Dyslexia a handicap? Not to me

Wherever I go, people come up to me and share their stories about how dyslexia has affected their lives. Many speak of the enormous difficulties they’ve faced because of this disability, but some also say that having a brain that’s differently wired has been a benefit.

It helps them to see things from different perspectives from everyone else, and sometimes to come up with unusual solutions. I’ve written before that I believe dyslexia is my greatest strength. It has taught me to keep things simple, to rise above difficulties and to focus on what I’m good at. After meeting so many people who also have dyslexia, I’m happy to see that I’m not the only one who feels this way! But it has not always been like this.

When I was in school, dyslexia was treated as a handicap. My teachers thought I was dumb and lazy. No matter how I tried, I could not keep up or fit in with the other students. There were some subjects in which I drew a complete blank.

Maths just didn’t make sense; my spelling, punctuation and grammar weren’t great. And remembering facts and figures and then regurgitating them for exams was a nightmare. For many years I thought I was a hopeless case. Even when I did an IQ test, the questions seemed absurd.

But once I left school and was freed from the archaic teaching practices and others’ misconceptions, my mind opened up, and so did my world. I learnt that the tasks I was expected to complete in school didn’t match up with how work got done in the real world. 

PATHS TO SIMPLICITY

As my friends and I began to develop the Virgin brand, I had to acknowledge my weaknesses and play up my strengths, as any business leader does. I was already a better listener than most, but in business, people have a tendency to use complex jargon.

Since I need concepts to be simple and straightforward in order to understand them, everyone on our team began to avoid complexity and jargon.

My dyslexia helped us to make all communications across the company efficient. In consequence, Virgin developed a clear-cut, simple way of doing things that became part of our company’s culture. This was especially helpful when, say, we launched a bank.

Over the years, this approach has enabled us to find paths to simplicity where others might see only complexity. I think we see the big picture and embrace unconventional thinking more easily. I think customers love the Virgin brand because we do not talk above them or talk down to them. We talk to them – and simply.

My dyslexia also taught me the importance of delegation. Too many entrepreneurs want to control every decision and do everything themselves. There were aspects of the work that I knew I would never excel at, so I found the best people I could and delegated those tasks to them. As the saying goes, in order to grow, you have to be able to let go.

This habit gave us a head start over many of our competitors. Unless the CEO and his team have delegation skills, it’s very difficult to grow a group of companies like Virgin’s.

And as our group began to grow, our successes taught me that my early experiences had been truly meaningless, giving me even more resolve to rise to challenges despite the fear of failure. Dyslexia is not a disadvantage, and I think that I’m a pretty spot-on case study – it helped me to think creatively.

CHANGING PERSPEPTIONS

Celebrated dyslexics like Henry Ford, Steve Jobs and Albert Einstein further prove the point.

Yet public perceptions have not shifted much since I was at school. Most people still see dyslexia as a negative trait, and dyslexics worldwide are not getting the support they need. Much more needs to be done, which is why I’m supporting Made by Dyslexia, a new global charity.

This organisation plans to develop campaigns to educate others about dyslexic thinking and launch programmes that identify and inspire dyslexics. Made by Dyslexia also aims to work with governments, business leaders and individuals around the world to bring about real, meaningful change for dyslexics.

It is believed that as much as 17 per cent of the world’s population might have dyslexia. Just imagine the difference we could make if all of these people were encouraged to make their dreams a reality and achieve their potential.

Dyslexia has been integral to my success, and dealing with dyslexia can lead to valuable lessons that benefit friends and colleagues as well. The first step to success for all is accepting that everyone is different.

Richard Branson is the founder of the Virgin Group. This article first appeared in the New York Times