Are you aware there are two types of brains within your team? Neurotypical who fit traditional workplaces and neurodivergent who don’t.
Raising awareness within your workplace of how neurodivergence may show up gives you the foundation to manage it, break the stigma, build cohesive teams where all flourish.
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥?
𝗣𝗢𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗬:
🔔 Increased sickness levels – maybe burnout
🔔 Disjointed teams – productivity hit
🔔 Loss of talent
🔔 Employment Tribunal challenge
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Here are three ways to build a neuro inclusive workplace and team where all will flourish:
✅Awareness session for managers to understand how neurodivergence might show up and what to do.
✅How to be an Ally – for teams to know how to support their neurodivergent colleagues.
✅Funding 1:1 Coaching as part of their reasonable adjustments, for their team members who may be neurodivergent and not event realise it
All three are more cost effective than risking an Employment Tribunal!
Do you agree?
Is it time for you to raise awareness in your workplace?
Workplaces have changed a lot since the introduction of Human Resource departments following the Industrial Revolution. The term was first used by economist John R Commons is his 1893 book – The Distribution of Wealth.
Initially introduced as employment clerks, hiring daily workers their role grew to managing payroll, enforcing equality laws to now being a strategic part of any effective business.
Changes were gradual. The technology revolutions since dictate that change cannot be gradual.
Today large businesses have a raft of ED&I programmes, staff benefits and rewards, training, support with the critical thread of HR running throughout an employee’s journey with the business.
Are all workplaces, inclusive of both neurotypical and neurodivergent brains?
From what I see – the resounding answer is sadly ‘no’.
Since working professionally for the last 20 years in inclusivity, social mobility through empowerment and employment, I’ve worked collaboratively with all sizes of business and industries as well as individuals from all social economic backgrounds.
One critical piece of awareness training that seems to be missing is brain inclusivity.
Sounds a bit scary dosen’t it? So will other terminology – neurodivergent, neurotypical, Executive Functioning Delay, neuro affirmation – to name a few. However, awareness training demolishes perceptions replacing these with reality and action points.
The action needed can be very simple, cost free and inclusive for all staff.
What is the cost of not rolling out awareness training in this critical area?
Potentially:
Increased sickness costs
Loss of talent and replacement recruitment costs
Negative impact on team and therefore, cohesion and productivity
Risk to brand reputation
Increased risk of Employment Challenge
Uncapped disability discrimination compensation
As a certified ADHD Coach, I’ve delivered awareness training to managers to empower them to recognise how neurodivergence may show-up, how to approach and work with someone to give them the support they need as well as empower their team to feel included.
When delivering how to be an ally to team members, their feedback shared the content resonated with them, they gained tools and steps to use at work and home to be a true ally.
Finally, delivering 1:1 Coaching is life changing. People move from feeling stuck experiencing all sorts of emotions about how their neurodivergence shows up to discovering tools to tame it and flourish.
Here’s a few thoughts to consider for training within this area:
Cost per head is cheaper than a robust lunch from a high end sandwich shop!
Delivered virtually – minimises disruption to operations
Team inclusion and cohesion increases
Potential risks above diminish.
Yesterday was my first session of @LeanneMaskell’s brand new Neuro Affirmative course. With delegates joining from across the globe the word is spreading, the movement is rising.
Is your business part of the brain inclusive movement?
I’m not talking about the masks worn during Covid. I am talking about the mask neurodivergent people put on to try to ‘fit’ in. Working with your unique brain rather than against it, is where the start of being you begins.
Does this sound familiar?
Know what you have to do, but just can’t get started?
Can’t get anywhere on time?
Constantly forget to take your keys, lunch, chargers, cards etc when you leave for work?
Forget instructions shortly after your manager has said them to you?
Find your brain works on impulse? Whilst colleagues are working on a project, your brain has multiple ideas its chasing down?
Ruminate the small stuff – what is the right way to sign-off an e-mail?
Does any/all resonate with you?
Maybe you have your assessment but don’t know what to do with it?
Or maybe you are one of the thousands of people waiting for assessment.
You don’t have to wait to get help. You don’t need an assessment. 1:1 Coaching will help you explore how your brain shows-up at work, how it impacts you and how you can tame it.
If you are working, speak to your employer to see if they will fund Coaching for you as part of their reasonable adjustments. Alternatively, you can apply for a Government grant from Access to Work in the UK or fund the Coaching yourself.
It’s important you ‘connect’ with a neurodivergent Coach to build the trust and confidence for the journey ahead. All coaches offer a free exploratory session to see if you both ‘connect’.
Consider a certified Coach trained in the Executive Functioning framework. We are skilled in helping you identify the areas of executive functioning that impact you and exploring tools to help you tame it.
Sessions will be flexible to suit you – virtual, in person, weekly – more/less frequent, up to an hour each session usually for 12 weeks. Don’t let your perceptions talk you out of getting the coaching you deserve.
Coaching is very different to Counselling or Therapy. It’s designed to move you to a place you can thrive and no longer need a Coach.
Is it now time to start the journey to take off your mask?
Cocktails, for me, should be visually exciting and have discernible flavours.
Songs and films are incorrect – although potentially great titles!
Cocktails is potentially correct in the right coffee brewer’s hands! Read on.
They are just some of the awesome coffees on display at Extract Coffee London just off Bermondsey Street.
I’d been invited by @Growing_Talent’s sponsors to pitch the programme and additional resources on ADHD, @I-Act and general team empowerment training to their supply chain held yesterday at this London gem!
Arriving early, as usual, Veena gave me 1:1 insight into Extract’s beginnings, their credentials, their partners – at home and across the globe, their connections with organisations focussing on enabling those who need it to close their own social mobility gap through skills training ready for the world of employment. Which led nicely on to the science of coffee.
You may have heard of WSET – home to the Wine & Spirit Trust – whose qualifications are sought after by the hospitality industry as well as individual wine enthusiasts. Did you know there is a science to coffee too? I absolutely didn’t. I was shown the various different beans, how they are produced by farmers and used in Extract’s coffee in different ways.
Did you know the mainstream coffee shops use only one type of coffee bean?
Some coffees are great for gut health and have a lot of fibre in – who knew!
Seeing the areas used to train people in the diverse world of coffee production, learning the different careers available and the industry awards on offer showed the passionate, social inclusion core of Extract Coffee – and the public can even buy their unique coffees and teas on line! Amazing.
The pitch to the supply chain went really well with lots of questions and engagement.
After the team – including award winning Chloe – showed how coffee can be used in the composition of cocktails and mocktails. Of course, I had to try the martini! I love a fancy glass.
Check Extract Coffee out online and make a difference whilst enjoying your unique cup of morning coffee
When a successful training programme is created to deliver transformation, over time, the creator can be lulled into thinking no tweaking is necessary. The formula is right. All elements are covered.
Like a child’s comfort blanket – it’s familiar and safe.
But there is a unique element on the most tried and tested programme – the audience.
Being alert for body language cues, environment hitches etc enables the trainer to ‘tweak on the hoof’ ensuring the transformation sought is achieved to the whole audience.
Two decades ago, I was scheduled to give an address to the graduation audience of the Real Apprentice, an employability programme I ran at the time. My script was vetted and agreed by my then employer and their client hosting the event. Part of my script involved audience participation – a ‘show of hands’. I knew this script word for word. On the stage looking out to the audience, it was clear the script wouldn’t work. The audience was in complete darkness to me – so the show of hands part was redundant. Which made the agreed script redundant also! I spoke from the heart instead. The buzz in the room proved it was the right thing to do
Like my peers, I make a point of discovering the transformation required, why and the needs of the audience with my client to ensure any training delivers.
I love the whole process of training from start to finish. Hearing the audiences and clients feedback energises me with new ideas.
Following accreditation as an ADHD Coach earlier this year, it was clear to me, raising awareness of ADHD in the workplace was critical, not just for neurodivergent people but their managers and colleagues too. Symptoms can be mistaken for behaviours causing a heap of pain to all involved which can be avoided with a little knowledge.
Raising Awareness of ADHD For Managers explores what managers might see, easy adjustments they can consider, engaging the whole team, employment law and the risk of ETs.
“I found the training insightful. It has already given me ideas to implement for my own team.” Katie, FM Supervisor, Northern Ireland
Raising Awareness of ADHD – How to be an Ally – enables team members to learn the frustrations their neurodivergent colleagues may feel, what they might see and how they can support.
“This resonated with me. I support people outside work with ADHD” Dora, FM in London
Both sessions are delivered virtually, over 1.5 hours complete with an accompanying workbook for onward reflection.
Is it time to tweak the workplace training portfolio you offer and raise some awareness?
