I have enjoyed watching the Olympics on TV since I was a young kid. I was inspired by the fact that I saw an Olympic medal when I was about six years old.
I lived in a small town in northern Minnesota and the auto shop across the street from my house was owned by an Olympian. That inspired me to be a fan and I have been ever since.
It is not uncommon for some people with a neurodiversity to excel at sports. It is their strength. As a reminder, here are a few that have been open about their neurodiversity and mental health.
ADHD:
Simone Biles, Michael Phelps, and Michelle Carter just to name a few.
Dyslexia:
Muhammad Ali, Michelle Carter, and Saffi Vette just to name a few.
Autism:
Chris Morgan, Michael Brannigan, Ranveer Singh Saini just to name a few.
As I am watching the athletic games play out before me, I can’t help but notice in those athletes some connections that they have to the different thinker mindsets of the neurodiverse.
5 Neurodiverse Connections to The Olympic Athlete Mindset
1. Mindset
To be an athlete at this level, you need to think a little differently than the average person.
Who’s to say that part of being an elite athlete isn’t genetic? I think some people come into this world competitive at a different level.
It takes a different thinker to reach the very top level of their sport. It makes them elite.
2. Focus
Just like a person with ADHD can become single-focused on a goal or project an Olympic athlete is really doing the same thing.
They are very focused on their goal. So much so that they have a name for what happens when they have to retire and are no longer competing and their mental state struggles from not knowing how to fill that focused energy.
3. Persistence
I have yet to meet a neurodiverse person who isn’t persistent. I know they are out there; I just don’t know them.
So many of the stories you hear about the athletes focus on how they have overcome things that would have stopped many a person, but not them, they persisted.
4. Resilience
Being neurodiverse often means you have resilience. Time and time again I hear stories from people about the moments they wanted to give up on life and instead, they found a way forward and from there, they leveled up in life.
Olympic athletes are a top example of resilience. None of them have always been successful.
They have made mistakes; they have suffered injuries and setbacks and from those moments they have gained strength and moved ahead.
5. Strength
Olympians know their strengths. One of the things I admire the most when watching the Olympics is that these athletes know their strengths and they have focused everything on that and they are living their best life.
I see that so connected to people with neurodiversities. When they know their strengths, work to grow them, and focus on spending sixty percent of their time in their strengths, it is amazing for them and the changes in their lives show that.
At some point in time each athlete will need all of these same skills to move themselves from being an athlete to the next phase of their life. Their strength will shift and they, like a neurodiverse person, will need to go searching and exploring to find that new focus and purpose.
It takes a different perspective of the world to do great things.
The Olympics reminds me of that and inspires me. Now that I have given you a new perspective on the Olympics, I hope it inspires you too.
Enjoy the games and don’t forget to support your local athletes.
JoyGenea