I'm in my late 60's, and a retired biochemist with a Ph.D. in the subject. About 12 years ago I had myself extensively tested for ADD and discovered that I placed in the 99th percentile - a definite candidate for the space academy in other words ;->. I was precocious in my interest in science. I decided to become a biochemist when I was 13 yrs. old. All my life, I beat myself up over my inability to concentrate, which I attributed to 'laziness', and my moodiness which I now know was due to a slight bipolar disorder. So, I worked very hard to get where I am; and I'm proud of that accomplishment. Still, I honestly don't consider my career to have been a great success, and that, I now know is definitely a result of my mental/emotional issues. When I was younger, nobody recognized any such condition as ADD. I guess I'm a tad dyslexic as well, and there 'was no such thing' 50 years ago. My teachers advised my parents to encourage me to read, which was definitely a good thing.
One way I put it is that I have no trouble 'thinking outside of the box', which everybody else needs to be encouraged to do. My problem is that I can't seem to think inside the box, and that's what you need to do to complete projects and all those daily boring things we ADD'ers keep putting off. I too tend to think visually, which has been a great help doing mathematics. Instead of completing my impossible reading load in college, I attended classes faithfully, and I could remember the contents of the lectures and discussions very well. My classmates were astounded by my recollection of the details of a class lecture, which I thought was what anybody did. I had other intellectual advantages that compensated for the disabilities, as well.
One trait of people with ADD is that we have one or a very few activities on which we can hyperconcentrate, as they say. Mine was mathematics. Later in my career, I discover this and although math and physical sciences were never my area of vocational concentration, I found ways to weave these successfully into my research. If I was in college now, that is the subject I would concentrate on. Other good news for ADD'ers coming of age today is that there are all sorts of therapies and coping skills to help us compensate for the disability. I have had decades in which to develop bad rather than good habits with which to deal with my ADD, so I have found the good ones nearly impossible to pick up.
My advice for you is twofold. First, confront and accept your disability, which definitely does not mean giving up. Quite the opposite, take advantage of all the resources and therapies available to you. When you search for colleges to attend, be sure to ask what resources they offer to people with ADD (BTW, I include ADHD along with ADD. I was never hyperactive, so I can't comment on that.) Second, find what thing(s) you can hyperconcentrate on and pursue these. It's not known, of course, but I consider Einstein to have been a severe ADD case. All the signs are there, including his incredible tenacity and ability to get lost in his work, obviously big career advantages. And I mean literally lost; that's probably why he could remember to put a sock on one foot and 'forget' about the other one. BTW, I've discovered that I don't 'forget' so much as lose concentration, eg. where I lay something down. As for Einstein, friends and colleagues commented that he had a strength the Germans call sitzfleisch, meaning the ability to park one's butt at a desk (He didn't always scribble on blackboards. That's one of those romantic visions that make for good movies.) and work until you are either a.) finished or b.) too exhausted to continue. So, I may not be the best example of 'making it' , but you can take Einstein as an example if you like. He was a hero of mine when I was young.
Uhhhh.. Anything else? Sorry I don't think in sound bytes. You need a little sitzfleisch to listen to my advice, I'm afraid...
