Inclusive Communication in Coaching: Supporting Neurodivergent Clients

Over the last few years, there have been significant and notable shifts in the way we communicate. The “digital native” generations – Millennials, Generation Z, and Generation Alpha, born after 1980 – have been shown to prefer instant messaging and video calls over face-to-face or telephone communication. This shift has transformed the way workplaces operate, increasing reliance on digital communication and facilitating remote work. These generations have said it’s often easier to open up via instant messaging due to its asynchronous nature.

The Rise of Neurodiversity in the Workplace

At the same time, there is increasing awareness and prevalence of neurodivergent individuals in the workplace. Neurodivergent refers to individuals whose brains work differently than what is considered “typical” and includes conditions like dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism. An estimated 15 to 20% of the population is neurodivergent. For example, one study showed a twenty-fold increase in ADHD diagnosis among those aged 18-29 years old, while another study showed a 787% increase in autism diagnoses between 1998 and 2018. While some of this rise is attributed to better assessment and awareness, others argue there is still a baseline increase in the number of individuals with neurodivergent traits. As more neurodivergent individuals join the workforce, adapting workplace communication to meet their needs is essential.

Communication Preferences of Neurodivergent Individuals

Research shows that neurodivergent individuals often have different communication preferences to their neurotypical peers. One study, “Anything but the phone!” showed that autistic communication preferences  (e.g., emails, letters, text messaging, or phone calls) depended on the level of safety and closeness they felt with the individual they were communicating with. Despite these preferences, a recent global coaching survey shows that coaching is still mainly done face-to-face or via video call, with other options rarely offered. This raises an important question: How should coaching adapt to the preferences of the younger, increasingly neurodivergent generation entering the workforce?

Insights from Recent Inclusive Coaching Research

In my recent MSc study, I delved into this topic by offering neurodivergent participants, aged 18-30, the choice of communication medium (email, text, video, or audio) during sessions, allowing them to switch mediums as needed. They appreciated this flexibility, especially since they often lacked such options when working with other professionals, like counselors. The study found that their choice of medium was influenced by their neurodivergent traits. For example, one participant turned off the camera to avoid showing their stimming (repetitive movements or sounds). Another found the sensory overload from the visual input of the screen outweighed the benefits of seeing the coach’s facial expressions. Although all participants, particularly those with dyslexia, found text coaching cumbersome and slow, they valued having it as an option. For one individual, even though they did not choose text-based coaching, it was seen as providing the flexibility to walk around, helping manage ADHD-related energy levels.

Broadening Communications Options in Coaching

Both young adults and neurodivergent young adults benefit from having a broader range of communication options. However, I’ve found that many coach training providers in the United Kingdom do not include text or telephone coaching in their standard syllabus, nor do they encourage coaches to offer a broader range of mediums as part of contracting. Instead, they focus on supporting video and face-to-face coaching. What are we missing out on as a result of this narrowed offering?

Benefits of Offering Communication Choices

Firstly, having a choice has been shown to increase motivation and engagement. This was underscored by the feedback from the clients in the study – they appreciated the chance to shape their coaching experience. Secondly, providing these options enables the coach to meet the client using the medium that is most comfortable for them, ensuring that the space feels safe and neutral. Lastly, the lack of options inherently creates exclusivity in coaching and limits coaches’ commercial opportunities.

Adapting Your Coaching Approach

Making changes to your coaching approach is straightforward; it’s about considering the needs of the client through a neurodivergent lens at every point in the process. For example, while most coaches organize chemistry sessions with prospective clients via email, could you instead use voice notes to avoid written language, which can be a barrier for some? Instead of providing a written bio, could you instead provide a voice or video bio? In my research, the use of a video bio was shown to help build a connection between coach and client before they even met. Offering a range of communication options for the chemistry session is also important.

Creating an Inclusive Coaching Environment

When meeting a client for a chemistry session, it’s important to ask about their preferences and how those might change from session to session or within a session. Giving the client control over how they communicate can form one part of the partnership that you’re looking to create with the client. For example, it might be worth agreeing on a signal that the client can use if they want to switch mediums during a session, making it easier for them to do so.

As coaches, we must create an inclusive, safe, and comfortable space for our clients to think and grow. To achieve this, we need to broaden the communication options available, proactively offering text, audio, video, and face-to-face as standard choices at the beginning of any coaching engagement. As the profile of the individuals in the workplace shifts with time, this will become imperative rather than optional.