Neurodiversity in leadership, and why it matters
In February 2023, The Times published, “I’m sorry, but all this ADHD doesn’t add up”.
It takes something Johnny Vegas said out of context - he was diagnosed with ADHD at 52 and he definitely didn’t say, ““everyone” is suffering from an element of ADHD”.
And it shares that celebs including Sue Perkins, Richard Bacon, Ant McPartlin and Heston Blumenthal all have ADHD too.
Is that everyone? And are they suffering?
Nope.
In fact, the clients I work with who have ADHD have been outraged, and social media has been full of shock, “Possibly the most vile thing I have read so far this year…”, and “Yet another article pushing misinformation and demonising neurodivergent people.”
Overstretched services due to underfunding mean that not everyone hoping for a formal diagnosis route can actually get one through the NHS, so they miss out on public service support and paying privately isn’t always accessible. That’s why self-diagnosis is also valid in the work I do. You can't tell by looking at someone how they'll thrive at work, so creating neuroinclusive approaches helps improve productivity, morale and profitability.
In this month’s article, I’m exploring why neurodiversity in business is important and sharing great ways to begin internal conversations around this topic.
What’s your favourite meal?
Hold on, I know what you’re thinking: I’d said this was a blog about leadership…
It is, buuuuut just for a few seconds, imagine you’re heading out to your favourite restaurant.
Personally, I love vegetarian Japanese cuisine. Ironically, I found vege food really hard to find while in Japan (📍Tokyo 🚅 Shinkansen 📍 Kyoto) but it’s one of the big things I miss since I moved from London to Nottingham. So, recently, I treated myself to a Pumpkin Katsu Curry microwave meal.
It was delicious! 😋
The crunch of the panko breadcrumbs, the smoothness of the pumpkin inside the croquette. A little bite to the rice, and a thick, spicy sauce to bring it all together. (Ooh, I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.)
But here’s the thing - that Pumpkin Katsu Curry had juuuust the right balance of sweet and savoury complemented by the soft and crunchy - making it a perfect pick-me-up on a miserable winter day. If just one of those elements had been off, it would have been unappealing yet spicy mush.
🤔 What does that have to do with leadership?
The question for you is this: do you truly understand the unique yet complementary skills that people have within your teams, and how you can dial those up to improve morale, retention, and productivity for your business overall?
Having people who think differently allows you to look critically at a proposed path and see it from many different angles.
It encourages constructive debate about how to best address a problem and raises alternative solutions for consideration. And it helps everyone think more creatively about how to serve the needs of clients and other stakeholders.
And guess what? People using their talents to do good work will feel happier and more motivated. Win-win.
So, you need to make sure you have a great mix of skills in your leadership team to benefit from diverse thinking and to see this as a huge opportunity. Having neurodiversity gives you creative thinkers, big thinkers, deep thinkers, and reflective thinkers. It provides expert analysts and people who challenge the status quo by querying current processes and methodologies, and those who spot future problems well in advance.
The bottom line is this: neurodiversity at work keeps teams questioning what's possible, and keeps the business growing in ways it simply couldn't if it were full of people who all thought/behaved/responded in exactly the same way. You can see the importance of embracing this, right? 🧩
Getting your leadership team to embrace differences, though? Well, that’s another challenge.
This isn’t just about company culture
Don’t get me wrong, company culture is a bloomin’ massive factor when it comes to acceptance and support of neurominority employees. People need to feel psychologically safe to be able to fully share their needs, as well as their knowledge and skills at work (You can learn more about how that works here.)
Leadership is amplifying the quieter voices in the room.
Howevah…this is about finding those quiet voices in the room and giving them a metaphorical megaphone so everyone can hear and act on their brilliant ideas.
And let’s be clear: the onus isn’t on the individual to have to do all the work here. You need ways to develop awareness and support of neurodiversity in your leadership team so everyone can benefit from it.
For some people, it’s about tapping into their confidence. Finding the right way for them to share their thoughts. They might not flourish in a quick-fire ‘shout your ideas’ out meeting. In fact, that might put them so on edge, they withdraw completely.
Instead, they may benefit from one-to-one discussions, or the opportunity to get away from the bright lights and excess noise completely before they’re able to compose their thoughts.
Creative teams are teams with complementary skills.
Others may have days where the right circumstances give them hyperfocus and they can churn out the deliverables of five people. Knowing what helps them achieve that flow without burnout though? That takes time, practice and flexibility (and understanding that it isn’t a tap that can be turned on and off).
So, what I’m really saying is (assuming you have a safe environment where people feel they can be themselves), the answer to getting the best out of someone is as unique as the individual. So take time to learn what they need to feel good about their work and find ways to let them thrive in that way as much as possible.
What’s a great way to start this conversation?
Developing a leadership team which recognises and encourages neurodiversity can lead to improved quality, productivity and innovation for your business overall, so looking at where you are now is always the best place to start. Recognise the different talents you have in your leadership team and identify individual strengths.
Then think about whether you’re really making the most of those skills and what improvements (to morale, productivity, retention) you might see if this became a key area of focus for your business this year.
You could also use events such as Neurodiversity Celebration Week (13-19 March 2023) and International Leadership Week (20-24 March 2023) to discuss the importance of neurodiversity in the workplace. Everyone has to start somewhere so, if it isn’t even something you’re discussing yet, awareness events can be a great way to get started.
If you’re feeling unsure about how to approach those conversations, need a speaker for your event, or want to champion neurodiversity with specific support and coaching, just book a discovery call with me. We’ll chat about the best ways you can start to build awareness and better support one another at work.
About
I'm Victoria Tretis and I'm a certified coach who abides by the standards and ethics set by the International Coaching Federation. Individuals and teams work with me to improve productivity, decrease wasted time, and increase profitability through neuro-inclusive coaching.