We are missing hidden talents!

I was asked recently to pitch my business in 3 minutes - the elevator pitch they call it. I did it because I practised it a lot, and I have done quite a bit of talking over the years! (Some may say too much).

We take it for granted that being an entrepreneur means we have communication skills, presenting skills, confidence, organisational skills to compact the ideas into short statements.. and if we don't some may assume this means we don't have the talent to develop a great idea. We assume remembering the pitch means we have the skills to run a business and if we can't - then we don't. How can this really be true?

Walking into a room of people you don't know is nerve wracking for most of us, but if you have ASD, a stammer, or a speech and language difficulty can be a step too far. Being asked to present your ideas in this format may be too much even though you are the best coder/builder/artist/creator. A pre-recorded video/a presentation with graphics and a voice over could also do the trick in some cases.

Are we really ensuring there are different ways of presenting our talents so that we ensure that 15% of the population who may be neurodiverse or have visual or hearing impairments can still be out there showing others their talents and getting the same sort of support? BUT this should be considered not as a 'separate' event (for those people!) but one that allows inclusion to occur, so that we can share our talents and work together and harness the skills we all bring to the party so we form true teams. It's only when we do this that we will see that having a neurodiverse team adds to your skills base and should be seen as of great benefit. Without some small changes ( and that's all it requires) in approach we will continue to waste talent that truly exists....