And Now Let Us Understand Dyslexia...

Are we teaching potential entrepreneurs in the
best way to enhance their career success?

Julie Logan
Professor of Entrepreneurship
Cass Business School
City University
London EC1

"Governments in the UK and US have made much of the need to nurture and enhance the entrepreneurial skills of the next generation, but does the education system support those who are most innovative? Many entrepreneurs claim to be dyslexic. These include Richard Branson, and Charles Schwab (Morris, 2002). They have suggested that being dyslexic has helped them succeed but education has failed them. There is also evidence that the UK/US school curriculum does not encourage the development of skills, particularly soft skills, essential for creating enterprising young people (NESTA, 2007). Frey (1990) suggests school curriculum is becoming geared to left brain learning and weeding out some of our most innovative people.

This study explored: whether there is a higher incidence of dyslexia in entrepreneurs than in corporate managers or the general population; whether the dyslexic entrepreneur has soft skills that are of benefit in the new venture creation process and whether their experience of education (including entrepreneurship education) has been of value in their subsequent careers. The study also examined how entrepreneurship is taught in universities and whether this meets the needs of our most innovative students. This study examined the UK and US, an Australian study is about to start.

Data collection included a questionnaire and follow-up in depth interviews. These explored: the business; early years: school experience and, included a series of questions to identify those who were dyslexic. Data sets were the Kauffman business data-base (US), and UK business directories. 35% of US and 19% of UK entrepreneurs in this study reported as dyslexic. This compares with an incidence of 1% in US corporate managers, 3% in UK corporate managers and 10% in the US and UK general populations.

The dyslexic entrepreneurs reported as good or excellent at: visualisation; oral communication; problem solving and delegation, whilst non-dyslexic entrepreneurs reported as average or good. Dyslexics had a clear vision of how their business would grow and seemed to have exceptional ability to communicate this vision, allowing them to motivate those around them. They were good at delegation and this seemed linked to ability to grow their companies quickly. They also reported enhanced ability to apply creative solutions to overcome the various problems they encounter whilst running a successful business. This may be the result of growing up with a learning deficit and dealing with the uncertainty and obstacles that this has brought.

Fitzgibbon & O’Connor (2002), suggest that successful dyslexics develop ways of controlling; coping and compensating for their deficits. These strategies may become transferable skills, giving them an edge in business. For example: Some dyslexics in this study reported learning at an early age to ask others to carry out the tasks they found difficult. One entrepreneur who was captain of the netball team used to ask another team member to write the names of those selected to play each week because she found spelling names impossible and wished to hide this weakness. Having learnt at an early age to trust others with tasks the dyslexic entrepreneur may find it easier to delegate leaving more time to focus on growing the business.

The study also found that US dyslexic entrepreneurs were more likely to own several companies (statistically significant at the 99% confidence level), and to grow their companies more quickly than those who were not dyslexic. Furthermore they employed more staff (statistically significant at the 95% confidence level) suggesting their perception of their ability to delegate was correct. Non-dyslexic entrepreneurs stayed with their companies longer than dyslexics who seemed to prefer early stage ventures.

Dyslexic entrepreneurs in both studies reported under achievement at school, university or college, the UK study found this also to be true for many non-dyslexic entrepreneurs. Whilst US entrepreneurs had enjoyed their school experience despite underachieving, UK entrepreneurs who were dyslexic reported a negative school experience. Does this mean that our school system is failing those who may have the potential to be innovative and create new ventures?

There are implications for those teaching entrepreneurship. The study revealed a high incidence of dyslexia in entrepreneurs so it is of great importance that entrepreneurship teaching programmes are dyslexia friendly but entrepreneurship lecturers reported their most commonly used teaching pedagogies were the lecture and case study, methods that dyslexics struggle with and which do not encourage soft skill development. Dyslexics need to be placed in a more holistic and practical teaching setting which will foster their skills and enhance their potential. This approach to teaching entrepreneurship will be beneficial to all and in turn will produce a more flourishing entrepreneurial society."

An added word: It is this very last statement that relates most directly to the approaches and offerings of APOGEE Learning™ that have appropriately and creatively supported scores of dyslexic students in reaching both their creative and academic potential, grade after grade, subject after subject, project after project, venture after venture.

Inquiries welcomed •
• Call or post •
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For more information on services
provided for all learning needs:

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http://www.acu-tone.com

APOGEE Learning ~ A Whole Child Paradigm

•Learning styles honored and supported•
•Readiness experiences provided•
•Task analysis applied•
•Student interests as motivators•
•The Whole Brain approach to study and mastery•

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Dyslexia An Unwrapped Gift (part 1 of 2)

Dyslexia An Unwrapped Gift (part 2 of 2)

Get Unstuck ~ Free Potential

As an educator, it is ever gratifying to see that what you know to be effective approaches, to freeing learning potential, are consistently validated. This validation comes from the documented benefits of the supports and orientations offered by APOGEE Learning™ since 1983, in addition to the latest expressed perspectives of researchers from a myriad of disciplines. I am pleased to here present the perspectives of Deepak Chopra, MD for your consideration. These are the very perspectives that are integrated into the program offerings of APOGEE Learning™ and the APOGEE Achiever™ Program.

Rose Marie Raccioppi

All Inquiries Welcomed.

"To be free, you must find a way to let go of all the stuck energy that keeps sending out the same old messages. The ability to let go is more complex than it sounds, but nothing is more crucial. Letting go of anger and fear requires a process, which includes the following:

Be alert. Don’t ignore your feelings when you are angry or anxious. Resist the impulse to look away and shove your feelings back down out of sight. The more alert you are, the easier it will be to access stuck energy and let it go.

Be objective. If you identify personally with negativity, you will never let it go. Learn to see anger as only energy, like electricity. Electricity isn’t about you. Neither is anger. It’s universal and sticks to anything that seems unfair or unjust. Fear sticks to anything that feels dangerous or unsafe.

Detach from the specifics. Energies get stuck to particular situations: A specific person rams your car from the rear, butts in line ahead of you at the supermarket, or cheats you out of money. These are the contents of the situation, its specifics, and you cannot completely let go of energy by living solely in those moments. Imagine having a fight with your spouse. You are sure you’re justified in your position. But if you refuse to stop being angry until your spouse says, “I was wrong; you were right all along,” you could wait forever. And even if he does apologize, your anger might not completely disappear. Detach from the contents of the situation and release your anger by yourself, for your own good.

Take responsibility. This goes hand in hand with detachment. Your energy is yours and nobody else’s. In spiritual terms, it doesn’t matter who is right or wrong, who is the aggressor or the victim. The only important thing is how to win your own freedom. In a world of opposites, right and wrong are engaged in an eternal struggle. Your role is to let go of energy that has stuck to you for whatever reason. Once you take responsibility, you won’t be tossed about at the whim of circumstance.

Don’t expect anyone to do it for you. There is certainly such a thing as divine guidance, but the road to freedom is through the self. Most of us hope to gain strength from other people, not some divine agency. Yet there is no getting around the fact that all you have for the spiritual journey is your own mind, body, and soul. As much as others can offer solace and helpful wishes, only you can embark on the journey inside yourself.

Let your body participate. Letting go isn’t just a mental process. In fact, you have metabolized your past and given it sanctuary in your body. Or as someone put it simply, “The issues are in the tissues.” Many kinds of bodywork and purification therapies can be useful here. (Added Note: Re: APOGEE Acu-Tone™) To begin with, let your body do what it wants to do. It knows how to tremble with fear and convulse with anger. Don’t resist the body’s natural reactions, but don’t inflict them on someone else, either. Throwing off stuck energy is a private process that belongs to you alone.

Explore and discover. I don’t want to imply that the spiritual journey involves laborious effort undertaken in solitude. Quite the contrary. Nothing is more fascinating than finding out who you really are, and what you are really about. The vast majority of people live secondhand lives. All they know about themselves is what others tell them; the voices they hear in their heads come from the past; their vision of possibilities amounts to what they were taught at school, in church, and in the family. The past creates unresolved energy. The need to conform creates a fear of breaking free. Fortunately, to the extent that you let go of these old energies, you will win a new bit of freedom.

Value freedom above everything. I said earlier that we all hear two impulses -inside ourselves. One says, “This is what I want to do,” the other says, “This is what I’d better do.” The first is the voice of freedom; the second is the voice of fear. The divine plan is infinitely complex, but when it comes down to each person, it’s infinitely simple. You get to be whoever you want to be; you get to do whatever you want to do. That’s not the same as what your ego wants you to be or what your fantasies urge you to do. Spiritual freedom releases you into infinite Being. Then and only then will you encounter the real you. At that moment, all that you wanted to be in the past will be seen as a temporary impulse. And each impulse to be free will been seen to be leading you in the right direction."

Adapted from Why is God Laughing? by Deepak Chopra (Harmony Books, 2008).

Article source: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-to-get-unstuck.html#ixzz15ZNsl7AY


Image credit: Chris Keeney Photo

Gregg Braden: The Spontaneous Healing of Belief and The APOGEE Paradigm

The Wounded Learner Belief and the Healing Process

Several years ago I presented a number of weekend workshops at the Himalayan Institute of Yoga Science. With all the research surfacing on how trauma, unresolved conflict, suppressed emotions, toxins, and stress effect one's health and well being, it became clear that these same influences on one's physical and emotional development were those that also effected readiness for learning, attention, and success in meeting educational milestones.

The title of one particular weekend workshop was, ''The Wounded Learner." Early learning experiences bear significantly on the impressions we have of ourselves as learners. If those early impressions validate ourselves as responsive and capable, there develops a feeling of confidence and a willingness to explore. If however, one is given the impression that one is not capable, is harshly criticized, not understood or supported, confidence is often shattered and masked by defiant behaviors or resistance. The learner becomes wounded. These wounds need be healed, and redirection defined.

I can give example after example of how when finding the underlying incident(s) or circumstance(s) that planted the seeds of stress, confusion, or dismay, are uprooted, change is initiated. Within this change the learner moves to a greater awareness of self, a willingness to confront, and an openness for ultimate resolve. The principles of epigenetics and the principles behind our beliefs are fully operative and applicable here. The learner is brought to understand behaviors that result from external rather than purely genetic influences. The learner comes to newly appreciate his/her own power over self and the learning process. To become aware of our established belief systems, our established perceptions and how they enhance or restrict our potential for well being and learning success, is to become an empowered learner. This is an awareness that is primary at every age and stage of development, from childhood to adulthood.

Post Script: Shortly after posting, I was sent an article that speaks to these very issues and orientations. I am pleased to add other voices; and so for your added consideration:

Adapted from

Power, Freedom, and Grace, by Deepak Chopra (Amber Allen, 2006).

"When you are conceived, all you are is a double strand of DNA—a speck of information and intelligence that differentiates into a hundred trillion cells, which then become a fully formed baby with eyes, nose, ears, brain, arms, legs, genitals. You didn’t do anything to make that happen, and yet you made it happen. In that blueprint, that speck of information is a plan for when your teeth will grow out, when you will reach puberty, when you will generate sex hormones, so you can produce another human being. It is spontaneity, with effortless ease, with no resistance. The impulse of the universe is coming through you in the form of that double strand of DNA.

Now if you can make a hundred trillion cells without any confusion, if each cell can do its own unique thing and correlate its activity with every other cell without any confusion, it’s because of the intelligence of the universe is flowing through that speck of DNA, which you can’t even see under a microscope. So the best thing you can do is to allow it to happen. It isn’t wise to interfere with it.

And how do you interfere with this intelligence? In spiritual terms, we can say that you interfere when you identify with your self-image and lose your inner self; when you lose your sense of connection with your soul, your source. In more common terms, we can say that you interfere when you start worrying, when you start anticipating problems, when you start thinking, What can go wrong? When you try to control everything, when you are afraid, when you feel isolated—all these things interfere with the flow of nature’s intelligence.

Your inner self is your innate intelligence; it is being becoming. It is your ability to create, to grow, to evolve, to express. Your self-image is the indoctrination by society, by education; it’s the image you have created for yourself based on what other people think of you. As soon as you sacrifice the self for self-image you lose divinity for something that is illusory and doesn’t exist. The self-image is a hallucination; it isn’t even real, but it interferes with the flow of intelligence." http://www.care2.com/greenliving/living-in-flow.html#ixzz14oiJairM

Another most relevant article sent my way and added for your consideration. An excellent read for understanding learners across the age span. 6 Surprising Things That Affect Your Brain | Care2 Healthy & Green Living: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/6-surprising-things-that-affect-your-brain.html

• Inquiries welcomed •
• Call or post •
• All Questions Answered •

For more information on services
provided for all learning needs:

http://www.apogeelearning.com
http://www.acu-tone.com

APOGEE Learning ~ A Whole Child Paradigm

•Learning styles honored and supported•
•Readiness experiences provided•
•Task analysis applied•
•Student interests as motivators•
•The Whole Brain approach to study and mastery•

Inquiries Welcomed
Call for your FREE Introductory Consultation.
845-359-9056
toll free: 1-866-228-8663
1-866-ACU-TONE

The APOGEE Achiever Program™

The APOGEE Achiever Program™
The Academics and the Arts
~ Soar To Success ~

•Individualized Subject Tutoring•
•Study Skills and Mastery Strategies•
•All Learning Styles•
~Reading~
~Mathematics~
~Writing~
~Organization~
~Communication Skills~
~Assignment Management~
~Stress Management~
~ Acu-Tone™ Sound Therapy~
~Relaxation, Breathing, Attention and Focusing Exercises~
~Achievement Goals~
~All Ages ~ All Grades ~ All Subjects~
~PSAT~ SAT ~ All Test Preparation~
~Coaching~
~Family Therapy~

• Inquiries welcomed •
• Call or post •
• All Questions Answered •


For more information on services
provided for all learning needs:

http://www.apogeelearning.com
http://www.acu-tone.com

APOGEE Learning ~ A Whole Child Paradigm

•Learning styles honored and supported•
•Readiness experiences provided•
•Task analysis applied•
•Student interests as motivators•
•The Whole Brain approach to study and mastery•

Inquiries Welcomed
Call for your FREE Introductory Consultation.
845-359-9056
toll free: 1-866-228-8663
1-866-ACU-TONE