Navid Alam
It seems that there is a great connection between being dyslexic and being a successful entrepreneur. According to the CEO and founder of Made in Dyslexia (a global charity dedicated to helping people with dyslexia move forward) Kate Griggs, she writes in the United Kingdom Entrepreneur that 40% of UKs’ entrepreneurs are dyslexic and their methods of thinking (known as dyslexic thinking) plays an important role in thinking outside the box and looking at things from a different perspective.
According to Mayo Clinic, dyslexia is a learning disorder whose symptoms consist of difficulty in reading “due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words (decoding).” Although there is no cure for dyslexia, it can be tested at an early stage and controlled (much like autism). Some of the main challenges that dyslexics face are reading the words in the correct form, have spelling mistakes even after they feel confident, and having the lack of confidence when reading aloud as they feel the pressure of being judged.
DYSLEXIA IS NO STOPPING FACTOR
But this disability is not stopping people from becoming entrepreneurs. They find the dyslexic thinking method to be the enzyme providing the boost towards their confidence and luck. Like introverts, they look at things from a different perspective. Introverts look for business models that require less personal interaction and will create an AI agent that will handle the ‘first layer of the onion’ tasks. They would dive into the situation should there be the inability to solve the situation. Dyslexic thinking is defined as “an approach to problem solving, assessing information, and learning that involves pattern recognition, spatial reasoning, lateral thinking, and interpersonal communication.” Some of the skills present in dyslexic thinking include visualising by interacting with space, senses, physical ideas and new concepts. They also explore by exploring ideas in a constant and energetic way. Their ability of communicating are clear and engaging as well. According to a report by DyslexicU (a university created by Grigg’s Made In Dyslexia), it shows that 75% of dyslexics are above average at visualising, 84% at exploring, and 71% at communicating.
HOW DOES DYSLEXIC THINKING WORK IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Ellen Cole, in a blog post, says that there are no researches that can prove the direct link between being dyslexic and having the eye of creativity. As a dyslexic herself, she says that the capability of creating unique and innovative campaign ideas are high for her and dyslexics. The communicating skill in dyslexic thinking provides the easy and intriguing newsworthy stories for her clients.
Dyslexic individuals tend to think outside the box and have a unique perspective when solving problems. Dyslexic entrepreneurs are known to the creation of groundbreaking ideas and solutions that none other have considered in the past.
Kate Griggs points out in her article that dyslexic thinkers are thinkers of big picture while keeping it simple and that failure is embraced by them making them super resilient and persistent.
With the AI revolution, dyslexic thinking has become even more easier when dealing with computer sciences and creating AI agents as the minute bugs can be spotted and fixed with their ability of thinking. As prompts play an important role into the creation of something unique with AI, dyslexic thinkers and entrepreneurs look forward to create prompts which are stored in the data models.
CONCLUSION
Dyslexic thinking has now become a new skill and is available to be put on LinkedIn. Dyslexia should be tested from an early age once the initial symptoms arise. But instead of discouraging children to move forward with their lives, parents should think about the new possibilities that they can bring by thinking outside the box. Every person is creative one way or another. When it comes to dyslexic people, it seems that they are another notch above the average creativity level of normal people.
The writer is a journalist.