Quinn Bradlee interviews David Boies for the National Center for Learning Disabilities.
Here’s the intro from the NCLD site:
I recently had the opportunity to interview David Boies, possibly our country’s most famous lawyer, who happens to have dyslexia. He has tried many Supreme Court cases, including the Bush vs. Gore case in 2000. That same year, Time Magazine named him “Lawyer of the Year.” He has also won countless awards throughout his career.
It wasn’t until his son was diagnosed with dyslexia that David got his diagnosis. The thing I love the most about David is that even though he struggles with reading, he doesn’t feel there is anything wrong with him. He’s learned how to develop compensating skills. He says one of those skills is the ability to listen. In his words:
“I think my dyslexia has helped me in a number of ways. Because I have difficulty reading, I had to learn to speak without notes, which in court can be much more effective. It also taught me to organize my thoughts in a clear and comprehensible way. That also can be a powerful tool.”
David’s advice to parents of recently diagnosed kids and recently diagnosed young adults is this: “Be patient.” He says “the real tragedy of dyslexia is that young people suffer from it at a time when two things are happening: 1) they’re at their most vulnerable in their adolescence, and 2) it is the time when they’re expected to read the most.”
“If you can just be patient through a very, very difficult time, you can come out the other end. And what you find at the other end is you’re just like everybody else. Because what you had to overcome, you have overcome.”
