Squiggly Careers, Belonging and Sensory Needs.

Careers advisors have a tough (impossible?) task. In our 24-hour, post-Covid, hybrid, Chat-GPT, You-Tubed world, advising our young people on what to do with their life is pretty challenging.

Recently I was asked to speak at an Additional Support Needs network for those involved in careers advice and guidance. I’ve worked with the education system in various ways throughout my career. I know that there are passionate people on the front-line who deeply care about young people and who are inundated by strategies and toolkits and KPIs.

We share a common ground that we believe every young person should receive advice and guidance tailored to them. For anyone with additional support needs, the mentoring and advice that they receive is fundamental to their life aspirations.

But who mentors the careers advisors? Who are the best people to role model for those who may not ‘fit’ the mainstream?

Well, I guess I better step forward.

My life mission is to make a more inclusive world where everyone belongs (I do that through training, speaking and consulting. Get in touch if you think I might be a good fit for your projects).

I have accepted that I will always be a careers advisors’ worst nightmare (‘So you have studied law, and visual communication, and done a fashion internship…?’). I come from a family of accountants, so when anyone asks them, ‘How’s Lynn? What is she up to?’ you can see them grasp at phrases like, ‘Something about mental health, that’s going well’, ‘Oh you know! She’s busy!’.

I have spent my entire adult life feeling like a spiky triangle in a world that does not work for me. It still confuses me that being well-behaved, following the rules and acing exams does not guarentee smooth ‘successes‘ in life. When I was diagnosed neurodivergent, it all made a bit more sense.

But, even if awareness is rising, action and practical reality of inclusive careers is thin on the ground.

As someone who has worked with the Equality Act 2010 for years (I try to make it fun and interesting when I work with employers and organisations), I know that those with a disability have a right to reasonable adjustments. I’ve seen these work many times. That said, I also know that employers can struggle with implementation, and cultures need shifting to be proactively inclusive. In disclosure to the employer and requests for adjustments, the power to include the individual relies on cooperation of the organisation. Especially with hidden disabilities, treating individuals without bias is not a lived reality for most (if you need more training on this, let’s talk).

And, enough about me, Disability Equality Scotland demonstrates the full bleak picture. Their resource shows that the key aspect identified as preventing disabled people from employment are prejudicial attitudes and resulting discrimination from employers and other employees. There is a general ignorance around disabilities, how they vary, and the differing challenges they can present, especially for invisible disabilities, neurodivergence, and mental health conditions’. Additionally, there’s the struggle to access extracurricular activities, education opportunities and support.

For anyone who faces barriers, I feel the usual Ikagi diagram, which I do love, should have another overlapping circle in it – What can I access? As we continue to move towards better inclusion, we face an implementation gap which means people can come up against frustrating challenges.

But you already know all this (probably).

We already agree that, until there is more training and acceptance, we need to have a think about how we can find our way in careers beyond the traditional ‘ladder’.

Let me share some resources that I have found helpful in my squiggly world thus far.

Designing a meaningful life.

A life compass (photo below) is a fab tool of working out your values and what is important to you. However, I’d make some tweaks for someone who is neurodivergent by adding in sensory needs, transitions and routines, special interests and living independently. It makes sense that if you are wired differently you might value different things.

Another fab tool is an emotional needs audit. If young people have additional support needs meeting those physical and emotional needs are crucial to a fulfilling life. The traditional Maslow’s hierarchy of needs may not be applicable to those with different developmental needs. The emotional needs audit is a useful check-in tool to discover what a healthy life, with manageable stress, looks like for you. Also, Dr Pooky Knightsmith shares great resources around the emotional health of children who have additional support needs, while I also enjoy the tips and strategies shared by the OT Butterfly.

Energy accounting is popular with neurodivergent people. This acknowledges that, if the world is not made for you and your brain has lots to process, you may need to proactively account for energy levels throughout the day/week so you can complete tasks. Each individual will have activities that drain them, such as appointments, and others that will fill them, such as nature and walking. This allows people to identify how much energy they have available for working and other tasks when considering work, education or other.

Knowing, and developing, yourself.

Brains are wonderfully complex things and I’d recommend getting a cognitive profile. This highlights areas of strengths and challenges, which might be very pronounced in neurodivergent brains (a ‘spiky’ profile). This allows individuals to play to unique strengths and identify where areas of support might be needed. Online tools can be found at Do It Profiler and Exceptional Individuals. When I was applying for Access to Work, I worked with Exceptional Individuals to produce a needs report which identified supports for various things, such as organising tools and assistive technology.

For me, I have come to realise that I can be a confident networker and public speaker, which has allowed me to develop and grow a significant community of supporters and colleagues. This has been a crucial part of my career success which my peers may not have access to. Also, my thirst for self-development has enabled me to understand myself and how to use my talents, which I now can teach and share with others. I have a lot of knowledge and experience to share!!

Linked to this, is the appreciation of a growth mindset, championed by the work of Winning Scotland. Counter to fixed perfectionism, this looks to encourage young people to be psychologically safe enough to explore their challenges. As someone who facilitates psychological safety indexing, I know the importance of this attitude to create high performing teams. This approach would give any young person an advantage in the working world and is a useful concept to introduce to people who struggle with high standards for themselves (me included!!).

Education can come in a variety of ways and, even if mainstream environments are challenging, we can cultivate self-development which is often very practical in application. Squiggly Careers has created a modern movement around this, and, because I adore learning, I regularly read, listen to podcasts and keep up-to-date with newsletters.

Leaning into being an advisor-on-everything.

As someone who has multiple interests across several areas, I’ve embraced the ‘multipotentialite’ approach, made popular by Emily Wapnick. This allows us to reject having a niche, and embrace our multiple skills. Although the portfolio life is increasingly popular, I’ve noticed that this is especially suited to neurodivergent people. I really benefitted from working through the ‘Renaissance Business’ resource, along with ‘How to Be Everything’. This helped me identify where I could get a stable income, while also building a community and services around making equalities engaging.

Although the shift away from ‘traditional’ working models has expediated in the last few years, the trend for the ‘new rich’, made popular by the ‘4 Hour Work Week’ has been around for some time. This is an interesting read as it helps question our always-on-busyness culture and looks at lifestyle design. Again, a useful tool to draw on and dip back into to remind yourself of your goals now and again!

Young Enterprise Scotland has some fabulous courses around entrepreneurship and young people. It’s essential that we maximise the creativity in our youth as these are our innovators of tomorrow. With creativity being a top in-demand skill in our workforce, it excites me to think of the potential in our young people if we harness it.

I hope in reading this, a small insight into my ASN Database, you have picked up one or two new tools to support you in your work. Working with parents, students, careers advisors and educational professionals is something which makes my heart sign. Let’s ensure the next generation of workers have heart-singing, fulfilling careers.