ADHD, Autism, and the Trades | Normalizing Neurodiversity in Home Services | Dr. Matt Vorell

One in five people are neurodivergent. Half of them do not know it. And in home services and the trades, the number is likely even higher.

The autonomy, the problem solving, the independence, the hands-on nature of the work attracts a certain kind of brain. And that brain, whether it carries an ADHD diagnosis, an autism spectrum disorder, or just a lifelong feeling of being wired differently, is showing up every day in your trucks, on your sales calls, and in your leadership seats.

Dr. Matt Vorell is a PhD in Organizational Communication from the University of Colorado and a professor at St. Cloud State University. He is autistic, academically credentialed, and deeply passionate about normalizing this conversation in the workplace. His message is simple: different, not less.

In this episode:

Why the trades attract a higher likelihood of neurodivergent individuals than most industriesWhat autism spectrum disorder actually is and what it is notThe difference between top-down and bottom-up thinking and what it reveals about your teamWhy 90% of autistic individuals are either under or unemployedWhy 75 to 80% of autistic individuals never disclose their status at workHow masking works and the toll it takes on the people doing it every dayThe vaccine and Tylenol claims debunked directly by someone who has studied this for decadesThe double empathy problem and why communication responsibility has to go both waysHow to give instructions, write emails, and assign tasks in ways that actually landHow one manager turned her lowest performing employee into her top performer in two monthsPractical tools including AI as a communication translator for neurodivergent individualsBooks and resources to go deeper

Recommended Resources:

Temple Grandin - Different, Not Less

Neurodiversity at Work by Theo Smith

Kaylin Partlow on TikTok

Professor Saul on TikTok

Connect with Dr. Matt Vorell:

LinkedIn: search Dr. Matt Vorell,