In this episode of A World of Difference, Lori Adams-Brown sits down with Dave Thompson — strategist, two-time TEDx speaker, visiting scholar at Vanderbilt’s Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, and author of Brainstorm: Neurodivergent Talent and the Future of Work.
Dave shares his journey from being counted out in a special education classroom to advising Fortune 100 companies on neuro-inclusion. Together they explore the rainforest analogy for neurodiversity, the four levels of psychological safety, why hiring systems are broken for everyone, how “success enablers” replace traditional accommodations, and why ERGs should be treated as business resource groups.
Timestamps:
0:00 — Cold open: What if brains at work are fundamentally misunderstood?
1:10 — Meet Dave Thompson
2:00 — Dave’s why: From cheese club to systems change
4:30 — Rebranding the brain: The rainforest analogy
8:00 — The four levels of psychological safety
14:30 — Why hiring is broken: Job descriptions & ATS bias
21:30 — Success enablers vs. accommodations: The desk tour
26:00 — Self-advocacy, recognition & FOBI (Fear of Being Included)
33:00 — ERGs that actually drive change
40:00 — Brainstorm: What Dave hopes readers take away
43:30 — Outro + Patreon exclusive teaser
Links:
Dave’s website: brainstormneurodiversity.com
Get the book: Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, bookshop.org
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Website: https://www.aworldofdifferencepodcast.com
Patreon (bonus content): patreon.com/aworldadifference
Lori on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/loriadamsbrown
Substack: The Global Edge
YouTube: A World of Difference Podcast