Do you ever feel that traditional business advice doesn’t work for you? I’ve been there, and I know you’re not alone. The reality is that most strategies weren’t designed for Highly Sensitive People (HSPs). But that doesn’t mean you can’t thrive as a leader in business and life. In fact, many of the world’s most impactful leaders, especially women, have been highly sensitive and deeply intuitive.
This week, we’re exploring how embracing your neurodiversity is the key to success rather than fighting against it. We’re also celebrating the successful women in history who used their Highly Sensitive Superpowers to make a difference and sharing guidance for HSPs everywhere to experience more income and impact with less effort.
Is HSP Neurodivergent? Understanding Sensitivity in Leadership
Many people ask, “Are HSP people neurodivergent?” The answer depends on how we define neurodiversity. While HSPs don’t have a neurological condition like ADHD or autism, their brains function differently from the norm. The HSP brain differences include deep processing, heightened emotional sensitivity, and an increased awareness of environmental subtleties. These traits make HSPs uniquely gifted in leadership roles that require intuition, empathy, and innovative thinking.
Rather than seeing these traits as obstacles, embracing them as strengths allows HSPs to create success in a way that works for them.
Highly Sensitive Women in History: Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall embodies the power of being a highly sensitive person. Her deep empathy allowed her to connect with chimpanzees in a way no scientist had before, observing their behaviors, emotions, relationships, and individuality. Her intuition guided her groundbreaking discoveries, proving that sensitivity is not a weakness but a strength that fuels understanding, innovation, and change. Like many HSPs, she thrived by following her inner knowing, embracing solitude in nature, and turning her profound sense of compassion into a lifelong mission. Her legacy reminds us that our sensitivity is a gift—it’s what allows us to see, feel, and transform the world in ways others may overlook.
HSP vs Neurodivergent: How Do They Compare?
While HSP vs neurodivergent discussions often overlap, it’s essential to recognize their distinctions. Neurodivergence generally includes conditions like autism, ADHD, and dyslexia, while HSPs fall under the umbrella of natural temperament variations. However, HSPs share similar challenges, such as sensory sensitivity, deep emotional processing, and the need for specialized self-care strategies.
Understanding these differences can help HSPs stop forcing themselves into neurotypical business strategies and instead develop systems that honor their unique wiring.
What’s Happening with Heather: Enhancing HSP Business Leadership Through Neurodiversity
I recently led a really impactful training for the Business Miracles members in the Highly Sensitive Leadership Training programs titled Enhancing HSP Business Leadership Through Neurodiversity and Executive Functioning. This was part of the live, real-time training I deliver each week to support my members in operating optimally as HSPs in business in the midst of our rapidly changing world.
At the heart of the training was this nugget from Harvard University: “Neurodiversity describes the idea that people experience and interact with the world around them in many different ways; there is no one ‘right’ way of thinking, learning, and behaving, and differences are not viewed as deficits.”
This Week’s HSP Business Tip: Identify, Accept, and Master (I.AM) Your Strengths
One of the most powerful shifts you can make as a Highly Sensitive Person in business and leadership is to Identify, Accept, and Master (I.AM) your unique highly sensitive strengths—because being an HSP isn’t a flaw; it’s an advantage. The key is to build skills in a way that works for you rather than forcing yourself into neurotypical standards that weren’t designed with your gifts in mind. Here’s a breakdown:
- Identify: Recognize that being HSP is a trait, not a deficit.
- Accept: Release shame patterns and embrace your natural processing style.
- Master: Strengthen executive functioning skills like income goal-setting and impulse control in a way that works for you as an HSP.
Stop comparing yourself to neurotypical standards and create systems that work for you. Lean into community, core practice, and consistency to support your business and leadership. Register for my FREE, live, Intro Class to get started right away.
Business Miracles Members Making an Impact: Laura Smith
Name: Laura Smith
Title: Highly Sensitive Leader and Children’s Book Author and Owner of I Am Growing Happy
“Over the last year, I’ve made a practice of regularly reviewing my notes from Heather’s teachings, and I’m realizing what a difference it has made. I found a women’s networking group that I feel connected with, which gave me opportunities for vendor tables and increased my sales. Using energy management tools, I registered my first one-on-one client in the fall, and it was easy, relaxed, and exactly what I had hoped for! Last spring, I read my book to hundreds of children at an author’s reading assembly, and it was a DREAM COME TRUE.
I see how the old way was sabotaging me and keeping me trapped in painful family strife for decades, and through the work I’ve done in my Highly Sensitive Leadership Training program and at in-person trainings with Heather, I’m moving into continual acceptance about how to do things differently and making new choices for myself and my business with incredible personal and professional results.”
Laura’s experience proves a core truth about neurodiversity and HSPs: success comes not from working harder but from working differently in alignment with your natural wiring. When you stop forcing neurotypical strategies and instead create systems that honor your energy and strengths, ease, impact, and income follow.
Step Into Your Highly Sensitive Leadership
Being an HSP neurodivergent leader isn’t about conforming to the norm—it’s about creating a new way of leading that aligns with your strengths. If you’re ready to step into your full potential, we invite you to join us.
Discover how to harness your HSP strengths so you’re also increasing your sales in an easy, relaxed way: schedule your Clarity Call today!
