Many of us define dyslexia as we have been told - the people who struggle to spell and write well. But this is only one face of dyslexia. This Dyslexia Awareness Week, we are not only debunking the common misconceptions of dyslexia but revealing why it is actually the ticket to a future-proof comms workforce.
The bottom line is: whilst dyslexia certainly comes with its difficulties, it is no hindrance when it comes to communication industries. In fact, as a PR and marketing professional myself, I attribute much of my success to my dyslexic strengths.
Being diagnosed with dyslexia threatened to taint my education experience and stunt my career prospects. It was painfully obvious that my peers performed better, didn’t need tutors, or any extra time. But as my life unfolded, my creative strengths led me down a design and marketing route. In this communications industry, a different way of thinking was celebrated. I soon found my dyslexic skills to be an asset.
Think about it. We love simplicity. Which is perfect in the world of comms. Dialling down the excess detail, whilst maximising engagement comes naturally to us.
At Front Door Comms, I like to see my role as being a filter for the words. On the frontline of media platforms, I filter and distill information to a ‘digest-friendly’ format. Whether it be 280 characters of a tweet, or a single hero image fronting a campaign.
A recent article on the matter stated “dyslexic minds are great at stripping away unnecessary detail to create clear, compelling messages. This means they excel in careers where explaining, educating, or influencing are key, like teaching, marketing, journalism, campaigning, or PR.”
Not only is a dyslexic skillset surprisingly positive, but it also reportedly aligns with the in-demand ‘skills of tomorrow’. As industries look to future-proof their workforce, they are experiencing a shift in desired skills and capabilities. The World Economic Forum (WEF) recently reported the following strengths (that are typically seen in dyslexics) to be vital to all industries by the year 2022: leadership, social influence, creativity, initiative, and idea generation.
Dyslexia could provide an opportunity for organizations to bridge the skills gap of the future. report’s authors via CNBC
Despite the extensive research and many success stories paving the way, I still find that dyslexic individuals are underestimated in their professional capabilities. Typically, many are programmed to view us through a ‘lens’ and we often find ourselves ruled out in a workplace environment. But with increasingly more companies acknowledging a dyslexic skill set as a tool to future-proof their workforces, a previously dismissed candidate is gradually becoming a desired asset.
Dyslexic minds have exactly the skills we need for the workforce of tomorrow Richard Branson via Made By Dyslexia