Dyslexia Benefits in the Workplace

Many regard dyslexia as a disability, however, learning disability experts Brock and Fernette Eide present an argument that dyslexia is simply an alternative way that our brains can be wired. According to the Eide’s, this alternative wiring comes with multiple advantages and even more misconceptions.

The Eide’s are the authors of “The Dyslexic Advantage,” “The Mislabeled Child” and the founders of a nonprofit called “Dyslexic Advantage.”

In an interview with WIRED magazine, Fenette said, “It’s a huge mistake to regard a dyslexic child as if his or her brain is trying to follow the same pathway of development as all the other kids but is simply doing a bad job of it.”

She continued by saying that society holds a misconception that dyslexic brains only differ in the ways they process printed symbols, adding that dyslexic brains have different processing styles and therefore develop in different ways.
“Dyslexic brains are organized in a way that maximizes strength in making big picture connections,” Fenette continued in the interview, “at the expense of weaknesses in processing fine details.”

They have discovered dyslexics are exceptional in four categories of strengths:

Spatial Reasoning: Putting together three- dimensional spatial perspectives

Professions dealing with this strength: Design, 3-D art, architecture, be engineers, builders, inventors, organic chemists.

Interconnected reasoning: The ability to shift perspective and view an object or event from multiple perspectives, or the ability to see the “gist” or big-picture context surrounding an event or idea