Talk PAD- Talk Positively about Dyslexia: Recent Episodes
See No Bounds Productions
Talking positively about dyslexia. We are fed up with dyslexia being visualised as a negative thing. So the See No Bounds team has teamed up with Dyslexia expert Guy brewer of Golexia to change the perceptions of dyslexia and to bring a better understanding of the condition. Every month we will bring you either an expert on the subject to a guest who lives with, overcome, adapted, thought outside the box and thrived with Dyslexia.
Laura Kingdon is a Transformation Coach, helping professionals (often mid-lifers) to find answers to the big questions, like "Is this it?" or "What next?"
Laura doesn’t promise to have the answers but she certainly helps people find theirs.
In the past Laura has worked with businesses across Wales to support disabled students and employees.
She provided workplace assessment services, DSE guidance and Disability Awareness Training across a range of conditions.
Previously Laura was the Business Change Manager at Cardiff University, where she was responsible for the improvements in the University's business intelligence operations, supporting senior leaders to sell their future vision.
Before that Laura was the Regional Operations Manager in Wales for Scope, managing organisational change and business development.
Laura was also at Newport City Council as a Programme Manager dealing with the adult social services change and efficiency portfolio and also as a Business Improvement Project Manager leading on a number of high impact change projects at Newport City Council.
But enough of her illustrious career.
What of her skills? What about NOW?
Laura has a Level 5 Diploma in Coaching & Mentoring from the ILM and is a
•Certified Master NLP Practitioner
•Certified Master Hypnotherapist
•Certified Master NLP Coach
•Certificate Master Time Line Therapist
•Mindfulness Practitioner
•Clean Language Coach
•Neurodiversity Coach
•Stress & Anxiety Coping Strategy Coach
And Laura keeps up-to-date in the field of psychotherapy, and in 2021 completed Part 1 of the Diploma in Psychotherapy (Human Givens Institute).
And not only that, but Laura talks incredibly positively about dyslexia and neurodiversity, which is why she is here today!
Debbie Bridge is a Canadian actor, and a singer, and a voice-over artist, among other things, who lives in London.
Debbie is a professionally trained opera singer.
She is known for her considerable work on stage and screen. Her credits include multiple film roles, TV roles, theatre roles and musical roles. I do not have enough time to mention them all here – sorry.
Debbie has an extensive stage background, which includes Shakespeare, notably playing Gertrude in Hamlet, and opera productions, for example, as Rosina in the Barber of Seville.
Debbie has sung at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London, and performed in the West End of London.
Debbie is really good at singing – here are her best styles: A Cappella, Cabaret, Classical, Contemporary, Lyric soprano, and Opera, as well as Choral, Country, Dancehall, Folk, Pop, and Swing.
Debbie has also produced her own short films, play readings and theatre productions under her company name of A'Nother Productions
Debbie is currently part of a new feature film project called - 'Undiscovered' - filming is planned for 2023, as well as various other projects.
Debbie has been described as, and I quote - “a very charismatic performer who is brimming with energy and ideas".
Debbie is also really good at 10 & 5 pin bowling, swimming, roller blading, cycling, yoga, ice skating, downhill skiing, canoe, horse-riding and softball.
Not only that, Debbie also speaks German, French, Italian, and Latin.
And there are other skills that Debbie has, which include – being a blogger, a drama coach, a drama workshop leader, an experienced event host, a film-maker, a musical theatre workshop leader, a presentation coach, a singing teacher and coach, an experienced tour guide, a vocal workshop leader, a voice coach, and an acting workshop leader.
And Debbie Bridge is dyslexic.
Welcome Debbie Bridge!
Today is World Dyslexia day – and we have literally gone around the world– to bring you our wonderful guest.
Shawn is a hugely experienced executive coach and has worked locally (to him in Pittsburgh PA, USA) and internationally for sales teams, start-up entrepreneurs, young emerging leaders, non-profit managers, and corporate team leaders.
Shawn has university degrees in psychology and philosophy, as well as lots of post-graduate training qualifications. He is certified by the International Coaching Federation, and although still a youngster has been coaching since 2004.
Not only that, but Shawn has provided executive coaching for: Facebook, Instagram, Deloitte, LinkedIn, American Express, Visa, Capital One, Mars Inc and many more well-known corporations.
Not only that, but Shawn is, unusually, an American keen on playing rugby.
And Shawn is dyslexic.
ED Hollands, from Driven Media, is…
A managing director of many years standing, of his company in Derby.
A public speaker, where he shares the story of his fascinating journey and experiences as a young entrepreneur, his successes and failures, his legendary Dragon’s Den encounter and triumph, and in this way he inspires others (of all ages) to follow their dreams.
He has been a sports coach and a sole trader – there is a story here, waiting to be told, about dodgeball.
He has a first class degree in Business Studies from the university of Derby.
Ed first wowed the nation with his stunning appearance on Dragon’s Den, where he was able to present himself as one half of the Northern Powerhouse – and has certainly lived up to the hype, having recently bought out his dragon.
In 2016 Ed won the Rising Star Award from Marketing Derby (the inward investment agency for Derby and Derbyshire)
In 2019 Ed won the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, Midland's Region, Creative Industries Entrepreneur of The Year Award.
Ed’s company was born when he realised the wasted opportunity for using commercial trailers as mobile billboards. His thoughts were that “if I had a business that’s where I’d be advertising” and that’s what he did. The idea has since grown into being a successful award-winning large format outdoor advertising business.
Truly a positive role model for every young business-minded person,
Ed Holland welcome to TalkPad.
Ladey Adey is an author, publisher, motivational speaker, passionpreneur, and grand-mum.
She runs a family-owned publishing company, Ladey Adey Publications, with her daughter Abbirose, and husband Denis.
Ladey has been a lover of books ever since her childhood when books were her friends!
Back in the late 1990s Ladey was a typesetter for a printing company and editor of their in-house magazine.
Her career moved into the Charity sector where she held CEO and Chair positions.
At the same time, she ran her own business in education, secretarial services and networking, before writing her first book, Unfrozen, in 2014.
Ladey’s management experience has come from over 25 years holding CEO and Senior Director positions in business and the voluntary sector. Sharing platforms with the Archbishop of Canterbury (Rev Dr Rowan Williams) and other high flying personalities. She has a large networking CV too.
These days, Ladey heads up the non-fiction department for Ladey Adey Publications, and leads on the Author Mentoring Programme.
As an author, Ladey understands the book process from start to finish and mentors writers on their ‘author journey’ to produce high quality and well-written books which will attract many readers.
She has a heart for helping those with dyslexia to write their books, showing proven strategies such as to talk it rather than write it.
Ladey’s latest book, Successful Business Networking Online, is the first book dedicated to online networking. And she is the Founder of World Online Networking Day - 29th October.
For the extra fun in life, Ladey enjoys time with family and friends, making mosaics, gardening - including brick laying, Christmas, playing the Saxophone and Golf.
And Ladey is also dyslexic.
Please welcome Ladey Adey.
Questions:
When did you know that you were dyslexic?
What is the impact of dyslexia, for you, at work?
What do you do differently from people who don’t have dyslexia?
How do you accommodate the needs of people that you meet who are dyslexic themselves?
When do you tell people that you are dyslexic?
What are the things that matter most to you?
Mark Wright is a multiple award-winning entrepreneur and self-taught digital marketing specialist who won the BBC show, The Apprentice, in 2014.
Mark now runs a digital marketing agency. He is the Chief Executive Officer of Climb Online, which he launched with Alan Sugar’s backing after winning The Apprentice.
Mark is the only Apprentice winner to turn over in excess of £1 million in his first year of trading.
Mark is a great communicator and manager of people. He believes that the best people in business are those who can support and celebrate other people’s successes and that is what he always strives to do.
Today’s guest, unlike our previous guests did not get an official diagnosis of his dyslexia until later in life, 59 to be precise, this was November 2019, just prior to Covid.
Born into a business family tracing their roots back several centuries in York. He is the youngest of five children and attended a prestigious fee paying school called St Peters. The end of term school reports described a boy who was always pleasant and cheerful but whose academic performance puzzled most of the teachers. Top of the class on some occasions and bottom on others, one teacher remarked on his performance as being incredible, 17th in class and top in the end of term exam. This erratic performance continued until age 16, when he left the school with an unclassified result in English, and yet five random 0 level passes including one in Greek Civilisation.
Away from school, his childhood revolved around the family businesses, in particular an agricultural machinery supply company, where he would spend his holidays involving himself in all aspects of the business, from serving petrol on the garage forecourt, being tasked with work in the accounts office but mainly in the workshops and in particular helping load the lorries and go with the drivers to deliver the tractors and farm machinery.
He worked for two other farm machinery dealerships before returning to the family business at age 20. Only working for the business for three years before it was sold. He then went to work for a then unknown company in the UK called Karcher. Where he was one of the first salespeople in the UK to sell their range of power washers. He credits Karcher for teaching him how to sell successfully.
He took the sales skills, and in 1985 set up his own business to sell mobile phones, this was not without its problems because the first bank he approached declined to give him a bank account on the basis there would be insufficient demand for a company specialising in the sale of mobile phones.
Needless to say the business was highly successful. A very key decision, in the first few weeks of establishing his own business was to book a place on the Dale Carnegie course. This was to be the starting point for his journey of business education and personal development. However, after a few years he felt overwhelmed and this led to mental health issues, resulting in his exit from the mobile phone industry.
Over the next few decades his life cycled between great highs and lows. He now believes he was incorrectly diagnosed with depression. He refused to accept antidepressants but instead pursued an alternative strategy of improving his health by changing his diet, exercise and further personal development leading to a number of diverse qualifications which he now holds.
Generally speaking the cycle of office based jobs, started successfully but became stressful and untenable. Throughout this time he would take time out to go and drive trucks. Never having held a full-time job as a truck driver, he has worked through agencies and consequently has a wide variety of experience driving all kinds of lorries and carrying most kinds of cargo. But finding the food industry the most interesting and in particular has worked extensively in the transport of potatoes.
During this time he also got married and divorced. And is now Father to 27 year old twin daughters who have their own careers and with whom he is still in regular contact.
From time to time, he was offered work training other drivers and it was as a result of one of these projects that he was asked to submit a report, which he asked his brother to read. And was told that to submitted would “do you no favours at all”
This experience led him finally to obtaining a full dyslexia assessment, and in turn this has led to getting help from the Department of work and pensions and consequently he is now looking forward to an entirely different future.
In particular our guest often relates the experience of having breakfast in his kitchen the morning after the day of the original assessment in 2019 and literally bursting into laughter as he looked around his home and realised his whole life was governed by the fact he is exceptionally dyslexic and never realised.
The 7/8 of the dyslexia iceberg, that is to say all of the aspects of life that is affected by being dyslexic other than the poor ability to read and write, are the aspects of dyslexia that are guest today has become particularly interested in.
Please welcome Alan Kaye.
Arran Smith has worked in many industries. He has worked in youth work, retail business and the not-for-profit sector. Arran has worked within the dyslexia sector for over 15 years, including with the Leicestershire Dyslexia Association (of which he has been the chairman) and the British Dyslexia Association in varied roles.
Last year Arran set up the National Dyslexic Show – the first of its kind in the UK, and to be held at the NEC. The Covid situation forced it online where it was a huge success – offering webinars, forums and much, much more, around work, education and the family.
Arran is the CEO of the SENDGROUP – an organisation for special educational needs support.
Arran is also Microsoft’s UK Special Educational Needs in England Dyslexia Consultant.
Arran Smith classes himself as one of the 4% of the population as a severely dyslexic adult. 4% of the British population is about 2.5 million people – or the combined population of Newcastle and Sheffield.
When Arran was aged 9 he was diagnosed with dyslexia and was lucky enough to have very supportive parents.
These days, Arran uses technology to support his needs and without technology he would not be doing what he is doing today.
He is passionate about inclusive design and making technology accessible for all. He aims to showcase how technology can be leveraged by students, teachers, and all to help them grow and succeed to their full potential.
Author, blogger of books, and mother – we welcome Paula Keane.
Born in Galway, Ireland, (the middle child of seven) Paula was fascinated more with the ancient myths of the Emerald Isle than in the menagerie of subjects required for school.
An atrocious student, she spent most of her school days dreaming about fantastical adventures and terrifying monsters.
Paula began her career as a student Veterinary nurse in the UK.
More than three years later, her first son was born.
Her husband’s career then took Paula back to Ireland.
Son number two was born, and Paula worked as an auxiliary nurse.
Then, the family moved to the USA.
Always an avid lover of science fiction and fantasy, Paula found herself drawn into a world that sprung to mind one night, in a dream.
Using the pen name ‘TP Keane’, Paula brought forth her mystical worlds in the form of her first epic fantasy novel, The Paladins of Naretia, which won first place in the Acclaimed Books writing contest, and her children’s novel, Dear Bob, The Misadventures of Petunia Pottersfield, which was also nominated for an award.
Her latest book is Kepler One: The Choosing (Kepler One Series Book 1)
Breaking News: One of the biggest Science Fiction magazines that there is – FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION – will be publishing one of Paula’s short stories in the July/August issue! This is a BIG DEAL!
Quotes:
“Writing is my biggest adventure and fictional worlds are my greatest playground.”
“Self-belief is crucial to following your dreams no matter what they are.”
When Andy Tucker left school he joined Johnsey Quad Racing in Newport as a team mechanic. He soon became the youngest quad bike Chief Mechanic in the UK, supporting the team to category and podium wins.
In 2007, Andy moved on to manage Skate Extreme, the legendary Newport skate park, until it was burnt down in 2010. Not only was Andy managing the day-today business, but he was involved in every aspect – health and safety, securing sponsorship, maintenance, stock-taking and sales.
At the same time, Andy was writing music for, and performing with an up-and-coming local Heavy Metal band.
In 2013, Andy was the victim of a life-changing road accident. Everything changed. Left with depression and PTSD, Andy experienced years of surgery and recovery, and coping with physical disabilities.
But a chance opportunity in 2019 allowed Andy to take part in one of Team Brit’s first ever Disability Motorsport Racing Academy sessions at Donington Race Circuit using adapted racing cars.
Andy then attended a rookie assessment day at Brands Hatch. In September 2019 he was invited to become a rookie driver with the team, competing in the GAZ shocks BMW 116 Trophy in 2020.
Andy competed in the Britcar Endurance Championship throughout 2020 alongside abled bodied drivers, securing three podium finishes and a strong result in the championship.
2021 will see Andy moving up two classes and fighting for the championship in Team Brit’s new BMW 240i.
Damian Joseph Bridgeman is a man with a huge and diverse array of talents, accomplishment, skills, interests, and experiences.
In the area of Health and Social Care, Damian has an honours degree. Damian has played a significant part in the creation and implementation of the Social Services and Wellbeing Act of 2014, and its companion act, the Regulation and Inspection Act of 2016, which were the most sweeping reforms ever seen by Social Services.
Damian has worked with all four Royal Medical Colleges helping them to construct higher scientific career pathways for the National School of Health Care Science, which has made him a thought-leader on Health and Social Care issues.
Damian currently works as an adviser to Welsh Government and is a non-executive director at Social Care Wales.
Damian has written many articles on healthcare and societal issues and has a number one bestselling autobiography called ‘I’m not a spaz. I’m safe!’
In the area of coaching and mentoring, Damian runs a successful coaching company specialising in executive coaching for government leaders, decision-makers and civil servants.
Damian has taken part in the Academi Wales summer School as a graduate, a facilitator of classes and as a coach for attendees.
Damian likes to work with ambitious organisations to develop the leaders of the future and unlock their full potential using coaching as the tool to achieve this.
Damian is now a fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management in recognition of his work in this field and is recognised by the European coaching and mentoring Council as a master coach. He is also a full member of the Institute of Directors and is currently the regional Chair.
Damian is a seasoned entrepreneur with a social mission. He believes in collaboration and using best contacts to enhance the performance or message of his endeavour. Damian runs another company which helps people with disabilities and their families to hire disability equipment and have it delivered to their hotels to help ease the difficulty of travelling with large amounts of bulky but essential items.
Damian is committed to health and fitness technology. He has invested in an app that allows you to see a doctor without waiting, which is currently being used to good effect by the NHS in the Coronavirus crisis, and another app that helps you to find inexpensive gyms where ever you are in the UK.
Every business that Damian goes into is a tool to bring about social change and to create services that are missing for people with disabilities.
Welcome to Mandy Whalley.
Mandy is an extremely experienced Specialist Occupational Therapist, who has worked extensively in the hospital and healthcare industry.
Among her many achievements, Mandy is a Health and Work Champion for the Royal College of Occupational Therapy and has worked with Public Health England and Salford University.
Mandy is on the National Executive Committee for the Royal College of Occupational Therapy and has also been co-opted onto the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Dyslexia.
In addition to all this, Mandy runs her own business, Tailored Employment Solutions providing assessments to support employers with making reasonable adjustments.
As a person with dyslexia herself, and experience of ADHD and ASD, Mandy is a passionate advocate for support services for people dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, ASD and other disabilities.
As such, Mandy has created the Empowerment Passport, which is an app, soon to be launched, and is a self-advocacy tool for people with disabilities