Time to discuss neurodiversity more?

I remember when, in 2014, "bringing your whole self to work" became a topic at work; I found it threatening in a way I couldn't quite put my finger on. Now I realise it is because I was undiagnosed autistic and masking in many corporate settings. Learned experience had taught me that aspects of being me were not always welcome.

A lot has changed since then. In 2019 several personal events, many tests and a counsellor's support led me to realise that I'm autistic. Since then, I've learned just how helpful it is to daily life to understand more about neurodiversity. Recently I concluded the best way to avoid masking and its consequences is to openly be autistic me.

I'm writing this article to share thoughts on neurodivergence in a way that would have helped me back in 2014 and to provide an intro to neurodivergence for anyone interested.?

Doesn't everyone think differently, and therefore isn't everyone neurodivergent in some way or another?

Yes, everyone thinks differently, but historically, some ways of thinking were regarded as "normal", and some were not. Autism, ADHD, dyslexia were, and to some extent still are, seen as abnormalities to be treated, solved or cured. This is not a view I hold and I don't find it surprising that the psychologist who led research on Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA therapy attempts to teach "normal" behaviours to autistic children) also did research into and supported conversion therapy.?

Neurodiversity was introduced as a term in the late 90s to expand the definition of "normal thinking" by seeing autism, ADHD etc., as normal variations in people's brains.??

OK, that makes sense, but it is a bit clinical. What does it mean to be neurodivergent, and why so many different terms?

As a relatively new term, it means different things to different people. From my own experience and what I've read about others' experiences, being neurodivergent could be described as often feeling like you don't fit in because your thinking style is notably different to most people around you. For example, finding the flow of thoughts in conversation challenging to follow and realise others often find your thoughts hard to follow.

There are many categories of neurodivergence including ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyscalculia, bipolar, synesthesia and many more. There is often a correlation between these, e.g. people who are autistic are also more likely to be bipolar.??

Personally, I am autistic and aphantasic. You've probably heard of the first but not the second. Aphantasia, which wasn't really studied until the last ten years, is the lack of ability to see things when your eyes are closed. Until I realised this was a thing that applied to me and not most people, I found exercises like counting sheep to help me sleep or visualising a beach to destress as bizarre.

I have no idea what colour my front door is (unless I'm standing by it). Like many things current research suggests that this is a spectrum. Some people can picture detailed photo-realistic images in their mind, some vague outlines and some picture nothing. If you find it odd some people can't see images in their mind, imagine how strange it is to find out that most people can see pictures in their head of things that aren't there!!!??

"Normal" thinking is just a matter of perspective. As aphantasia has only been studied recently, there are likely many differences in how we all think and understand the world than we are currently unaware of. Hence the growing number of neurodivergent terms.?

OK, so there are lots of differences in how people think. Why do people need to publicise their neurodivergence?

I can only speak from experience. I felt stressed and exhausted from masking at work, and last year that contributed in a big way to burnout. Masking is suppressing your behaviours or mimicking other people's behaviours to fit in. Sometimes I chose to mask because experience taught me it was easier, and sometimes, I was coached into masking with advice on how to behave with specific stakeholders or feedback like "sometimes you are just too you". On one occasion, that was followed up by "you're at your best when you are just you", and both comments related to autistic behaviours. I concluded that certain autistic characteristics are welcome, but others are not.? That makes it hard to bring your whole self to work but I don't blame anyone for this. Unconscious bias comes from a lack of information and if I wasn't informed about my autism and how it was impacting, how could anyone else be?

I am very privileged and have been lucky, in two companies, to have worked in and established neurodiverse teams and to have had superb sponsors who have supported me to be different.??

The data shows that this isn't the typical experience because as employment statistics for autistic individuals are not great. As well as some luck I've almost certainly benefited from being white and male. I'm not trying to be woke. At least one study has shown that employment outcomes are worse for autistic individuals who are also women or from an ethnic minority or both. Essentially, the more you differ from the dominant thinking models, the greater load you feel from trying to mask and fit in.?

More positively the same study "found that feeling that someone cares is more important than any adjustments to work scheduling such as flexible working". Hence why I think it is important that we start discussing neurodivergence more.

What can be done to make workplaces more accommodating for neurodivergent people?

There is lots that can be done and I can't pretend to talk on behalf of a diverse community but the three top things I'm aware of are; inclusive interviewing practices, quiet workspaces, commitment to transparency.

Inclusive interviewing practices

To start with, the classic interview advice is to look your interviewer in the eye and give a firm handshake. It is, apparently, a sign of confidence. It is also something that some autistic people find very difficult. Therefore, if it is a requirement, the job interview may as well say that certain autistic people need not apply.??

That is one of many challenges with interviews. I've seen some brilliant people struggle with compulsory "tell me about a time when" questions. Whilst they had the experience, it just wasn't how their brain thought. To build diverse teams, I've often seen recruitment processes as something to occasionally workaround.

Quiet workspaces

Workspaces can also be made more accommodating. Whilst I don't think I struggle with eye contact and handshakes, I, like many autistic people, can struggle with background noise.??

I recall a meeting room with a broken, squeaking fan unit that made me stressed and impossible for me to focus or think deeply. On one occasion, either the noise was worse, or I was already at my limit, so I left the room to dial in remotely. Even then, it took me 2-3 hours to destress and calm down enough to think clearly.??

To understand how this feels, imagine trying to park a car in a tricky spot, with a queue of cars behind you (perhaps one beeping impatiently), with the radio on in the car and two other people in the car giving advice or asking you questions on an unrelated topic... What do most people do in that situation? Turn the radio off and politely, or otherwise, ask everyone in the car to be quiet. Now imagine that feeling, in your workplace, in a meeting when you need to be functioning at your best.

This is an easy adjustment that businesses can make. Just this week I was in Tesco when it turned 9am and their quiet hour started. I couldn't believe the difference dimmed lights and quieter checkout noises made to reducing the stress of a shop.

Commitment to transparency

The source of my greatest autism-related workplace stress is that I love facts. I've seen this phrased that autistic people prefer truth over conformity. I can't help it.??

Whilst this might not sound like a problem, workplaces and business strategies are often messy and contain inconvenient truths.

As an example, I can imagine a situation where a business chooses "option Good" over "option Great" because whilst "Great" is marginally better than "Good", the main stakeholder prefers "Good", and there isn't time to change their mind. Businesses need to be practical. This is a valid reason for choosing "Good" over "Great". However, more often than not, people don't state inconvenient reasons and prefer to state made-up reasons to justify why "Good" is better than "Great". Not only do I find it almost impossible to agree to something like that, I feel very stressed sitting silently in meetings where false reasons are stated as fact.??

For similar reasons, whilst I love change (I've spent most of my career working in business transformation), I find it very stressful being asked to respond to massive changes (like a change in direction) without any context or facts for why the direction is changing. But, I do accept there are occasions this has to happen, in which case I ask for time to process things.

In short, I would benefit massively from transparent workplaces where inconvenient truths are shared and there is a pre-file for major meetings.??

However, these are my ideas and experiences. Neurodivergence is wildly divergent. For example, whilst I cannot picture images in my head, some autistic people have famously photographic memories. So if you want to make your workplaces welcoming for neurodivergent people, the best suggestion I can offer is to start the conversation about neurodiversity and different people's needs.

There are huge benefits to be had from neurodiverse teams. Bringing different thinking styles together gives you different perspectives on problems and results in more creative teams.

Beyond that there are two sides to many of the traits above. My desire for transparency makes me pretty ineffective in some types of negotiations and my lack of ability to picture images would make me a useless mechanic. However on the flip side being a systems thinker (comes naturally if you can't picture images) who says things as they are is pretty useful for working in business transformation. I don't think I could have achieved the same successes that I have if I wasn't autistic.

Managing neurodivergent people and neurodiverse teams requires understanding individual strengths, some of which you won't have, and putting people on the work that best suits their strengths.

Where could I go for more information?

First, and most importantly if you're reading this and think you may be undiagnosed neurodivergent there are plenty of free resources. I found the test here a hugely insightful starting point.

Second, neurodivergence is something that is being much more discussed and I have learned a lot from following people like Ellie Middleton and Pete Wharmby who regularly post on this topic. I also recommend Pete's book "What I want to talk about" . The best way to understand and empathise with each other is by understand their experiences and Pete gives a very readable account of how autistic special interests have shaped his life.