Weirdly Successful

Dedicated to helping you understand, navigate and enjoy your weird & wonderful neurodivergent life.

Livia Farkas

Neurodivergent Adaptation Educator

In her free time, she enjoys stickers & planners, crochet & roller skates, and running around with her pet bunny Rumi.

Building Weirdly Successful’s Knowledge Systems

Livia is the architect behind Weirdly Successful’s knowledge infrastructure — creating the systems that help late-identified neurodivergent adults make sense of their experiences and find language for what they’ve always felt.

She created The Neurodivergent Glossary, an ever-growing encyclopaedia of neurodivergence-related terms designed to help people find answers using everyday words for their experiences—not medical jargon they haven’t yet learned. She also designed the content architecture that powers the entire website: a system that organises content by what someone is experiencing (focus, hearing, time), where they are in their journey (exploring, seeking diagnosis, recently diagnosed), and what they need to know (definitions, validation, practical strategies).

Currently, Livia is building the Weirdly Successful Learning Community: a custom-built peer support platform designed from the ground up for neurodivergent brains. Every element, from the onboarding process to the reaction buttons, has been designed to balance ADHD and Autistic accessibility needs.

Specialist Subjects

  • Neurodivergent adaptations for life and work · Dismantling harmful self-beliefs
  • Promoting self-compassion
  • Creating a life without the hustle

Background: 15 Years in Adult Education

Livia’s neurodivergent-focused work builds on 15 years as a productivity and lifestyle educator in Hungary, where she developed the frameworks, techniques, and teaching approach she now adapts for English-speaking neurodivergent audiences.

Book

That Traffic Light’s Not Getting Any Greener! (XXI. Század Kiadó, 2013; ISBN: 9786155373022) — National bestseller in Hungary, shortlisted for the Libri Golden Book Awards.

Publications

Éva Magazin (2014–2020), HVG Psychology (2019), Glamour (2019), Forbes Hungary (2017), Marie Claire Hungary (2013), Elle Hungary (2013), Cosmopolitan Hungary (2013)

TV & Radio

Livia has appeared as a productivity and lifestyle expert on Hungarian national television, including recurring segments on RTL Klub’s morning programme and appearances on TV2 and Duna World. She has been interviewed on Kossuth Rádió (Hungarian public radio), Klubrádió, and Jazzy.

Talks & Appearances

Livia has spoken at universities including the University of Debrecen, ELTE, Corvinus University, and the Balassi Institute; at professional conferences including the Mfor Marketing Conference, Digital Divas Conference, and Evolution Social Media Conference; and at a Google Ground roundtable on women in business. Her 2013 book tour included venues across Hungary and a reader meetup in London.

Awards

  • HVG GoldenBlog, Audience Award for urban:eve blog (2011, won)
  • Cosmopolitan Digital Divas, “Best Blog Design” (2012, won)
  • Glamour Women of The Year Hungary, “Blogger of the Year” (2014, nominated)

Latest from Livia

References
1↑ Volkow, N.D. et al. (2009). Evaluating dopamine reward pathway in ADHD: clinical implications. JAMA, 302(10), 1084–1091.
2↑ Volkow, N.D. et al. (2010). Motivation deficit in ADHD is associated with dysfunction of the dopamine reward pathway. Molecular Psychiatry, 16, 1147–1154.
3↑ Volkow, N.D. et al. (2012). Methylphenidate-elicited dopamine increases in ventral striatum are associated with long-term symptom improvement in adults with ADHD. The Journal of Neuroscience, 32, 841–849.
4↑ Morandini, H.A.E. et al. (2024). Brain iron concentration in childhood ADHD: a systematic review of neuroimaging studies. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 173, 200–209.
5↑ Cortese, S. et al. (2012). Iron and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: what is the empirical evidence so far? A systematic review of the literature. Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics, 12, 1227–1240.
6↑ Dignass, A. et al. (2018). Limitations of serum ferritin in diagnosing iron deficiency in inflammatory conditions. International Journal of Chronic Diseases, 2018.
7↑ Hunter, C. et al. (2025). A closer look at the role of nutrition in children and adults with ADHD and neurodivergence. Frontiers in Nutrition, 12, 1586925.
8↑ Wang, Z. et al. (2020). The association between vitamin D status and autism spectrum disorder (ASD): a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrients, 13.
9↑ Effatpanah, M. et al. (2019). Magnesium status and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): a meta-analysis. Psychiatry Research, 274, 228–234.
10↑ Dorani, F. et al. (2020). Prevalence of hormone-related mood disorder symptoms in women with ADHD. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 133, 10–15.
11↑ Broughton, T. et al. (2025). Increased risk of provisional premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) among females with ADHD: cross-sectional survey study. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 226, 410–417.
12↑ Maclean, B. et al. (2025). Women with symptoms suggestive of ADHD are more likely to report symptoms of iron deficiency and heavy menstrual bleeding. Nutrients, 17.
13↑ Jongkees, B. J., Hommel, B., Kühn, S., & Colzato, L. S. (2015). Effect of tyrosine supplementation on clinical and healthy populations under stress or cognitive demands--A review. Journal of psychiatric research, 70, 50–57.
14↑ Chang, J. P., Su, K. P., Mondelli, V., & Pariante, C. M. (2018). Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Youths with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Clinical Trials and Biological Studies. Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, 43(3), 534–545.
15↑ Mori, K., Inatomi, S., Ouchi, K., Azumi, Y., & Tuchida, T. (2009). Improving effects of the mushroom Yamabushitake (Hericium erinaceus) on mild cognitive impairment: a double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial. Phytotherapy research : PTR, 23(3), 367–372.
Content type: ExplainerExplainer

“What’s the difference between verbal shutdown, selective mutism, and being non-speaking?”

Verbal shutdown, selective mutism and being non-speaking are all experiences that involve not speaking, but they work differently, feel different from the inside, and have different causes.

Verbal shutdown: temporary loss of speech due to overwhelm

Being non-speaking: permanent loss of speech, but not loss of communication

Apraxia: loss of speech due to motor planning difficulties in the brain …

Read more“What’s the difference between verbal shutdown, selective mutism, and being non-speaking?”
Content type: Glossary EntryGlossary Entry

autistic direct communication

Direct communication is a pared-down, efficient way of speaking, where the words mean what they mean — no subtext to decode, no softening layer to read past. For many autistic people, this is the default register. It often gets misread as bluntness or aggression, but the directness is usually doing precision work.

Read moreautistic direct communication
Content type: Glossary EntryGlossary Entry

literal thinking

Literal thinking is a precision-oriented processing style common in autistic people, where words, questions, and instructions are interpreted according to their exact meaning rather than their implied or intended meaning. It is one of the most commonly misunderstood autistic traits — both by neurotypical people who assume it means autistic people cannot grasp metaphors or jokes, and by autistic …

Read moreliteral thinking
Content type: Glossary EntryGlossary Entry

pattern recognition in autism

Pattern recognition is a thinking style common in autistic people, involving a tendency to notice underlying structures, connections, and regularities across many areas of life — sensory, social, systemic, and practical. Research supports enhanced visual and perceptual pattern detection in autism, and many autistic adults describe this extending into how they solve problems, read people, predict …

Read morepattern recognition in autism