As leaders, we constantly seek ways to maximize team performance, drive innovation, and foster an environment where every voice contributes.
Yet, many organizations overlook a vast competitive advantage: employees hesitant to speak up or share insights—their quiet talent. Tapping into this hidden potential requires a fundamental shift in how we build an inclusive workplace grounded in psychological safety and neuroinclusion.
Insights from neuroinclusion expert Pasha Marlowe, author of Creating Cultures of Neuroinclusion, illuminate a critical truth: unlocking this invaluable human capital isn’t just about encouraging participation—it’s about redesigning how we work so that neurodivergent and quiet employees can contribute fully without needing to mask or conform.
The Unspoken Goldmine: Uncovering Hidden Insights
Marlowe shares a foundational truth for any inclusive leader:
“Everyone around us has insights, feelings, and ideas that, if surfaced, could make us all better. But most of them stay hidden.”
So, what crucial value are we missing? Marlowe highlights four areas where leaders routinely overlook insight:
- Unseen Struggles: Many employees keep their real challenges private. Without psychological safety, they’ll never tell you what’s holding them back.
- Unspoken Motivations: Often, we misinterpret behaviors without understanding the beliefs and life experiences behind them. This isn’t always a misunderstanding (where you get the message wrong). It’s a missed understanding—where the message never got shared in the first place. For example, a manager sees a camera turned off on Zoom and assumes disinterest. But the employee is neurodivergent, experiencing sensory overload. No one asked. The truth stayed hidden.
- Withheld Feedback: Employees often hold back feedback on operations, team dynamics, or leadership—because they’re unsure it’s safe to speak.
- Untapped Ideas: Some of the most innovative thoughts never get voiced, simply because people fear they’ll be dismissed.
“Put those four things together,” Marlowe says, “and it’s a goldmine. A treasure trove of insight that most companies never access. If they did—imagine the innovation, efficiency, and morale they could unlock.”
The Pervasive Power of Workplace Fear
If this goldmine exists, why do employees keep quiet?
Because fear shuts people down. Fear of being judged, punished, misunderstood—or simply ignored. Marlowe notes that when fear is triggered, verbal processing shuts down. Even when people want to contribute, they may physically be unable to. This fear is reinforced in cultures that reward perfection, speed, and conformity over curiosity, pause, and genuine inquiry.
Beyond Accommodation: The Proactive Path to Neuroinclusion
Modern inclusive leadership isn’t about waiting for someone to request accommodation. It’s about assuming that everyone has different support, access, and sensory needs—and designing work accordingly.
“Neuro is not brain—it’s nervous system,” Marlowe clarifies. “We’re all neurodiverse. Neurodivergent isn’t a diagnosis. It’s an identity.”
Rather than waiting for people to disclose differences, inclusive leaders embed flexibility and clarity into everyday practices—so everyone can thrive. This is neuroinclusion in action.
And it pays off. Research from Harvard Business Review and Deloitte shows that neurodivergent talent improves problem-solving, boosts innovation, and enhances productivity. These aren’t “nice-to-haves”—they’re critical business drivers.
From Fixer to Facilitator: The Leader’s New Role
The good news? You don’t need to master every neuro-type. In fact, trying to “fix” people is part of the problem. Your real job is to create conditions where others can show up fully and safely.
“If a leader shares their own access needs, or even just asks about someone else’s, they’re modeling vulnerability,” says Marlowe. “That opens the door for others. That’s what builds psychological safety.”
Backed by research from Amy Edmondson and Google’s Project Aristotle, psychological safety remains the #1 factor for high-performing teams.
The RESPECT Rubric: A Practical Tool for Neuroinclusion
To operationalize support, Marlowe developed the RESPECT Rubric, a user manual for understanding how people work best—without needing them to disclose a diagnosis or disability:
- R – Recognition: How do they like to receive feedback and appreciation?
- E – Environment: What sensory or physical conditions help them thrive?
- S – Support: What kinds of scaffolding or tools help them succeed?
- P – Productivity: What rhythms, tools, or routines support their output?
- E – Energy Flow: When are they most energized? What drains them?
- C – Communication: What modes work best (written, visual, verbal)?
- T – Time Management: How do they relate to time—linear or fluid?
Instead of managing by guesswork, leaders can use this rubric to create mutual understanding—and personalized support.
Designing Neuroinclusive Meetings and Workdays
Neuroinclusion is strategic design. Here are real shifts leaders can make now:
- Use inclusive language. Ditch terms like “high/low functioning”—those apply to systems, not people. Respectful, specific language builds trust.
- Clarify meetings. Always provide agendas and goals in advance. Ambiguity triggers stress—especially in neurodivergent minds.
- Allow camera flexibility. Defaulting to “cameras on” excludes many. Discuss norms together.
- Embrace movement. Fidgeting isn’t distraction—it’s self-regulation. Make space for it.
- Respect time. Start and end meetings on time. Offer clear “exit ramps.”
- Create structured airtime. Use hand-raise emojis or rounds to ensure quieter voices are heard. Structure builds freedom.
- Provide recaps. Different minds retain info differently. Send summaries, transcripts, and follow-ups.
What Builds—and Breaks—Trust
Group norms matter—but trust lives in 1:1s.
Leaders need to ask:
“What are your access needs?”
“What helps you feel supported?”
This isn’t too personal—it’s leadership. You’re not asking for a diagnosis. You’re inviting honesty.
And be mindful: Microaggressions destroy trust. Casual comments like “Aren’t we all a little ADHD?” or “They’re just different” may seem harmless—but they invalidate identity and experience.
Microaggressions fuel stress, disengagement, and attrition. You can’t build high-performing teams without high-trust culture. As soon as people feel dismissed, the walls go up and trust goes down. When trust disappears, disengagement takes its place.
Leading for a Neuroinclusive Future
This isn’t about being “woke” or politically correct—it’s about getting the best from your people. The science is clear: teams that feel safe perform better.
The future of leadership is neuroinclusive. It’s curious. It’s proactive. It assumes every employee has value—and that it’s your job to create the environment where that value can emerge.
So, where do you start?
Start by asking.
Not with answers. Not with fixes.
Just with the courage to make the invisible visible—and unlock the power hiding in plain sight.