Laws of Learning Differences

If you can do it now, do it now. If you can't do it now, write it down so you can do it later.

Learn about role models who had a learning difference just like you and achieved great things not in spite of their learning difference, but because of it.

Understand yourself. Self-awareness is key. Understand your strengths, and understand your challenges. "Gravitate towards your strengths, and navigate your challenges." (Reiff, 2007). If you don't understand yourself, others will do it for you.

If you have a problem, find the solution. If you can't find the solution, create the solution. Dr. Ross Greene is someone who often talks about the importance of a problem-solving mindset. 

First, be Aware of your challenges. Then, Acknowledge your challenges. Then, Actively find and apply strategies to address these challenges and minimize their impact. Finally, advocate for your challenges.

"The harder I work, the luckier I seem to get." This quote is attributed to several different people, in several different forms, but the main idea is the one above. While luck does exist, the harder one works, the higher chance they have of attaining it.

If you don't do something, others will do it for you. Sounds nice, right? Not really. Earlier, it was stated that if you don't understand yourself, others will do it for you. This is true. We can make the same statement for routines, for example. If you don't choose your routine, others will choose it for you. E.g. others will decide when you are meant to be replying to their messages.

Without goals, there is no direction. Once a goal has been set, there has been set a barometer for failure, but do not let that stop you from setting goals. If you actually aim at something, you have a greater chance of hitting it. Be goal-oriented.

Challenge yourself every day. Challenge yourself to do the things that people said that you couldn't do. If you fail to do it, that is okay, because you still have improved. Anything you have done that is better than what you were doing yesterday, is a success ("Exceeding Expectations", 2007)

Know the difference between these three terms. You will hear learning disability a lot, but learning difference is the most accurate term. Disability is the legal term. Disorder is the clinical term. Difference is the accurate term. Link to blog

Be sure to develop if, then plans. An if, then plan means what it says. If this happens, then I will do...

Routines, organization, and having a plan that considers what you will do if uncontrollable things happen will help the feeling of control. Stoics practice this as a form of the meditation. You think about all the possible things that could go wrong. Once again, it goes back to this idea, if you don't do it, someone or something else will do it for you. If you don't control your life, someone or something else will do it for you.

Say it proudly. Marydee Sklar spoke in her Executive Functioning course (https://executivefunctioningsuccess.com/executive-function-class-for-teachers/)  about how certain school doors are shaped to only fit certain types of shapes of heads. And if you have that shape of head you fit perfectly. However, not everyone has that shape of head, and that's a good thing! The world needs different shaped heads!

Learn and understand about Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences. What type of intelligences do you think you have? Thomas Armstrong has written some fantastic books expanding on the multiple intelligences.

Develop intrapersonal intelligence as much as possible. Get to understand yourself as much as possible, as mentioned before. Your strengths, your challenges. Your goals, your passions. Take time to do this. 

Focus your attention more on what is inside of your control. Not what is outside of your control. 

Be persistence and work hard. Just in doing so you have an advantage over others because many people don't want to work at all (Exceeding Expectations, 2007)

Failure is feedback. It tells you what didn't work and what to do differently next time. You learn something new and this leads to success. 

Learn to type at a level where you can write as fast as you think. 

This is taken from Atomic Habits by James Clear in his idea about the four laws of behavior change. It's law number one there. Other famous expressions related to this is out of sight, out of mind.

Small failures accumulate over time and result in an ultimate big failure. Learn and grow from the small failures.