Sensitivity has a bad reputation in the workplace. Many of us – particularly if we’re neurodivergent – have been told to toughen up or similar. But sensitivity is a vital part of our professional toolkit. Without awareness, we can't respond effectively to the people and situations around us. To do our best work, we need environments that recognise sensitivity as a strength rather than a weakness. 

Even some of the best workplaces have a blind spot around sensitivity. Implicit in much resilience training is the idea that we should be less affected by the experiences of our working lives. This implies that the ideal staff member is numb to whatever is going on around them – but this is a terrible outcome for our organisations and clients. We can’t respond to a changing, complex, messily human reality without being both part of it and affected by it.  

The link between neurodiversity and sensitivity 

The stigma around sensitivity can be even bigger when you are sensitive to things that others are not. For neurodivergent people – those whose experience differs significantly from social norms – the idea that “you’re too sensitive” has likely been a repeated theme throughout life. The reality is somewhat different.  

The phrase ‘spiky profile’ refers to the variation in skill of a neurodivergent person. Culturally, we expect certain skills to vary together. If we’re good at ‘Thing A’ then we’ll be good at ‘Thing B’ too. For many neurodivergent people, though, we may excel at one thing, struggle with another, and be strong in an unexpected third skill.   

It’s not just our skills that can vary. We can also have a spiky sensitivity profile. We may be much more sensitive to some things – and relatively insensitive to others – than society expects us to be.  

Understanding sensory and perceptive sensitivity 

These differences happen at different levels of awareness. The first level is sensory sensitivity. This includes light, sound, smell, and texture. These might look like avoiding bright lights, cutting the labels out of clothes, or struggling if people near you are chewing.  

Sensory sensitivities can also bring advantages where a fine degree of awareness is needed. For example, someone who is sensitive to sound might make a great audio engineer. However, there’s another type of sensitivity that is just as important.  

Perceptive sensitivity is the ability to recognise and interpret specific signals among those competing for our attention. Being sensitive at this level might mean fine attunement to tone of language, being able to predict the effect of a minor change, or being adept at reading people’s feelings. Many neurodivergent people have such sensitivities. They can be a mixture of innate capabilities and skills developed to navigate a world loaded with misunderstanding and difficulty. Much like sensory sensitivities, in the wrong environment they can be a source of suffering – but in the right environment, they can be a unique strength.  

Why perceptive sensitivity matters in complex work 

Perceptive sensitivity is particularly valuable in complex work where situations are non-linear, unpredictable, and shaped by interacting systems and people. For caring professionals, this will feel familiar.  

Perceptive sensitivity is valuable in complex situations because it helps us notice subtle shifts before they develop into larger challenges or opportunities. Recognising these changes early allows us to respond more quickly and effectively, particularly in situations where timing can significantly influence outcomes. 

For CACHE Alumni members in education, early years, health, and social care, this ability can be particularly valuable. Whether identifying when a child may need additional support or responding to the needs of individuals in care settings, sensitivity can play an important role in achieving positive outcomes. 

Rethinking resilience and workplace design 

This has important implications for how we treat ourselves and how we design effective workplaces. It's less about building resilience and more about creating environments that support different levels of sensitivity. Where a role requires careful and detailed work, the environment should support that kind of sensitivity. 

A job requiring careful attention to detail is likely to be best suited to the kind of person who is overwhelmed by a noisy, hectic workplace, for example. Where the environment cannot be changed due to the nature of the work itself, people will need periods of rest to recover from potential overwhelm.  

This challenges the way many organisations think about how work should be organised. We must move beyond the idea that there is a single best practice for how we work. Instead, we should think about the task at hand and the people involved.  

There is no single best view of a complex situation, no perfect perspective. It is the diversity and richness of perspectives and their ability to communicate with each other that allows us to best navigate an uncertain world.  

Supporting neurodivergent employees to thrive 

It is not easy to speak up when you have a different perspective from those around you. One of the biggest challenges neurodivergent people face at work is knowing how to share their perspective so that it will be well received. These misunderstandings can lead people to hide what makes them different in order to avoid conflict and criticism. The need for such defensive masking starts early on and can therefore be an extremely difficult thing to shake off.  

Neurodivergent masking can make it hard to understand whether the working environment is a good fit for someone’s specific sensitivity. Repeated experiences of invalidation mean neurodivergent people often learn to distrust and ignore their own feelings. This can lead to overwhelm, burnout, and illness. Disentangling sensitivities from past trauma is extremely difficult.   

The principle of ‘safe enough’ encourages small changes that help people learn more about their situation. These small experiments can reduce the risk of change while helping people learn what works. This can help turn awareness into clear communication and effective action. 

The goal is to work towards a situation where our sensitivities are recognised as strengths and fully supported. This will likely require exploration and experimentation to find the right fit. It also depends on a workplace that is willing to explore and experiment alongside neurodivergent people. If we are willing to do this, everyone will benefit from the diverse awareness such an approach brings.  

Take the next step 

Understanding sensitivity through a trauma-informed and neuroinclusive lens can help organisations create supportive environments. For practitioners working across education, early years, health, and social care, developing this understanding can support more inclusive outcomes for both colleagues and those they work with.  

To deepen your knowledge, explore NCFE's Enhancing Neuroinclusivity Through Trauma-Informed Practice CPD short course, which provides practical insights into neuroinclusive approaches and trauma-informed practice.  

This article was originally published in Aluminate, the exclusive magazine for CACHE Alumni members. If you're not yet a member, join for free to access expert insights, sector updates, and CPD opportunities that can support your career in education, early years, and care. 

Pictured: Matthew Bellringer, Neurodiversity and Innovation Specialist