Session Seven: Dyslexia-

In Session Six we introduced the topic of Neural Diversity (ND) as a key part of “The Human Factor”

Here in Session Seven, we will dive a little deeper and focus on one aspect within the ND Matrix: Dyslexia.

Before commencing, we would like to express our appreciation for the work being undertaken by 'Kate Griggs'. Her contributions, as evidenced by her posts on LinkedIn and her book 'This Is Dyslexia', have been referenced extensively throughout this session. If this particular topic is of interest to you, we highly recommend following her work.

We would like to emphasize that the primary objective of these sessions is to discuss matters pertaining to the workplace and not to delve into the personal or collective lives of our readers outside of their professional environment.

DYSLEXIA- As mentioned at the beginning of Kate’s book, “It’s imagination, intuition, and empathy, that set us apart from the machines. And that’s Dyslexic Thinking.”

In our second publication, "The Marvels and Myths of AI" which was recently released on Amazon, we emphasized the importance of understanding the human aspect of artificial intelligence and how to effectively collaborate with it.

It is our belief that, despite the remarkable advancements in technology and its potential to continue to progress at an accelerated rate, it is unlikely that it will be able to replicate or surpass the power of human imagination, intuition, or empathy. We will delve further into this topic in a future session of this series, which is titled "Emotional Intelligence."

Before we proceed, we would like to express our own convictions, which are as follows:

1. Every individual possesses a unique set of thoughts and perspectives, making them distinct from one another.
2. People's thoughts and interpretations of information are not identical, even among those who may appear to have similar backgrounds or experiences.
3. The way in which messages are perceived and comprehended can vary greatly among individuals, even when they are exposed to the same information.
4. People's understanding of what they encounter is not always the same, as each person has their own unique perspective and interpretation.

As a Dyslexic Thinker myself, I understand the importance of categorizing our world in order to simplify our comprehension and understanding of it. This is particularly true for individuals with dyslexia, who may struggle with processing and organizing information in a linear and logical manner. By breaking down complex concepts into smaller, more manageable parts, we can more easily grasp and retain information. Additionally, categorizing our world can help us identify patterns and connections between seemingly disparate ideas, leading to a deeper understanding of the underlying principles and structures that govern our existence.

So, what is Dyslexia?

Once again, we will reference Kate’s book with the 10 common traits and statistics of Dyslexia noted by the asterisk (*) before her own works.

1.????? *As many as 1 in 5 people are dyslexic (~20% of the world’s population!)

a.????? In any organization, regardless of size, there exist individuals who are equipped to handle the most intricate challenges.

2.????? Dyslexia is genetic.

a.????? My Dad was dyslexic, I am, and one of my two sons are.

3.????? *Dyslexic brains are ‘wired’ slightly differently, meaning they have a different way of processing information.

a.????? It isn’t that we believe or think differently as much as we mentally and emotionally process the information differently.

???????? i.????? When faced with a challenging problem or issue, I often develop a workable solution. However, if you inquire about the specific steps, I took to address the problem, I am unable to provide an answer as I do not think in terms of individual steps. Instead, I have a holistic understanding of the solution. This phenomenon has been observed frequently throughout my life and appears to be a characteristic trait of Dyslexic thinkers.

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4.????? *This difference results in a pattern of strengths like critical thinking, creativity, emotional intelligence and communications skills.

a.????? As the pace of change continues to accelerate and become increasingly more complex, the demand for individuals with the mental strengths to address them is on the rise. While concurrently the time-frames for major changes to occur are becoming shorter, it is essential to recognize and leverage the valuable skills that approximately 20% of your workforce already possess.

5.????? *It also results in challenges affecting traditional learning such as reading, writing, spelling, rote learning, memory, and concentration.

a.????? Once again, I can verify all of this personally. 3rd grade was a nightmare for me, both times… but college was AWESOME!

b.????? During my son's third grade, my wife observed that he was facing difficulties. Upon recognizing this, she immediately deduced that he was most likely a Dyslexic Thinker. Following this observation, we underwent testing, which confirmed our suspicions. Subsequently, we enrolled him in tutoring with an individual who possessed an understanding of his unique thinking style, which proved to be highly beneficial.

c.?????? When I suspect that an individual, I am just getting to know, may be dyslexic, I typically inquire about their experience in third grade. The response I receive is often characterized as "horrible."

6.????? *Each Dyslexic will have a different pattern of strengths and challenges.

a.????? We have previously discussed the differences in question, providing a high-level overview of the various aspects involved.

7.????? *Identification is key to our success in education and employment as well as our self-esteem.?

8.????? *If we place equal importance on Dyslexic strengths and challenges, we can and will go far.

a.????? This subject matter is one that I have been intimately familiar with throughout my existence. While I hold great admiration for individuals who have achieved remarkable success, I am not intimidated by their accomplishments. I do not strive to impress them, but rather respect their knowledge and expertise. I endeavor to learn as much as possible from them and acknowledge the immense fortune that has afforded me the opportunity to do so. In my interactions with such individuals, I have observed a common trait: they are all human beings, not superhumans, and those who are truly successful and accomplished take pleasure in sharing their experiences and knowledge when it is genuinely appreciated and received.

9.????? *Four in five successful dyslexics attribute Dyslexic Thinking to their success.

a.????? Once again, I was fortunate enough early in life to recognize although I processed my thoughts differently than most my friends, my strength in those friendships was because of that fact, that we thought and processed our thoughts differently. We also understood this was a benefit because we learned from each other and were stronger together.

b.????? NOTE: We will touch on this subject a little later in the session.

10.? *Research tells us that Dyslexic Thinking skills are vital for the future.

a.????? As the business landscape evolves from a highly siloed structure to a more cohesive one, the complexity of challenges continues to increase. To achieve success, it is increasingly important to leverage the unique strengths that arise from diverse perspectives and ways of processing information, knowledge, and wisdom. As a result, Neural Diversity is becoming more and more an essential requirement for achieving true success in business.

Individuals often concentrate on the disparities among others and the difficulties in managing those differences, rather than the advantages that can emerge from those differences and how those advantages can aid the team in overcoming the challenges they encounter.

In order to continue along this line of thought, it would be beneficial to consider how the team may be structured that maximizes the strengths of each individual while minimizing their weaknesses. This could be achieved through the use of a "Neural-Diverse-Matrix," which is a tool used to build and support strong teams by identifying and leveraging the unique strengths and weaknesses of each team member. By understanding and utilizing these strengths and weaknesses, the team can work together more effectively and efficiently to achieve their goals.

In Session Six, I recounted the tale of observing a presenter at a conference who had presented before I was to go on with my presentation. He had inscribed a list of successful individuals on a whiteboard, accompanied by a statement that these individuals were nefarious tyrants. In response, when I took the stage, I added another name next to each name he had placed on the board, asserting that the original list was incomplete and that each person I paired with complemented the weaknesses of the other. For instance, since we were discussing Dyslexic individuals in this session, pairing a Dyslexic thinker with an Autistic thinker, whose passions aligned, balanced their information processing styles, strengths, and weaknesses. It so happened that each name on the board had a counterpart who was also ND, with a complimentary strength. You may enjoy researching this on your own.

Pick some extremely successful businesses you are aware of then research the founder(s). Research the founders in the context of where they are on the Neural Diversity Matrix, I believe you see my point here.

Finally, the last points we want to cover in this session are:

1.????? You have probably noticed we refer to the term Neural Diversity Matrix (NDM) and not Neural Diversity Spectrum. The reason is many great people, such as Einstein, showed evidence of having multiple symptoms of ND that could not exits on a linear scale, such as Dyslexia and Autism.

2.????? Neural Diversities are not mental deficiencies and need to stop being analyzed, perceived, and treated as such. Could anybody justify that Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Thomas Edison, or Albert Einstein were mentally challenged, inferior or deficient? Would anybody reading this not want to have any one of these geniuses on your team? We rest our case.

Join us on Wednesday for Session Eight, in discussing Autism, another Neural Diversity that has brought us some of the world’s greatest successes, with the greatest minds.

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