7 - Dyslexia in the Workplace

Summary

Chapter 7 aims to further explore the impact of dyslexia on performance at work. It will incorporate the framework of adult dyslexia outlined earlier in the book along with ideas for strategy development so that the latter can be put into practise to manage job demands. In the chapter, we will explore the main areas that our dyslexia contributors have most commonly identified as challenges over-and-above the literacy/language challenges discussed in chapters 5 and 6. This chapter, therefore, discusses the common challenges in the workplace related to new situations or novelty, as well as time management, stress and work overload, and remembering information. It also covers how dyslexia can impact on workplace training and professional examinations. Ideas related to developing job specific expertise will be covered as these can reduce the impact of challenges and increase confidence. The 4 M’s strategy that we introduced in chapter 6 will be something we will discuss further in this chapter. It will also discuss issues related to organisation and prioritisation, which links to metacognition and planning discussed in previous chapters.