Across The Desk With Elizabeth Plouffe

Cripes we're all over the place today but are we? We're diving in to self care, self love, boundaries and no batteries are involved. We're lucky to be working with the production team on Love on the Spectrum to bring Canadians to the show. This episode we get in to what we found during our first interview event.

Careful about the team you choose because they might be exactly what need ;) Some will be thrust upon you in the best way possible. Highschool is something I know most folks manage with little scarring. Some? Some come out with serious scars.

The Riff Raff team are folks who have all been kids at some point. Most of us still are in most ways. Growing up neurodivergent, whether we knew it or not, presented some challenges. As we became parents of neurotypical or neurodivergent kids, that added its own spiciness. Join us as we talk about letting your kids fail, watching the biases that come with being neurodivergent and how it all comes together whether we like it or not.

Some folks are born knowing they're neurodivergent and some have neurodivergence thrust upon them once their kids are diagnosed. Our little mob of pirates is a combo crew. Some grew up with a diagnosis from the get go and some have come in to spiciness later in life.

What are we kicking off with with? Meet the Riff Raff! Each of us has grown up with those awesome moments of being on the outside. Some knew they were neurospicy, some found out later life. All of us have a lens as neurodivergent individuals, professionals and parents of what life is like as someone who might be ADHD, Autistic or some other form of neurospiciness ;) Join us to find out what we've learned, what we wish we hadn't and how we're helping others.

Once again, we started a conversation, Maddy said something smart and then I said ... Shall we press record? And smart stuff just kept happening! We're into stories, why data is important, show that sharing builds connections and the importance of chocolate rocks.

Sometimes life rolls us in to chaos. Sometimes we need support. Sometimes we have jerks in our life who create the chaos and create the need for support! Come roll along with us ;)

Betty and I have gotten a bit off track but we're DELIGHTED to pick things up again with this episode! I'm sliding this in for Christmas because who doesn't need a bit of comfortable during the Holidays?

On this episode of the Future Looks Good, we meet Jason Bean. Jason is one of the most resilient people and persistent learners I've ever met. Today we get to peel pack some layers of the onion that is Jason and find out how he made the transition from "you can't do that" to "I'll show you" without completely losing his Ogre in the process ;)

Why does society get to dictate how people express their emotions? Excellent question. Let's discuss ;)

Do you deny your pink? Do you mask to fit in? We're talking embracing the things in life that make you happy vs worrying about what other dingalings think you should be. Someone wants you to fit in? That's a them issue, not a you issue. Are you getting grief about what colors you choose to wear? Also a them issue. We're chatting about our "roles" in life and how sometimes that needs to roll away ...

Maddy and I began this podcast talking about coffee. The beans of the gods for some folks. Or is it? Is it the beans or the moment you take for yourself to do something just for you? That moment of comfort. And then I said, Should we press record. Maddy said yes and now you have whole podcast dedicated to why finding what gives you comfort and not letting others judge you out of it is so important!

What if we started looking at change as a pivot? Looking at our existing skills and building on them instead of thinking we have to learn a whole new set of skills? Pivoting isn't just a funny Friends meme - it's a tactic used in business and many other places when what we're doing just isn't working for us anymore.

Have you ever tried something brand spanky new? Something different than anyone else in your network? Something that causes you to feel uncomfortable? Good! The feelings that come along with that are a human response to doing something brave. Unless you are lying your face off, you are not an imposter. You are just kicking ass and taking names ;)

The C word. I'm sure some of you thought cancer. Some thought something I can't type here without getting censored. And some just wondered, what the heck does this mean??? Without context, it's hard to understand ;)

I had a GREAT description written and then Soundcloud messed it up! Now my expertise is in writing and crafting messaging but that doesn't mean I want to rewrite this one ;) Today we're talking about the value of lived experience and owning the title of expert if it fits you. It's a bit of a journey to get there but the other value is that if you can find a way to share your voice and expertise, then you make change happen. People who have no lived experience in some areas should NOT be in charge of creating policy, programs or other opportunities without folks with lived experience being involved. And much like how you can't pay an architect for their experience using gift cards, lived experience experts should also get paid. If you valued someone enough to ask for their opinion / expertise, then it's valuable enough to pay for ;)

Sometimes navigating the world of autism can be a dark and lonely place for many people. Those diagnosed and those along for the ride to support the individual. The ever lovin' Maddy came up with the PERFECT analogy to describe what that wild ride can be like. Today's a shorty podcast but we expand on it next session. Don't miss it!

Once again, Betty and I get in to a non-podcast podcast where Betty starts talking smarticles and all I did was ask a damn question. Jeepers. We talk about the anticipatory energy brought to a conversation which can either go smoothly or become a conflict depending on how we show up. Then we leap to change: who should start? More importantly, why should someone else change when you aren't willing to budge your arse a bit? I'll let Betty explain the smart stuff ;) I just come along for comic relief.

What do we ramble on about on this episode? When I listened back while editing, I had to message Maddy because we covered SOOOO much that all tied back to communication and personal space. We touch on how trauma influences how we engage in certain situations. How our lenses on life can contribute or get in the way of belonging. How personal space, a valuable pandemic lesson, needs to be remembered. And how if you're at a conference and you stop suddenly to check your farking phone that SOME people might view that as an opportunity to go Free Guy on your butt ;) Just sayin'.

One thing I've always struggled with is putting value on lived experience. Not that it doesn't have value but how do you get paid for it? How do you get others to recognize it? If you think I've struggled, I've got nothing on the autism community. Tokenism is not paying someone a fair value in exchange for sharing lived experience. If it's valuable enough to ask for, it's valuable enough to pay for ;)