Most organisations now say they value diversity. Yet old assumptions about neurodivergent people still shape who gets hired, who gets promoted and who quietly leaves. These misconceptions are often unspoken, which makes them harder to challenge. Here are five we hear regularly, why they are wrong, and what to do instead.
Myth 1: Neurodivergent people are less capable
This is the most damaging assumption, and it doesn’t hold up. Neurodivergent people work successfully in every sector and at every level. Many bring strengths such as creative thinking, problem solving, pattern spotting and attention to detail. When they are not able to show what they can do, the cause is usually a process or environment designed around one way of thinking.
What to do: use strengths-based, practical assessments in recruitment so candidates can show their abilities rather than their interview polish. Our overview of how neurodiversity shows up at work is a useful starting point for hiring teams.
Myth 2: Adjustments are expensive and complicated
Many employers assume supporting neurodivergent staff means big costs and disruption. Usually it doesn’t. Typical adjustments include flexible hours, noise-cancelling headphones, written instructions and a quieter place to work. In survey data collected between 2019 and 2024 by the US Job Accommodation Network, 61% of employers said the accommodations they made cost nothing.
Many of these changes help everyone, not just the person who asked for them. Clearer communication and more control over the working environment tend to make whole teams work better.
What to do: make sure managers and HR know how simple most adjustments are, and understand your legal responsibilities around reasonable adjustments.
Myth 3: Neurodivergent people can’t work in teams
Some neurodivergent people communicate differently: more directly, more in writing, or with less small talk. That is a difference in style, and it doesn’t stop anyone collaborating well. Teams run into trouble when everyone is expected to communicate the same way and nobody talks about it.
What to do: make working preferences an open topic. Our working styles guide is a simple exercise that helps every team member explain how they work best, and it works well as a team session.
Myth 4: Neurodivergent people are all the same
Neurodivergence covers autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, Tourette’s and more, and two people with the same diagnosis can have very different experiences and needs. Labels such as “high functioning” make this worse by flattening real differences.
What to do: ask the individual what helps them, and treat support as personal rather than one-size-fits-all.
Myth 5: Neurodiversity is a passing trend
Some leaders treat neurodiversity work as this year’s initiative that will fade. But neurodivergent people have always been in the workforce. Many are undiagnosed, and many more choose not to disclose. Any sizeable team already includes neurodivergent people, which is the point of our post your employees may be neurodivergent without you knowing. Dropping the work doesn’t make the need go away; it just means people work with avoidable barriers.
What to do: build neuroinclusion into your core people strategy, with long-term goals and accountability, instead of running one-off awareness events. The Acas guidance on neurodiversity at work is a solid reference for policy.
Moving past the myths
Challenging these assumptions is the right thing to do, and it makes business sense. Organisations that remove barriers get the benefit of talent their competitors overlook, and keep the people they already have. Start with whichever myth is most alive in your own organisation.
How Enna can help you challenge assumptions
Training is the quickest way to shift beliefs across a workforce. Our Neurodiversity 101 workshop replaces assumptions with practical understanding, and our neurodiversity training for senior leaders helps leadership teams commit to long-term change.
To find out which assumptions are built into your policies and processes, our neuroinclusion audits give you a clear, evidence-based picture. You can also start with our maturity assessment or book a call to talk it through.
