A Wealthy Life
Neurodiversity: A Blessing or a Curse? Why 1 in 5 of Us Think Differently with Stephanie Batey
Take the Escape the 9-5 Scorecard: https://bit.ly/EscapeThe9-5Now Join the Wealthy Life Community: https://bit.ly/Join-WLC Were you the kid who asked too many questions, or the one moved to a hut at the back of the school field? In this episode I sit down with Steph Batey to ask whether neurodiversity is a blessing, a curse, or simply human diversity that we never learned to value properly. We get into the labels we were handed at school and how long they stick, why around 1 in 5 of us are thought to think differently from the norm, and what changes when you stop hunting for what is wrong with someone and start looking for what is strong. Steph is candid about her own ADHD diagnosis at 37, what fell apart when she left teaching and lost the structure that had been holding her together, and how she works now. Stephanie Batey is a former secondary school English teacher and head of literacy who now works as a neurodiversity consultant and qualified ADHD coach. She founded Inclusive Teacher Co, trains teachers and businesses in the UK and internationally, and is also a property investor, mentor and published author. She starts a PhD in education later this year. EXPECT TO LEARN: - Why Steph answers "yes and no" to the bandwagon question, and where she draws the line between validation and gaming the system - What an ADHD assessment actually involves, and why Steph describes a clinical diagnosis as a very informed opinion - How a label handed to you at eight can still be running your decisions at forty - Why deficit language in the DSM and in schools shapes how a child comes to see themselves - What Robert Brooks meant by islands of competence, and how to look for those instead of the oceans of inadequacy - The figure Steph quotes for how many corrective comments a neurodivergent child may hear from the adults around them by age ten - Why an hour of writing a day is the worst possible advice for a brain that runs on hyperfocus - What Steph means by self-acceptance over self-development, and why the personal development industry can leave some people feeling like outcasts - Where to go first if you recognise yourself in any of this, and why social media is the wrong place to start TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Introduction 01:00 Why around 1 in 5 of us think differently 02:09 When a diagnosis is sought for the wrong reasons 04:36 What neurodiverse and neurodivergent actually mean 06:38 Developmental language disorder, dysgraphia and co-occurrence 09:17 Steph's PhD, and what a title can mean 10:18 The labels we were given at school 14:41 Executive function, support, and the deficit trap 16:30 Islands of competence, oceans of inadequacy 18:11 Special educational needs and being separated out 22:00 The dyslexic brain and spotting what others miss 26:22 Masking, and the minds we pushed to one side 29:42 The adults in a child's life, and the weight of correction 32:39 Steph's own diagnosis at 37 36:50 The assessment, the QB test, and what it showed 39:23 Support that works: a PA, an ADHD coach, and honest trade-offs 43:27 Hyperfocus, time blocking, and writing a book in a week 45:13 Self-acceptance over self-development 48:24 Vicki's three wishes 51:57 What Steph would say if you recognise yourself in this FOLLOW THE GUEST STEPH BATEY: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephbateyneurodiversity Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inclusiveteacherco/ FOLLOW THE HOST VICKI WUSCHE: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vickiwusche/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VickiWusche Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vicki_wusche/ LISTEN TO A WEALTHY LIFE: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/VickiWusche Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/a-wealthy-life/id1617293196 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/13lVRTAioD5mR4XUiylAk8 #Neurodiversity #ADHD #Neurodivergent #ThinkDifferently #AWealthyLife
