to know that I get you and I’m here for it!
Let’s honor the differently wired!
What changed for you after age 50?
Everything. I was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 49 and deep in the journey of treatments and recovery in my 50th year. I spent my 50th birthday hooked up to an IV. After years of always being the caregiver, I learned how to receive. Not an easy lesson, but stepping into an even deeper sense of gratitude and grace changed my life. The resultant chemo brain was the trigger for investigating my ADHD. And for this, I am also grateful.
What would you tell the 20 or 30-year-old YOU?
You don’t have to work so hard. Take time for you.
What do you think you’ll tell yourself in retrospect at the end of your life?
You made a difference.
What impact do you think increased visibility can have on your business?
Increased visibility would help me with my goal to reach every woman over the age of 40 who is struggling with their ADHD and let them know that they’re not broken just differently wired. Not only is that ok, it’s amazing because they have so much to contribute to the world.
Who or what inspires you and why?
My Aunt Mabel inspired my love of learning, traveling, and trying new things in life. She took economics in her early 80s because “Keynes wasn’t around when I went to college.” She would take me to restaurants in NYC where we would eat food from all over the world. She taught me that you brush your teeth in beer to avoid getting sick from the water. I don’t, but it makes a great story. She said the best learning was traveling the world. And she sent me to Europe with a backpack at age 22 on a Contiki tour so I could see what she meant. Since then, I’ve traveled to several other continents. And I’m not done exploring yet!
