Dyslexia - "The little boy who couldn't pushes to dream big

[michellea]

www.bostonglobe.com/business/2014/06/28/little-boy-who-couldn-pushes-boston-dream-big/PWsjjY5yrKbgNlFHJ9BgTP/story.html

"He seems now an unstoppable force in town, a power almost without peer in construction, commerce, and charity, and the engine behind an idea that divides the city but which he thinks could define it — the 2024 Olympic bid.

But for what seemed to him the longest time, John Fish was the little boy who couldn’t, the boy who kept to the back of his Catholic school classroom in hopes that the nuns wouldn’t call his name.


In third grade, he still struggled to read. He couldn’t spell and could barely write. What was easy for others was nearly impossible for him. Teachers, classmates, even his family thought he might not be all that bright. And Fish had to wonder whether they might be right."

[healthy11]

Thanks for sharing this article, Michellea. As I worry about my own young adult son's "rough edges," I found hope in several things that were stated. I found it interesting that out of five siblings in his family, and 4 generations, John Fish was the only one with dyslexia (which, to me, seems to discount those who contend dyselxia "runs in families." Our own son is the only one we know of, in either my husband's or my family, who has diagnosed LDs.)

Primarily, I'm encouraged to hear that John Fish was able to recognize many of his stubborn ways, and make changes. The article says, "“At an early age, to me, every solution was to take a hammer to a nail, and I didn’t understand relationships. . . .Sometimes in one’s career, a light goes on, and I thought, this is no way to live. I realized suddenly there was such a thing as compromise.”

Fish admits that his aggressive, uncompromising style in the early days made enemies. He blames it on inexperience. His rough edge might, he said, have come from a sense that he had to overcompensate for his disability, he says. But he found over the years that he no longer had to define himself by it.

“You realize, OK, there are things I cannot do that other people can, but I can do some things better than other people,’’ he said. “I can read a room. I can get a sense of people quickly.”

(Now, if only my son could realize the same things!)

[michellea]

Healthy,
It sounds like your son is doing very well, and IS growing up, evolving and beginning to realize the way of the world and how he can navigate it. When I think back to some of your worries when he was in HS and hear about where he is now, I am so impressed!

I enjoyed this article very much - not only because it is an inspiring success story, but the journalist took a bit of time to weave in how dyslexia played a role in Fish's success. Often the "D" word is mentioned only in the front paragraph, but there are no examples or explicit mentions in the body of the article about it!

[healthy11]

Michellea, I don't know if I'd say he's doing VERY well, but yes, I realize my son has improved from where he was several years ago. "BEGINNING to realize..." is probably an apt description. He's still self-centered, and he often shows little to no patience with anyone whose opinions differ from his own. I keep trying to model "an attitude of gratitude" in the hope that he'll eventually learn to do likewise, but it hasn't happened yet. The article said Mr. Fish was in his 30's before he changed, so I'll keep my fingers crossed!

Along those same lines, I just found this article which describes, in easy to understand (but harder to do) terms, about being a likeable person: smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advisor/7-things-well-liked-people-always-143000626.html

Briefly, it says not to judge or try to control others, but do try to show a personal interest in others. Good advice!