The terms ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), or ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) are often used jokingly to excuse someone’s inability to focus.  However, ADHD is no joke - it is a pervasive disorder that  an estimated 4% of adults manage every day.

As a recruiting manager staffing for clients such as Google and Apple, I was concerned about three things: experience, unemployment gaps, and the probability of the person becoming a long-term employee.

I interviewed few disabled candidates and rarely considered their job prospects. As a recruiter, I rarely debated if and how they would be able to perform the duties of a position. I soon found a new perspective — one that changed the way I viewed both the role of the recruiter and the place of people with disabilities in the job market.

From transportation limitations to financial issues and barriers to independent living, having a disability can add challenges to aspects of life other people may take for granted. This is also true in the job market, where many job seekers worry about potential employers focusing on a person’s disability rather than his or her skills and qualifications. The truth is that there are plenty of employers out there who are hiring and who recognize the many strengths people with disabilities bring to the workplace. The key to successfully navigating the job market is plenty of preparation, planning, and determination. Here are a few tips to get you started:

 In a competitive job market, people with disabilities often have the additional task of convincing an employer that they can perform the job duties with reasonable accommodations just as anyone else can. And every job seeker knows that once you get your foot in the door, having a great interview often means the difference between getting employed and getting ignored.

It was never tough for me to get a job when I was sighted. Even when I got laid-off from a start-up after the Dot Com bust, I was hired as a bartender, with no experience, at the first club I walked into with my pink slip. As a college student, I worked at a payroll advance company, customer service rep for equestrian products, and even at a pet shop — jobs I had never done before, but somehow managed to convince the decision makers to hire me during a recession.