You’ve probably heard the term "neurodiversity" tossed around in HR meetings or on TikTok recently. It’s becoming a buzzword. But honestly, most people use it as a polite way to say "disability" without feeling awkward. That’s not what it means. Not even close.
When we talk about what neurodiversity means, we aren't talking about a medical diagnosis or a list of symptoms to be fixed by a doctor. It is a biological fact. Just like biodiversity describes a healthy ecosystem with many different plants and animals, neurodiversity describes the reality that human brains aren't identical. They aren't supposed to be.
Think about it this way. We don't say a flower is "broken" because it isn't a tree. We don't try to teach a cat to bark. Yet, for decades, our schools and offices have been built on the assumption that there is one "right" type of brain—the neurotypical one—and everything else is a malfunction.
The term was actually coined back in the late 90s by an Australian sociologist named Judy Singer. She was tired of the "tragedy narrative" surrounding autism. She argued that being autistic, or having ADHD, or being dyslexic, isn't a bug in the human code. It’s a feature.
The Core Concept: Moving Beyond the Medical Model
To really grasp what neurodiversity means, you have to understand the shift from the medical model to the social model of disability.
The medical model says: "Your brain doesn't process sounds correctly, so you have a disorder that we need to treat."
The social model says: "You process sound very intensely, and this office is unnecessarily loud. The environment is the problem, not your brain."
It’s a massive shift in perspective. It doesn't mean that life isn't hard for neurodivergent people. It can be incredibly difficult. But the neurodiversity paradigm suggests that much of that difficulty comes from a world that wasn't built for them.
Let’s look at some real-world examples.
Take ADHD. In a modern office where you have to sit still for eight hours and stare at spreadsheets, ADHD looks like a massive disadvantage. But if you're in a high-stakes, fast-moving environment like an ER or a startup during a crisis, that "distractibility" often looks like hyper-awareness and the ability to pivot instantly.
We see this in history, too. Some researchers, like Dr. Helen Taylor at the University of Strathclyde, have proposed the "Complementary Cognition" theory. The idea is that human groups survived because we had different types of thinkers. We needed the "specialists" who could focus on one task for days (autistic traits) and the "generalists" who were constantly scanning the horizon for new threats or opportunities (ADHD traits).
It Is a Huge Umbrella
Neurodiversity isn't just autism. It’s a massive tent.
Most people include ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia (coordination stuff), Dyscalculia (math stuff), and Tourette’s under this umbrella. Some advocates even include things like OCD or Bipolar disorder. It’s basically any way of thinking that diverges from the "standard" or "typical" path.
Did you know that about 1 in 5 people are estimated to be neurodivergent? That's 20% of the population. Look around the room. If you’re in a group of ten people, two of them likely have a brain that processes information in a fundamentally different way than the others.
They might be "masking."
Masking is when a neurodivergent person spends an exhausting amount of energy trying to act "normal." They might force eye contact even if it’s painful, or suppress the urge to fidget. It’s like running a heavy software program in the background of your computer all day. Eventually, the battery dies. That’s why burnout is so common in these communities.
The Problem With "High Functioning" Labels
We need to stop using labels like "high functioning" and "low functioning." Seriously.
These labels are often based on how much a person’s neurodivergence inconveniences other people, not how much the person is actually struggling.
An autistic person labeled "high functioning" might have a great job but go home and be unable to feed themselves because they’re so overstimulated. A person labeled "low functioning" might have profound support needs but also possess incredible insights that we miss because we’re too busy looking at what they can’t do.
As Steve Silberman wrote in his groundbreaking book NeuroTribes, we shouldn't be looking for a cure for these differences. We should be looking for ways to support them. We don't try to "cure" someone of being left-handed anymore, do we? We just gave them left-handed scissors.
Why This Matters in 2026
We are living in an era where cognitive flexibility is everything. The "standard" way of doing things is being disrupted by AI and automation.
In this landscape, the "out of the box" thinking associated with neurodivergence is a literal superpower. Companies like SAP, Microsoft, and JPMorgan Chase have realized this. They’ve started specific neurodiversity hiring programs because they found that neurodivergent employees often possess higher-than-average abilities in pattern recognition, memory, and mathematics.
But it’s not just about business. It’s about human rights.
When we understand what neurodiversity means, we stop seeing people as puzzles to be solved. We start seeing them as individuals with a unique set of spikes. Everyone has a "spiky profile"—things they are great at and things they struggle with. Neurodivergent people just tend to have much sharper spikes.
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Real Talk: The Limitations of the Concept
Is the neurodiversity movement perfect? No.
There is a valid concern among parents of children with high support needs—those who may be non-verbal or have self-injurious behaviors—that the neurodiversity movement "beautifies" the struggle. They worry that by saying "it’s just a difference," we might lose the funding and medical support these families desperately need.
It is a delicate balance. We have to acknowledge the beauty of different minds while also acknowledging the very real disability and pain that can come with them. You can't have one without the other.
The goal isn't to pretend everything is fine. The goal is to stop the shame.
Actionable Steps for Everyone
Whether you are neurodivergent yourself or just want to be a better human, here is how you actually apply the concept of neurodiversity to your life.
Change your language. Stop saying "everyone is a little bit ADHD." They aren't. While everyone gets distracted, ADHD is a pervasive neurological setup. Saying "everyone is a little bit" minimizes the intense struggle neurodivergent people face daily.
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Practice radical flexibility. If you’re a manager, don't mandate that everyone works the same way. If someone needs to wear noise-canceling headphones to think, let them. If someone does their best work at 2 AM instead of 10 AM, and it doesn't hurt the team, why stop them? Focus on the output, not the "performance" of working.
Check your physical environment. Florescent lights are the enemy. They flicker at a frequency many neurotypical people don't notice, but for an autistic person, it can feel like being in a strobe-light disco all day. Dim the lights. Create quiet zones.
Listen to the actual experts. The real experts aren't just the doctors. They are the people living it. Follow neurodivergent creators, read books by autistic authors, and actually listen when someone tells you how they experience the world.
The world is finally waking up to the fact that "normal" is a myth. Once we stop trying to force everyone into the same narrow mold, we unlock a massive amount of human potential. It’s not about being nice. It’s about being accurate to how the human species actually works.
How to Support Neurodivergent Peers Today
- Ask, don't assume. Instead of guessing what someone needs, ask: "Is there anything about this environment or how we're communicating that I can adjust for you?"
- Use clear communication. Avoid heavy sarcasm or "reading between the lines." Say exactly what you mean. It reduces the "social tax" for everyone.
- Normalize "stimming" and movement. If someone needs to pace or play with a fidget toy during a meeting to focus, let it be. It's how their brain regulates.
- Value different types of contribution. Recognize that the person who doesn't speak up in a brainstorming session might be the one who sends a brilliant, detailed email an hour later. Both are valuable.