Phil Drinkwater

“Proudly swim with the current”

Phil Drinkwater is a Certified Coach, successful online small business owner, entrepreneur, and advocate for neurodiverse individuals, particularly those with ADHD.

Invisible disabilities like neurodiversity lead to challenges and struggles such as ongoing anxiety, stress and imposter syndrome, which he himself continues to work through every week, to say nothing of the huge frustration that comes from procrastination and managing time. Even brushing his teeth can launch a 5 minute inner dialogue! “Try walking in my shoes”, he quips, “because they’ve got a mind of their own, like strong magnets drawing toward and repelling against”.

He notices that neurodiverse people might appear to be lazy or difficult to others, and this can lead to unkindness and a lack of compassion from peers, but through knowledge and understanding about neurodiversity we can all work together using our unique strengths to great effect. His deep empathy for these invisible disabilities drives his work.

In his free time, Phil finds solace and inspiration in hiking. The challenges of conquering mountains reminds him of the importance of taking one step at a time and staying focused on the present moment, which reduces the overwhelm so common with neurodiversity.

To hire motivational business coach Phil Drinkwater, contact us at Great British Speakers.

Type Of Speaker

After Dinner Business & Finance Disability Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Hidden Disabilities Imposter Syndrome Keynote Leadership & Teamwork Mental Health Motivational Resilience Speaker Virtual Speakers

More About Phil Drinkwater

Phil has had a varied career, as is common for ADHD individuals. In early life he didn’t understand his need for variety, nor did he understand how or why he was making the choices that were designed to keep him stimulated. This made some work incredibly difficult, particularly the admin as a project manager. However, using shame, guilt and embarrassment he managed to keep himself going well enough. Eventually though, the constant pressure between what he wanted to do and what he should be doing was too much, and it’s there his first business in the recruitment industry was born. Like many ADHD individuals, corporate life is a genuine challenge; ”we end up swimming against the current too often, and total exhaustion sets in,” which in Phil’s case led to significant episodes of illness, pain and migraines.

Two decades later he’s also worked as a professional photographer just because he enjoyed it, and nearly qualified as a psychotherapist. It was then that his love of understanding the mind came from. He seeks to listen to himself a little more every single day.

The pressures that the world places on the shoulders of us all are incredibly challenging and Phil believes that awareness, understanding and compassion are the answer. With his extra baggage, Phil still managed to walk the Inca Trail during his 30’s and cycle coast-to-coast in his 40’s. To him, these were like conquering the peak of Everest, and a great reminder that our competition is only with ourselves yesterday, not with others today. Our imposter sides might do well to remember that.

Phil Drinkwater ADAH resilience neurodiversity mental health business speaker at Great British Speakers

Why book Phil Drinkwater?

Phil has significant experience overcoming challenges that might be associated with neurodiversity and personality. He recognises that many hours of productivity are lost to holding ourselves back, and not understanding ourselves. His motivational approach encourages us all to be ourselves and to express increased awareness for ourselves and compassion for others, for the good of all. He welcomes challenge into his own life, and while that doesn’t necessarily mean literally climbing huge mountains, the challenges inside are what we all face every day.

Phil Drinkwater – Talk Takeaways

In the modern digital world we experience constant pressure. For those of us with more baggage, climbing out of bed can be an effort some days. We’re all trying to do the very best we can with what we have, and awareness, negotiation and compassion can bring significant healing and happiness to the world.

Speaking topics