We tend to think of famous or successful people as having it easy in life, or they somehow got lucky. We admire them for what they have or for what they have accomplished and sometimes wish we were just like them. The truth, however, is often very different from what we imagine. You might be surprised at the famous people who had to overcome a learning disability. More often than not, people are shaped by the obstacles they overcome - such as a learning disability - more than by inherent talent, intelligence, luck or money.
Perhaps no one in modern history matches up with the labels genius among genius's, great thinker and super intelligent more than Albert Einstein. He revolutionized the way we see the universe more so than anyone else in the last several hundred years. No scientist since Isaac Newton can match Einstein's genius and accomplishments. But he suffered from not one learning disability but a whole host of them. He was diagnosed with dyslexia, attention deficit disorder and autism.
If you mention the name Winston Churchill to your parents or grandparents they may say that he was one of the greatest political leaders of the twentieth century or even that he saved the world. He can take a great deal of credit for the fact that we don't all speak German or Japanese today. It is perhaps ironic that he was one of the greatest political orators in modern history but he also suffered from the learning disability stuttering. Talk about overcompensating for a handicap.
The Internet would not exist as it is today if it was not for Alexander Graham Bell. His invention of both the microphone and the telephone paved the way for the incredible communication and information superhighway that exists today. He even invented a way to send sound over a beam of light, which led the way for today's fiber optic communications systems. Despite his creative genius Bell suffered from dyslexia.
Another brilliant inventor, Thomas Edison, was kicked out of school at the age of 12 because he was said to be too dumb. He was bad at mathematics, had trouble with words and speaking. Despite this he overcame his dyslexia and went on to patent more than 1000 inventions including the electric light bulb.
The list of famous actors, musicians and actresses that suffered from attention deficit disorder or a learning disability may shock you. Sylvester Stallone, Cher, Tom Cruise, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams, Lindsay Wagner, Suzanne Somers, Henry Winkler, John Lennon, Beethoven, Mozart, Dustin Hoffman, Danny Glover and Steve McQueen all had a learning disability. And professional athletes are not immune when it comes to a learning disability. Irvin "Magic" Johnson, Carl Lewis, Bruce Jenner, Greg Louganis and Jason Kidd all had to overcome a learning disability.
Sometimes talent and genius are more than just inherited or evident from birth. Overcoming a learning disability has shaped the careers and accomplishments of some of the most famous people in the world. So don't sell people with a learning disability short. They are just as intelligent, talented and sensitive as everyone else they simply have trouble processing certain types of information.
