ADHD Beyond the Label – Episode 12 – Francesca James

Francesca James is the founder of the Great British Entrepreneur Awards and Ideas Fest, two initiatives that celebrate and connect the UK’s entrepreneurial community. But while she’s spent years championing bold ideas and big thinkers, she only recently received an ADHD diagnosis herself.

In Episode 12 of ADHD Beyond the Label, Francesca joins ADHD 360’s CEO Phil Anderton and co-host John Reynolds to talk about the traits that shaped her journey. From intense focus and impulsive ideas to avoidance, disorganisation, and emotional sensitivity, she shares the patterns that have defined her work and life. The diagnosis didn’t come as a surprise, and it doesn’t feel like a new world just yet, but it has opened the door to understanding herself in a different way.

Together, they explore the link between ADHD and entrepreneurship, and why so many founders only start asking questions after recognising patterns in themselves they can’t easily explain. Francesca reflects on what led her to seek answers, what she’s learning, and how the traits that challenge her may also be the ones that fuel her.

This episode is a powerful reminder that sometimes, diagnosis doesn’t offer clarity right away. It simply gives you permission to start looking.