Neurodiversity and self-employment
The growth in awareness and acceptance of neurodiversity in recent years has largely been positive, although there’s still a long way to go in terms of diagnosis and support. As a term it can cover a wide range of cognitive variations including autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, anxiety and more. And it’s not surprising that there’s a common and often beneficial link between neurodiversity and self-employment.
What is neurodiversity?
It’s a term which has attracted some controversy and debate, but it’s estimated that around 1 in 7 people in the UK have some kind of neurodivergence. Various studies have suggested that figure is likely to be higher for CEOs, company founders and the self-employed, with 20% of UK business entrepreneurs having dyslexia, for example.
There are many examples of how brains process information differently, and some may be included under the term neurodiversity by people, but kept separate by others. Broadly speaking, some of the common types include:
- Autism or Autism Spectrum Conditions
- ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) or ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)
- Anxiety
- Dyscalculia
- Dyslexia
- Dyspraxia or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)
- Cognitive functioning difficulties or executive dysfunction
- Dysgraphia
- Misophonia
- Slow processing speed
- Stammering
- Tourette’s syndrome
This isn’t intended as a definitive or exhaustive list, but it does show the wide range of cognitive differences and the different associated challenges many people face in both employment and everyday life. It’s also important to recognise that many of these conditions exist on a spectrum, and each neurodivergent individual will have different and personal traits from others with the same diagnosis. And many people may display traits of neurodiversity without a clear diagnosis.
Common challenges for neurodivergent freelancers and the self-employed
One of the biggest and most common challenges for freelancers and the self-employed is whether to disclose any neurodivergence to clients. It may be less of an issue if you’re an entrepreneur running a business selling to customers, but there’s an understandable anxiety about disclosing information and setting boundaries when you rely on client work.
And there’s no ‘right’ answer to any individual situation.
For some people, being open and public about their situation will help set expectations and boundaries with clients. But you shouldn’t feel pressured or required to reveal any neurodiversity if you’d rather keep things private, and it could limit the potential opportunities for projects.
The flipside is that keeping quiet, and masking or hiding your neurodiversity, can become overwhelming and lead to miscommunication, burnout or overcommitment.
Ultimately, you’ll need to decide what works best for you, your business, and each individual client relationship.
Another issue can come from clients, colleagues and other people expecting to see stereotypical traits associated with a particular type of neurodivergent condition. Each individual will experience and exhibit ADHD, autism, dyspraxia, etc differently, and may be accustomed to masking it in personal ways. And that can further confuse and complicate the relationships with those people.
It’s also important to understand the potential risks that can come with the freedom of freelancing. If you’re prone to distraction and poor time management, which can often be associated with ADHD, then it can be important to set regular routines and boundaries to ensure that you’re not putting off client commitments because you’ve disappeared into researching increasingly obscure topics, or missing deadlines.
Being responsible for your own business gives you the opportunities to prioritise the areas you excel at or enjoy more. But it can also indulge your ability to put off and ignore the areas you find more challenging, sometimes to a problematic level if you’re skipping over invoicing, taxes and other necessary admin.
One solution is to find someone to provide some accountability external to your business, whether it’s a mentor, coach, or one or more fellow freelancers.
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