Did you know that many of the individuals who have had the greatest impact on society, past and present, were/are dyslexic?! It’s true. Many 
of the world’s most influential people have dyslexia or related learning differences.
Research has shown again and again that individuals with dyslexia are not only intelligent, with IQ’s in at least the average range, but very often, they are extremely intelligent and fall well-above average and into the gifted range. In fact, there are disproportionately more gifted individuals in the LD population than the non-LD population.
We think you’ll enjoy spending some time on this page and learning more about the many positive attributes that people with learning differences possess. You’ll see you are in great company.
What are the strengths and skills of dyslexic individuals?
Are there certain careers or fields better suited for individuals with dyslexia?
Who are some of the FAMOUS PEOPLE with dyslexia & related learning differences?
How do we go about developing a child’s strengths & why is it so important?
What are the strengths and skills of dyslexic individuals?
People with dyslexia tend to have incredible skills in certain “right brain” activities. While it’s true that individuals with dyslexia face many struggles, particularly in reading and writing, due to their unique brain structure and “unusual wiring” which is controlled by the left hemisphere of the brain- the majority of people with dyslexia have incredible gifts in areas controlled by the right hemisphere of the brain. It is fascinating to know that you can see these strengths exhibited from a very early age.
Strengths of the dyslexic learner... |
|
Artistic skill |
3-D visual-spatial skills |
Mechanical ability |
Musical ability |
Vivid Imagination |
Math Conceptualization |
Global Thinking |
Athletic Ability |
Curiosity & Tenacity |
Intuition & Interpersonal Skills |
Strengths of the young learner with a learning difference... |
|
Very curious |
Great imagination |
Surprising maturity for age |
Large vocabulary for age |
Enjoys solving puzzles |
Great problem solvers for age |
Great comprehension of stories |
Loves to build things or |
Good at getting the gist of things |
Great verbal skills; can “talk up a storm” |
Strengths of the older student or adult with dyslexia... |
|
Wonderful at using analogies & 3-D explanations |
Great at ‘hands-on’ learning; prefers active involvement |
Can build or re-build nearly anything |
Very insightful, original, and intuitive |
Great inventors & excel in science |
Strong graphical skills |
Demonstrates a great deal of compassion & empathy |
Wonderful storytellers; use |
A noticeable resilience & ability to adapt |
Understands how things work intrinsically |
Outstanding at seeing ‘the big picture’; global thinker |
Solves problems in unusual ways due to a natural inclination to think “out of the box” |
Are there certain careers or fields better suited for individuals with dyslexia?
Considering the “right brain” skills/strengths people with LD possess (noted above), it is no wonder that individuals with dyslexia so often excel in the following fields/careers, often at noteworthy levels:
Architecture, scientific research, carpentry, computers, surgery, engineering, interior design, teaching, home construction, psychology, graphic arts, electronics, music, athletics, mechanics, photography, sales, storytelling/writing, or performing arts/entertainment.
If you take a look at the list of famous people with dyslexia and related learning differences, noted below, you will see a predominance of individuals in the particular fields mentioned. This poses a few interesting questions…Is there an actual scientific connection between these talents & dyslexia? Or is something else playing into this- an “I’ll beat the odds” drive born out of hardship or an attraction to certain fields because other doors are closed?
It is also questioned in the educational, scientific, and medical fields, “Is dyslexia the unintended by product of a mechanism in nature designed to ensure cognitive diversity and talent?*” Or… Is our impression of characteristic gifts in dyslexia skewed because strengths stand in stark contrast to the weaknesses?
*To take a deeper look into this train of thought and the research in the field, CLICK HERE to read and download a fascinating interview conducted by SchwabLearning with Dr. Gordon F. Sherman, Ph.D., discussing brain research and reading and the experts’ view on environment & neuroscience in helping to de-mystify dyslexia.
Do you have a list of FAMOUS PEOPLE with dyslexia & related learning differences?
Yes, it is amazing and wonderful to look over the list of those who share the gifts that come with being dyslexic. All of the individuals noted below are believed to have (or have had) dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, &/or ADHD. All of these people have succeeded because of their gifts, not despite their LD.
Cher , fellow dyslexic, sums it up best when referring to her dyslexia. “Don’t focus on how dyslexia makes life tougher. Instead… Hear the invisible voices of creativity that sing louder in your heart than those less fortunate people who have not been given our gift to challenge them to greater heights.” She adds, “Make peace with it and fly!”
| Actors / Entertainers Include... | |
Cher |
Henry Winkler |
Danny Glover |
Whoopi Goldberg |
Tom Cruise |
Daniel Bedingfield |
Steven Spielberg |
Suzanne Somers |
Sylvester Stallone |
Jamie Oliver |
Tade Reen |
Lindsay Wagner |
Walt Disney |
Keira Knightley |
Dom Delouise |
Brian Grazer |
Edward James Olmos |
Steven J. Cannell |
Quentin Tarantino |
Lara Flynn Boyle |
Woody Harrelson |
Joe Pantoliano |
| Famous Business Leaders... |
Charles Schwab - CEO of Charles Schwab Corp. |
Paul Orfalea - Founder of Kinkos |
Bill Hewlett - Engineer & co-founder of HP |
Malcolm Goodridge III - Sr. V.P. American Express |
Tommy Hilfiger - Fashion Designer |
Diane Swonk - Bank One |
Richard Branson - Virgin Records & Airlines |
John Chambers - CEO of Cisco Systems- Tech. |
Ingvar Kamprad - Founder of IKEA |
David Neeleman - CEO of Jet Blue Airways |
Donald Winkler - Former CEO of Ford Motor Credit |
Famous Athletes... |
Max Benton - Trainer for Cleveland Cavs |
Billy Blanks - Martial artist |
Greg Louganis - Olympic diver |
Nolan Ryan - Former baseball player |
Jackie Stewart - Race car driver |
Hank Kuehne - PGA star |
Magic Johnson - Former NBA player |
Adam Heidt - Competes in luge |
Terry Bradshaw - Former NFL quarterback |
Neil Smith - NFL player |
John Morgan - PGA champion |
Stan Wattles - Indy race car driver |
Experts in the Fields of Science & Medicine... |
Dr. Delos Cosgrove – Surgeon/CEO Cleveland Clinic |
Dr. John “Jack” Horner - Paleontologist |
Thomas Edison - Inventor/Scientist |
Baruj Benacerraf, M.D. - Nobel prize winner: Physiology |
Dr. Fred Epstein - Brain Surgeon |
The Wright Brothers - Inventors |
Dr. Edward Hollowell - ADD Specialist |
Paul MacCready - “Engineer of the Century” |
Albert Einstein - Inventor/Scientist |
Charles “Pete” Conrad - Astronaut |
Henry Ford - Inventor |
William James - Psychologist & Philosopher |
Tom Francis - AIDS researcher |
| Musicians... | |
Cher |
Stephen Jenkins |
Harry Belafonte |
Aimee Osbourne |
Jewel |
Bob Weir |
Beethoven |
|
| Artists... | |
Robert Rauschenberg |
Bob Fowler |
Charles Schulz |
Allison Merriweather |
Ansel Adams |
Scott Adams |
Chuck Close |
Robert Toth |
Leonardo da Vinci |
Vincent van Gogh |
Writers... |
|
Agatha Christie |
Norla Chee |
Robert Benton |
John Dunning |
Patricia Polacco |
Debbie Macomber |
Stephen J. Cannell |
Richard Ford |
Fannie Flagg |
Terry Goodkind |
F. Scott Fitzgerald |
Victor Villasenor |
John Corrigan |
John Schumacher |
John Irving |
Wendy Wasserstein |
Other Interesting Individuals... |
Ann Bancroft - Polar Explorer |
Erin Brockovich - Environmental Activist |
Andrew Dornenburg - Chef & Author |
Roger W. Wilkins - Head of Pulitzer Prize Board |
Dexter Scott King - Son of Dr. ML King |
Gen. George Patton - US Military Leader/Inventor |
Peter W.D. Wright - Special Ed. Attorney |
Nelson Rockefeller - Former US Vice President |
Hugh Newell Jacobsen - Award winning Architect |
Winston Churchill - Democratic British Leader |
Read on to hear the thoughts of several of these famous people who live with dyslexia and related learning differences. Their insights certainly speak to the emotional impact it has had on their lives. These individuals are to be applauded for all they have overcome!
Note: Most of the quotes below are taken from Susan Barton’s “Bright Solutions for Dyslexia, LLC” website, which is www.dys-add.com Our thanks to Susan for compiling the list & permitting us to share with our readers. If you haven’t visited her site, we recommend that you do.
Perhaps had I not been dyslexic, I might have chosen a different profession. Acting gave me a way of expressing some of that inner life that was raging inside of me as a result of my dyslexia.
--Danny Glover
I hated school . . . . One of the reasons was a learning disability, dyslexia, which no one understood at the time. I still can't spell . . .
--Loretta Young
As a child, I was called stupid and lazy. On the SAT I got 159 out of 800 in Math. My parents had no idea that I had a learning disability.
--Henry Winkler
I was one of the 'puzzle children' myself -- a dyslexic . . . And I still have a hard time reading today. Accept the fact that you have a problem. Refuse to feel sorry for yourself. You have a challenge; never quit!
--Nelson Rockefeller
I never read in school. I got really bad grades--D's and F's and C's in some classes, and A's and B's in other classes. In the second week of the 11th grade, I just quit. When I was in school, it was really difficult. Almost everything I learned, I had to learn by listening. My report cards always said that I was not living up to my potential.
-- Cher
When I had dyslexia, they didn't diagnose it as that. It was frustrating and embarrassing. I could tell you a lot of horror stories about what you feel like on the inside.
--Nolan Ryan
As a high school student, many of my teachers labeled me DUMB... I knew who the real dummies were. I barely graduated…There was no way I was going to college- I never even thought about it. I could barely read my textbooks.
--Muhammad Ali
Having made a strenuous effort to understand the symbols he could make nothing of, he wept giant tears . . .
--Caroline Commanville, on her uncle, Gustave Flaubert
I was, on the whole, considerably discouraged by my school days. It was not pleasant to feel oneself so completely outclassed and left behind at the beginning of the race.
--Winston Churchill
He told me that his teachers reported that . . . he was mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in his foolish dreams.
--Hans Albert Einstein, on his father, Albert Einstein
I, myself, was always recognized . . . as the "slow one" in the family. It was quite true, and I knew it and accepted it. Writing and spelling were always terribly difficult for me. My letters were without originality. I was . . . an extraordinarily bad speller and have remained so until this day.
--Agatha Christie, Author
My teachers say I'm addled . . . my father thought I was stupid, and I almost decided I must be a dunce.
--Thomas Edison
My father was an angry and impatient teacher and flung the reading book at my head.
--W.B. Yeats
Willie was sent to lessons in spelling and grammar, but he never learned to spell. To the end of his life he produced highly idiosyncratic versions of words.
--Biographer A. Norman Jeffares on William Butler Yeats
I grew up in a school system . . . where nobody understood the meaning of learning disorder. In the West Indies , I was constantly being physically abused because the whipping of students was permitted.
--Harry Belafonte
Since I was the stupidest kid in my class, it never occurred to me to try and be perfect, so I've always been happy as a writer just to entertain myself. That's an easier place to start.
--Stephen J. Cannell, screenwriter, producer, & director
I had to train myself to focus my attention. I became very visual and learned how to create mental images in order to comprehend what I read."
--Tom Cruise
You should prefer a good scientist without literary abilities than a literate one without scientific skills.
--Leonardo da Vinci
Kids made fun of me because I was dark skinned, had a wide nose, and was dyslexic. Even as an actor, it took me a long time to realize why words and letters got jumbled in my mind and came out differently.
--Danny Glover, actor
I barely made it through school. I read real slow. But I like to find things that nobody else has found, like a dinosaur egg that has an embryo inside. Well, there are 36 of them in the world, and I found 35.
--Dr. John R. Horner, American paleontologist
I am, myself, a very poor visualizer and find that I can seldom call to mind even a single letter of the alphabet in purely retinal terms. I must trace the letter by running my mental eye over its contour in order that the image of it shall leave any distinctness at all.
--William James, psychologist and philosopher
I just barely got through school. The problem was a learning disability, at a time when there was nowhere to get help.
--Bruce Jenner, Olympic gold medalist
The looks, the stares, the giggles . . . I wanted to show everybody that I could do better and also that I could read.
--Magic Johnson
Young George . . . although he was bright and intelligent and bursting with energy, he was unable to read and write. Patton's wife corrected his spelling, his punctuation, and his grammar.
--Biographer Martin Blumenson on General George Patton
I couldn't read. I just scraped by. My solution back then was to read classic comic books because I could figure them out from the context of the pictures. Now I listen to books on tape.
--Charles Schwab
My problem was reading very slowly. My parents said "Take as long as you need. As long as you're going to read, just keep at it." We didn't know about learning disabilities back then.
--Roger Wilkins, Head of the Pulitzer Prize Board
It is sad to consider the pain so many have experienced. We believe if we can keep the focus on the positive and away from the negative, this shift in thinking will result in happier individuals.
| FOCUS ON... | DO NOT Focus On... |
The Person |
The disability |
Solutions |
Problems |
What you CAN change |
What you can NOT change |
Personal Strengths |
Personal weaknesses |
The Gifts |
The pitfalls |
Commonalities |
Differences |
How do we go about developing a child’s strengths & why is it so important?
Think about it… In the adult world, what counts and is valued on a personal and professional level, is the strengths of the individual. We praise and put a pricetag on that which is done best and done well! Yet in the field of learning differences- parents and teachers, in their quest to help kids overcome their weaknesses, neglect to detect or cultivate their strengths. EVERY kid has strengths, we just need to help them figure out what they are.
Dr. Mel Levine, a leading expert in this area and best known for his “All Kinds of Minds” work, emphasizes that when a child has learning difficulties, the pursuit of a strength can go far to alleviate anxiety and prevent low self-esteem. Clearly there are many types of strengths; from being very good in social situations whereas your child may want to lead in a boys/girls club- to learning to play an instrument and joining a school or church band.
How do you determine these strengths? Take a look at what your child enjoys doing (not necessarily what he actually does best or you think he should enjoy) and take it from there. Ask your child what he would like to do, learn more about, or become better at, in his free time. Let your child lead the way.
A good rule of thumb is: Allow your child with LD to spend as much time pursuing his interests & developing his strengths as he spends working to overcome his weaknesses.
For instance, if he goes to school ½ hr. early twice a week for extra help and is tutored 2 hrs. a week after school, then allow at least 3 hrs. a week for him to draw at home &/or take an art class at the community center.
Dr. Levine also talks about a child’s affinities - areas of knowledge toward which he feels a strong attachment, such as prehistoric animals, space, politics, or computers- as being a vital part of overall development. You can help uncover and nurture your child’s affinities by arranging trips, magazine subscriptions, and home-based projects that focus on his affinity. Encourage your child to share freely and praise him for his knowledge and interest!
Dr. Marshall Raskind, Ph.D., also stresses the importance of looking at those factors that contribute to overall life success for kids with learning disabilities.
FACT SHEETS to READ and DOWNLOAD
To read an article by Dr. Levine, “ Recognizing Strengths and Affinities” and for more information on his All Kinds of Minds Institute, CLICK HERE.
http://www.schwablearning.org/pdfs/expert_raskind.pdf?date=12-17-03
http://www.ldsuccess.org/pdf/LifeSuccessParentGuide.pdf
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