High-tech development relies heavily on diverse teams of multidisciplined experts, each with a specific role. But in today’s cutting edge, it’s not just the expertise that’s diverse. According to High Tech Institute trainer and autism expert Peter Vermeulen, neurodivergent brains are also playing an essential role, and if utilized correctly, can lead to great benefits.
“I was a stay-at-home father with my one-year-old son when my former master’s thesis mentor called me about a new position with the National Autistic Society in Belgium,” recalls Peter Vermeulen. He was a trained clinical educationalist with an emphasis on education and child-rearing, with a particular focus on people with disabilities. “I think that in all of my education, I could refer to maybe one page on the topic of autism. But I went to the interview anyway – this was in the 80s and there weren’t a whole lot of job prospects in my field,” he explains.
“I sat there answering a long list of questions, all about autism, and all of my responses were completely wrong. But somehow, they still offered me the job,” Vermeulen remembers. “It turns out, giving the wrong answers was a good thing. It showed them that I didn’t have to unlearn the many stereotypes and misunderstandings surrounding autism.” Instead, he could immediately get to work with the foundation, which was looking for a specialist that could aid and train parents of autistic children. “Now, nearly 40 years later, I still say that I never chose autism. Rather, autism really chose me.”
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