How To Support LGBTQ People With ADHD At Work

There is a growing set of research on the overlap between gender diversity and neurodiversity. But what should employers know about this, and how can it inform their employment practices?

There is an inherent power in being LGBTQ. Your whole life sits beyond the binary. You’re able to see opportunities that others simply can’t.

Equally, when you have neurodiversity, your brain processes the world around us in a different way. This provides the chance to come up with unique solutions to business challenges.

Founder of Lightning Travel Recruitment, Chris King didn’t always see power in their transness – and their workplace didn’t understand their neurodiversity.

Despite their work being strong, they faced accusations of being too much, too gay, too loud, too extra. But this simply reflected their ADHD, making them feel like a “Duracell bunny”.

So King set up a recruitment business that used their lived experience to inform how to treat staff. Over the last few years, they’ve learned their intersectionalities are actually their unique powers – especially when it comes to running a business.

“So often those that don’t fit the stereotypical mould feel unworthy of being visible; we spend our time apologising for even existing,” King tells me.

“But staying true to who I am and having the business reflect the values that I hold dear has made it incredibly easy to recruit and to grow the brand because people can see that it’s genuine.”

How can employers work better with people who have ADHD and other neurodiversities?

King believes one of the most important things to remember is that people are your biggest asset, even if they are your greatest challenge.

Stereotypes about neurodiverse people underestimate the power they have in the workforce. Though some cannot emotionally regulate and some struggle with rejection sensitivity – King says this doesn’t rule them out as “awesome leaders”.

It’s all about how you support people with neurodiversity:

“My approach is to treat everyone as an individual and use my own experience to create a safe, flexible and supportive environment that puts people first.”

There is no size fits all when it comes to neurodiversity. But based on King’s lived experience, they explain some easy ways all business can improve their offering to people with neurodiversities:

1. Look at language in job descriptions

King describes this as their “biggest ick” at the moment. They find many companies write job descriptions and double down on how inclusive they are. Yet many use ableist language as descriptors.

They suggest rethinking common buzzwords and phrases that can be offensive and switching them up:

• Blindspot → Missed opportunity
• Crazy or Psycho → Ridiculous, unbelievable, unheard of, outrageous
• OCD → Fastidious
• Lame → Uncool or cheesy
• Walkthrough → Review or guidethrough

While you’re thinking about language – you can also check job descriptions to see if they are gender neutral. Words like ‘manpower’ and ‘guys’ can be offputting to women and people who are gender diverse.

2. Allow for remote work and flexible hours

If the pandemic taught us anything, it’s that the world could be productive despite our usual 9-5 at a desk routine being whipped away.

For many people with neurodiversity who struggle to stick to one task for extended lengths, this change in working hours was a blessing.

“We live in a time where there is more freedom than ever to create your own rules. But first, you must unlearn some of the ingrained rules you may not even realise exist. This is crucial when working with people who are neurodiverse.

“I struggled for so long to unlearn the immutable laws of the office: Thou must be at thy desk 9 – 6 pm and if not, suffer the consequences. I work better in short bursts, on my terms and can get a day’s work done in a few hours.”

3. Don’t always see job hopping as a sign of weakness

Neurodiverse employees, if supported correctly, are among the best people you can hire. But you need to do the work to reap the rewards.

In the UK, 1 in 4 autistic people are unemployed right now. Meanwhile, people with undiagnosed ADHD often move jobs a lot.

They do this for the same reason anyone would move. They are unsupported at work. Job hopping might not be to do with the individual but with the environments, they’ve worked in.

If you see this on someone’s CV, King says to ask questions and learn to trust.

“Not everyone who’s neurodiverse is diagnosed – for various reasons. If someone tells you they are neurodiverse but don’t have a confirmed diagnosis, then you need to trust they are and listen to how they work best.”

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