From the course: Hiring and Supporting Neurodiversity in the Workplace

Jill talks about environment

- Our work environment can greatly impact our health and ability to get our work done. I want to share a conversation I had with Jill. Jill was diagnosed neurodivergent six years ago and is happily married to the neurodivergent man of her dreams. Together, they have three wonderful neurodivergent children. Jill is an IT project manager, established technology educator and a culture enthusiast with a passion for organizational leadership and inclusion. (bright music) Hey Jill, thanks so much for coming. We really appreciate you participating in this course and giving us your perspective. How are you doing today? - I am fantastic. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I'm really happy to be here. - Well, it's going to to be great. I think your perspective is going to be phenomenal. We're talking about the environment. So I wanted just to start asking you, how has the environment of your workplace affected your ability to do your job? - The environment of a workplace, I think about it oftentimes as... In psychology we learn about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and when we don't have those physiological and security needs met, we really can't be successful in other aspects. And so when you translate that into the work environment, I feel like the same thing still applies. And so, if you don't have an environment that is conducive to learning and focusing and concentrating, then it's hard to be successful. And so, I put that almost at the very base, the foundation of how you are successful in your workplace. It starts with your environment. - [Interviewer] What steps has your employer taken... And I know you are a wonderful manager, that also takes this into consideration. So can you share some things that you've done in your environment with your employer and some things you've done for your employees? - We have a committee devoted to wellness here at my office, and we have something that was recently kind of upgraded. We have a respite room and it has lower lights, it has little guided meditations. It has calming music. There's a massage chair. You can go in there and you can completely unplug and take a break for as long as you need to, but it's an excellent way for staff to be able to just break away and get away from the grind. And so, having some of those little things like that have been so, so helpful. - Here in this course, we're talking to human resource managers and we're talking about how to be more inclusive. And so what kind of recommendations can you give for them regarding the environment. - First and foremost, I think that it's so important for people not to make assumptions on both sides. So, it's important for me not to make assumptions that if I disclose something, whatever it might be to HR, that they will automatically know what I need. I've had to be very vocal about some of the different accommodations that I need. One, getting back here into the office. And I think that being able to have those conversations, you need to create a space where people can come to you with those needs and those conversations and not feel like they're being dismissed. And I think that there's so much value... And this is what I've learned personally in management, is that when you set up your staff in an environment that is conducive to the way that they can be productive, it's a win-win. They bring more value to the organization and overall, it's typically not that much. What we have is this thing that is on their doors, where it says, "Please come in." You hang it on your door. So if your door is closed, you can say, "Please come in" or you can say, "Hey I'm busy right now. Please don't disturb me." So this is kind of like an open-close sign. And so people can have their doors closed and still feel like people can come in if they need to or want to or not. And so I think that there's so much power in being able to speak up. And I've found that more often than not, people are always willing to listen, but you have to be able to really articulate your needs. And I think also part of that comes down to evaluating your surroundings and your environment. I really encourage people to think critically about all of the things in their space that could or could not impact their ability to do work. - So many things you said, especially the Open and Do not Disturb sign, is it'll benefit everybody. - Yeah. - So... And things you're saying it's not just people who are neurodivergent, it's the whole organization benefits from these things. And I think that's just awesome. Your perspective was phenomenal. I am so happy that you're sharing this with everybody, because I believe in talking about asking for what you need. In my group we say, "I work best when" and we believe organizations should say, "How do you work best?" And that's what you're doing and encouraging. So, I appreciate you being on this. I can't wait to share your perspective with the world. Thank you, Jill. You've been phenomenal. - Thank you so much.

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