Episode 43: ADD in the age of DEI backlash: a real-life look at burnout and belonging, with Will Savell
Published on 29 July 2025 • Hosted by Dr Lisa Colledge
Want to boost the neuro-inclusivity of your team?
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We’ll cover what you’re seeing, start to diagnose root causes, and discuss how inspiration from neuro-inclusion will benefit the engagement, wellness and performance of your team.
What does it take to feel genuinely seen and supported at work, not for how well you blend in, but for who you really are?
That’s the question at the heart of this honest, emotional conversation with Will Savell. Will shares his lived experience of ADD, burnout, and years of masking. Today, he’s building a working life on his own terms, and using his voice to raise awareness of the invisible effort many people spend trying to appear “normal.”
His story isn’t just personal. It’s a wake-up call to look beneath the surface of our teams and rethink what inclusion actually means.
Diagnosed as “learning disabled” at age six, Will rose to an executive role in accounting by his early 30s, largely by suppressing his natural ways of thinking and working. Eventually, that took its toll. Burnout forced a full reset, and a decision to stop hiding.
His journey will feel deeply familiar to many neurodivergent professionals: success built on suppression, followed by collapse, and then - finally - reinvention.This episode explores:
Why success through masking often ends in burn out, and how Will found the courage to do things differently.
The reality of ADD in professional environments: the high energy, the constant effort to appear typical, and the hidden toll it takes.
The wide range of responses to neurodivergence, from candid curiosity in everyday conversations to quiet discomfort in corporate settings.
How DEI backlash and increasingly polarized politics in the U.S. affect people who are trying to show up honestly, especially when their differences are invisible.
The power of real human conversations to build connections, not despite difference, but through it, even when people are afraid of saying the wrong thing.
Will closes with a 3-step practical framework for responding when someone shares their neurodivergence. It’s especially helpful for anyone who feels unsure how to start these conversations, or worries about saying the wrong thing. His call for active listening, finding shared ground, and recognising complementary strengths offers a simple, human foundation for leaders looking to build more inclusive teams.
If you’ve ever wondered how to respond when someone says, “I have ADD” or “I think I might be autistic,” this episode offers something better than a script: a real-life story, and a deeply human lens through which to understand it.
You can connect with Will here.
