The Neurodiversity Edge

        

PIC No. 66: Pails in Comparison (March 28, 2024)

• Title: The Neurodiversity Edge: The Essential Guide to Embracing Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Neurological Differences for Any Organization
• Author: Maureen Dunne
• Publisher: Wiley (March 12, 2024, 336 pages)
• Management Bucket #9 of 20: The Team Bucket

Welcome to Issue No. 66 of PAILS IN COMPARISON, the value-added sidekick of John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. This blog features my “PICs”—shorter reviews of helpful books—with comparisons to other books in my 20 management buckets (core competencies) filing system. 

Impromptu Pop Quiz Conversations

Confession! If you had asked me a week ago to define “neurodiversity,” I would have failed your pop quiz. Author Maureen Dunne’s subtitle, however, gave me a clue: “The Essential Guide to Embracing Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Neurological Differences for Any Organization.”

Confession! I’m no longer a CEO or a consultant (actually…I still dabble at it)—so the probability of my reading and reviewing this book was near zero. But…this year, I’m pushing myself to read outside my comfort zone—maybe just the 15-page introduction. Oh, my. This is an important book.

Confession! While I thought I was familiar with the issues and opportunities of “embracing” autism, ADHD, dyslexia and other neurological differences—I had never read an expert’s vision for what could be.

Confession! I had no idea that, as Dunne writes, “One in every five people you see every day may be living in a world defined by systematic and counterproductive exclusion from the opportunity to productively contribute to society.”

The author adds, “In terms of human capital potential, this is a devasting failure. Morally, it’s a plague of injustice.”

Yet the author gives us hope. A few more pages in, I was reminded of King David’s affirmation in the Old Testament (Psalm 139:14), “I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made!” From my faith perspective then—if every person is made in the image of God, then I should take this book seriously. (Note: I’m adding the spiritual dimension to this review. The book does not.)

The Neurodiversity Edge has been called a “groundbreaking guide” and I agree. Frankly, it took discipline to read the entire book—yet Maureen Dunne continued to introduce insights, poignant stories, case studies, and anecdotes to inspire me to keep reading. (I could have used this profound guide years ago. But it’s never too late, right?)

She punctuates her vision from two decades of consulting with Fortune 500 companies, higher education, and other organizations—helping them address their organizational cultures from the top-down to the bottom-up. She warns against just checking the box of “being cosmetically quote-unquote neurodiversity friendly.” Yet, she promises CEOs and HR senior executives that a fresh look at previously untapped neurodiversity talent will reap stunning rewards in innovation, creativity, and value. You may end up with a competitive advantage.

Frankly, this review really requires two reviews. (Stay tuned!) But for now, I urge someone on your team to read this book—and inspire your organization to take a look in the mirror. Here are five teasers:

#1. COMMON EXAMPLES OF PERSISTENT BIASES. The author lists seven biases in human decision making: the planning fallacy, the availability bias, the optimism bias, the self-serving bias, the loss aversion bias, the anchoring bias, and the overconfidence effect. How does this affect our working relationships? (Oh, my! More confession needed!)

#2. ECONOMICS OF NEURODIVERSITY INCLUSION. Brilliant! “Imagine you sell apple pies at an apple pie stand.” Using this simple analogy, Dunne shows how “the supply of skilled workers can be expanded by embracing universal design principles and the authentic inclusion of people from all points along the spectrum of human neurodiversity.”

#3. ADHD. The author includes a short paragraph with this intro: “This is how my husband described his Copernican moment after being diagnosed with ADHD.” (Note: I read the paragraph to someone with ADHD and that person immediately identified with Dunne’s husband who, once diagnosed, said “…it was like turning on the lights.”)

#4. THE PYRAMID. The summary graphic on page 108, “THE PYRAMID OF NEUROINCLUSION,” features six levels (and descriptions): “Trust and Psychological Safety, Transparent Communication, Universal Design Principles at Work, Auxiliary Support Accessibility, Universal Empathy, and Authentic Neurodiversity.”

#5. TWO-MONTH GOALS. After Dunne conducted a neurodiversity audit for an organization, the team set a goal: “Within two months, all team members will deeply understand and be able to articulate the strength-based framework of neurodiversity and tell a story that highlights the strengths of at least one neurodivergent person they know about.”

Good news! With impromptu one-on-one “pop quiz” conversations with team members (we used to call this MBWA: Managing By Walking Around), the organization nailed the goal in just six weeks. (Read Chapter 5, “From Why to How.”)

Maureen Dunne is a Rhodes Scholar, and also a member of the neurodiversity community. Frankly, some of her true stories will shock you (or maybe not). But the book is hopeful. It’s not a guilt trip. And please forgive me for just scratching the surface of this important, important issue and opportunity in this short review. (Watch for an expanded review.)

By the way, Maureen Dunne showcases numerous companies and organizations that have made great progress, which reminded me of the visionary work of Robert and Melissa Hendershot, and their son, Trevor. Angels for Higher facilitates the hiring of individuals with Down syndrome to work as greeters in sports stadiums, athletic venues, college campuses, and performing arts centers located across the U.S. (Read my review of Angel for Higher.)

And one more note. The author jumps into the battle over work from home (WFH), hybrid work, and all-hands-on-deck back at the office. Which model works best for neurodiversity and neurotypical team members? (Yikes! One more factor to consider when setting your top-down policies!) I urge you to read this powerful book.

PAILS IN COMPARISON: Reading this book reminded me of The Team Bucket, plus several other must-read books in the 20 Management Buckets organizing system: 

[   ] Angel for Higher, by Robert Hendershot with Trevor (Read my review.)

[  ] Belonging Rules: Five Crucial Actions That Build Unity and Foster Performance, by Brad Deutser (Read my review.)

[  ] Remote, Inc.: How to Thrive at Work . . . Wherever You Are, by Robert C. Pozen and Alexandra Samuel (Read my review.)

[  ] Interviewology: The New Science of Interviewing – Are you a Charmer, Challenger, Examiner, or Harmonizer? by Anna Papalia (Read my review.)

[  ] Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age, by Ram Charan with Geri Willigan (Read my review.)

TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for The Neurodiversity Edge: The Essential Guide to Embracing Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Neurological Differences for Any Organization, by Maureen Dunne. Listen on Libro (8 hours, 42 minutes). And thanks to the publisher for sending me a review copy.

MORE RESOURCES:

   • John Pearson’s Buckets Blog
   • Subscribe: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews
   • John Pearson’s book reviews on Amazon
   • Management Buckets website
   • Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Blog

NOTE: This is the NEW location for John Pearson's Pails in Comparison Blog. Slowly (!), the previous 100+ blogs posted (between 2022 and 2025) will gradually populate this blogsite, along with new book reviews each month. 

© 2026 John W. Pearson. All rights reserved. New blogs for Pails in Comparison are posted every once in a while. We do not accept any form of compensation from authors or publishers for book reviews. As an Amazon Associate, we earn Amazon gift cards from qualifying purchases. As a Libro.fm Affiliate, we earn credits. By subscribing to Your Weekly Staff Meeting, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. 

Everyday Influence

       

PIC No. 57: Pails in Comparison (Dec. 18, 2023)

• Title: Everyday Influence
• Author: Bill Butterworth
• Publisher: Redemption Press (April 23, 2015, 172 pages)
• Management Bucket #9 of 20: The Team Bucket

Welcome to Issue No. 57 of PAILS IN COMPARISON, the value-added sidekick of John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. This blog features my “PICs”—shorter reviews of helpful books—with comparisons to other books in my 20 management buckets (core competencies) filing system. 

The Secret Sauce for Greater Influential Effectiveness

Oops! Back in 2015, when I was invited to write an endorsement for Everyday Influence, I wrote, “Bill Butterworth is always poignant, positive, and powerful. Wit and wisdom are at it again in this very special book.”

Why the “Oops!” remark? When Butterworth sent me a signed copy of Everyday Influence, I misplaced it. Now, eight years later—I discovered it on an overlooked shelf in my garage! The good news: Butterworth was in good company on that bookcase—surrounded by the likes of Max Lucado, Ruth Haley Barton, Eric Metaxas, John Grisham, and Walter Isaacson. (Watch for those reviews!)

But there’s also bad news: I never reviewed Everyday Influence on Amazon or on my blogs. (Sorry, Bill!) And that is bad—because the book is so good.

So…I’m praying in God’s timing that maybe—just maybe—you’ll read this review now and discover that it is the perfect book for you right now, or a family member, or a friend or colleague.

Let me begin by saying that there are few exceptional speakers who are also exceptional writers. Bill Butterworth, somehow, is both. While many of today's cool kids (and adults!) are chasing after misdirected "influencer" fame, Butterworth turns the tables and writes that "influence arrives in the simplest of ways." His wordsmithed vocabulary—stunning. His own youthful stories—classic Billy Butterworth! His 12 short chapters (all starting with "C")—memorable. His heart for God—eye-opening.

And…if you’re thinking about writing your own story (or at least your own obituary), Everyday Influence showcases a brilliant way to package your life stories around a substantive theme—allowing the Lord to inspire you with shareable insights, as Butterworth has so competently modeled.

Life stories? You’ll laugh-out-loud at Butterworth’s follies, but (warning…) you may also get teary-eyed. Bill is so, so transparent. I used three P’s: “poignant, positive, and powerful” in my endorsement. Now after reading the book again in 2023, I’ll add three more P’s: “patient, persistent, and pastoral.”

The story behind the typewriter on the cover of Everyday Influence packs a poignant punch! Think eight-year-old Billy at his father’s railroad office on Thanksgiving Day: “Boy in chair, paper in typewriter, all systems were ‘go.’” His writing career is launched and more than 10 books later (and more than 20+ ghost-written books later), Butterworth is still writing.

But also—years later—a counselor helps Bill understand his father. Whew. (By the way, just this week, I learned about the auction of “The World’s Greatest Typewriter Collection.” I wonder if Butterworth somehow has that Underwood magic machine?)

Andy Warhol’s 15 minutes of fame? Butterworth writes, “That’s a fascinating concept, but it’s simply not true.” (I love a contrarian!) He adds,

“We are all called to influence because, as human beings, we are all constantly impacting those around us. Sometimes our influence is good, sometimes it is bad. Influence is rarely neutral. Sometimes the influence is in big chunks, but most times the influence is in small, bite-sized tidbits, and therein lies the secret sauce for greater influential effectiveness.”

Butterworth wraps his true tales around 12 segments of everyday influences: the Calling of Everyday Influence, the Commencement, the Conversations, the Choir, the College, the Components, the Consciousness, the Consistency, the Circumstances, the Caring, the Companions, and the Celebration. He concludes with the Culmination of Everyday Influence.

It's tough to pick my favorite chapter. Will I go with the poignant ones—or the hilarious ones? (Note: read about his angst at being best known for his humor.) One thing for sure: from this day forward I’m praying I will be more intentional with those bite-sized opportunties for influence. Butterworth lets us in on dozens of simple, non-headline moments when a conversation or a question moved him in a signficant direction. (Stunning, actually.) Oh, Lord—make me an instrument of Thy peace.

The one-liners are abundant by this incredibly-gifted writer and communicator:

• Upon moving to a new town and church in Pennsylvania, “…but let’s face it, convenience trumped theology every time, so we converted from quiet Presbyterians to quiet Baptists.”

• “I was a tenor, the youngest tenor, in a choir made up of teenagers, the musical world’s most dangerous grouping.”

• His youth pastor: “…we ended up calling his leadership style: Ron Von’s gift is that he has no gift.”

• “…I thought I had a shot at winning Class President. In what would end up being a pattern for me throughout college, I came in second place, thus I was easily elected Freshman Class Vice President, which was Student Government lingo for close, but no cigar.”

• (Page 101): “If you’ve made it this far in the book, you must be a person committed to being a man or woman of supernatural influence. And you realized this sort of influence most often comes through the little things.”

Wake-up Call! The Butterworth family (now five adult children, their spouses, and grandkids) now rally around the annual NFL season—guessing winners and losers for every game. A “Perpetual Plaque” commemorates the annual winners.

The tournament was launched when Bill excitedly shared the weekly results from his office football pool. But then one of his kids laid it on the line: “We don’t want to hear about your fun at the office. We want to have fun with you here at home.” (Oops!)

Don’t skip Chapter 11, “The Companions of Everyday Influence.” Those poignant pages put you right at the luncheon table as Butterworth’s narrative honors the 10 people in the room (influencers)—and why. (If you’re writing your own story, I’m sure Bill would be honored if you borrowed this creative device.)

Bill’s wife, Kathi, leveraged one of his book titles to “inspire” him to stop whining and get creative about engaging more intentionally in his family’s spiritual development. (Is that even legal— throwing your spouse’s book title back at ya? LOL!) The result: Butterworth writes an inspirational email every day to his family members.

Today Bill Butterworth’s business card reads, “Keynote Speaker, Author, Ghost Writer, and Personal Coach for Speakers.” He’s still in good company. Butterworth was awarded The Hal Holbrook Award by the International Platform Association, whose past and present members include Mark Twain, Theodore Roosevelt, Bob Hope, and Elizabeth Dole.

In his note to me back in 2015, Bill Butterworth described his book as “a mini-memoir with a message.” That’s perfect! I hope the timing is right for you to read this. (Don’t leave it in the garage!)

P.S. I’m not the writer that Bill Butterworth is. Tell me—did I use “poignant” too many times?

PAILS IN COMPARISON: Reading this book reminded me of The Team Bucket, plus several other must-read books in the 20 Management Buckets organizing system: 

[   ] On-the-Fly Guide to Building Successful Teams, by Bill Butterworth (read my review)

[   ] The Short List: In a Life Full of Choices, There Are Only Four That Matter, by Bill Butterworth (read my review)

[  ] Open This Letter in Ten Years: Life Lessons from Dad’s Love Letters, by Linda DeHoff and Bill Butterworth (read my review)

[  ] The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, by Daniel James Brown (read my review). Note: In my review, I give credit to Bill Butterworth for recommending this bestseller. (And...watch for the major motion picture coming Dec. 25, 2023.)

[ ] The Promise of the Second Wind: It's Never Too Late to Pursue God's Best, by Bill Butterworth and Dean Merrill (Order from Amazon)

TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for Everyday Influence, by Bill Butterworth. And thanks to the author for sending me a review copy.

MORE RESOURCES:

   • John Pearson’s Buckets Blog
   • Subscribe: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews
   • John Pearson’s book reviews on Amazon
   • Management Buckets website
   • Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Blog

NOTE: This is the NEW location for John Pearson's Pails in Comparison Blog. Slowly (!), the previous 100+ blogs posted (between 2022 and 2025) will gradually populate this blogsite, along with new book reviews each month. 

© 2026 John W. Pearson. All rights reserved. New blogs for Pails in Comparison are posted every once in a while. We do not accept any form of compensation from authors or publishers for book reviews. As an Amazon Associate, we earn Amazon gift cards from qualifying purchases. As a Libro.fm Affiliate, we earn credits. By subscribing to Your Weekly Staff Meeting, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.