John Elder Robison

In affecting, unforgettable talks, John Elder Robison details how he overcame enormous odds to lead a remarkable life: from an anti-social child to a successful father now running a multi-million dollar car specialty shop and his own photography business. Though his life is unique—he’s designed guitars for KISS and toys for Milton Bradley—it’s equally rich with clues to both spotting autism in children and harnessing the best from those already diagnosed. (Some autistic kids excel at math, in engineering, and with technology.) Robison has been applauded by thousands—the general public, teachers, mental health workers—for his storytelling skill, his on-stage compassion, and his insistence that anyone can lead successful lives according to gifts, not limitations. Neurodiversity is not a disease that needs curing; it’s a way of experiencing life that requires only understanding and encouragement from others. Robison reminds us that people “on the spectrum” can develop throughout their lives, and that it’s never too late to hope for or expect change.

In this talk, John Elder Robison describes how the differences of autism and ADHD can disable us as children even as they confer powerful competitive advantages upon us as adults. Though poignant examples from his own life, Robison shows how traits that crippled him as a child actually facilitated some of his greatest accomplishments as an adult. He shares a new way to look at disability, difference, and giftedness, and offers a different paradigm for educators, parents, and neurodiverse people. Anyone who is personally affected by autism, Asperger’s, or ADHD will find this talk illuminating and inspiring.

In this talk, John Elder Robison presents a new way to look at the education of young people who are “different.” Why is this important? Researchers have begun to realize that many of humanity’s greatest minds showed traits of difference—what we now call neurodiversity (for neurological diversity.) As great a genius as Michelangelo was, he’d probably struggle to graduate high school if he were growing up today. The same can be said for Einstein, Newton, and a host of other great thinkers. Drawing on experience with his TCS high school program and his work as Neurodiversity Scholar in Residence at The College of William & Mary, Robison talks about how forward thinkers in high schools and colleges are blazing a trail to a new form of education which is more inclusive and more successful.

People with autism often have special skills, especially in the fields of math, engineering, and technology. In this talk, John Elder Robison shares his story of life on the autism spectrum and as the founder of the only program that teaches a trade to special education students in a real-world environment. He reveals why companies should take an active role in hiring the neurodiverse, and navigates the benefits and pitfalls for both employer and employee. We can harness people’s special skills, he says, by looking for gifts instead of limitations. There’s much to be gained—for your bottom line, for the autistic person you employ, and for society at large—when hiring someone on the spectrum.