Interview with Charlie Turrell

QUESTION 01 Can you tell us a bit about yourself, and how your disability might impact your experience, as someone who attends live in-person and virtual events?

My name is Charlie and I work at the BBC in the Accessibility Team. I have ADHD which can impact me in various ways.

At virtual events I can become easily distracted by any noise, this could be more than one person speaking or when someone un-mutes their microphone for any reason. Once I lose my place, I struggle to get back into the flow, and have difficulty processing what I am trying to read. Video also requires more concentration focus in general which can cause increased fatigue and I find it quite hard to sit still, so not being able to move around on a stage feels physically uncomfortable.

In-person events are better, but having to interact with many people at one-time pre-event can be mentally draining, I will still be processing conversations that have happened hours before whilst I am on stage.

QUESTION 02 Thinking back on some of your experiences attending in-person or virtual events, what are some of the worst things speakers, trainers, and other communication experts can do to ruin your experience as an attendee?

Having a poorly planned hybrid session can be exhausting, especially if there is a delay when online attendees are speaking. Trying to address people in the room and online at the same time when answering questions can be difficult, as I don’t know where to focus. Having no long breaks for me to move around will cause my energy levels to deplete quickly, as I become fidgety and irritable.

Recently, I have had quite a poor short-term memory, so asking me a series of questions back to back for me to answer is hard, as I will not remember to answer them all and I feel embarrassed when prompted.

QUESTION 03 Can you share some of the great things speakers, trainers, and other communication experts sometimes do that make a positive impact on your ability to fully enjoy your in-person or virtual event experiences?

For me, being well prepared before an event can greatly reduce anxiety. Having information sent ahead of time, telling me about the space we are due to be meeting and the surrounding area is also really helpful. This could be advising on a place to eat, stay, or the best way to get to and from the venue.

Making sure the space has minimal distractions has worked for me, too. Hearing constant noise from a space i.e. a kitchen preparing for lunch can cause my concentration to be greatly hindered which is exhausting, the great spaces that events have been held in tend to be fairly self-contained.

QUESTION 04 If you had one piece of advice to give speakers, trainers, and other communication experts, so their content became more inclusive of people who have disabilities, what would it be?

When asking someone to participate in anything you are delivering, please ask if there is anything they can do to remove potential barriers. Try not to make any assumptions about a person and their body, no person is the same, and what works for one person with ADHD might not work for someone else. Show you have done some research, this always makes me feel more comfortable sharing what adjustments I need, as it clearly matters to that person that I have a good experience.

QUESTION 05 Thank you for sharing some of your insights with us today. As we wrap up our conversation, is there anything that you’d like to add, such as another thought, another piece of advice, another perspective, etc.?

Accessibility isn’t taboo, so having positive conversations with all different kinds of people is the key to making things better for those around us. Do your research, see what the Accessibility community is talking about, and listen to those that are sharing their stories to help people better understand. People can be afraid to ask questions for fear of offending someone, but for me excluding them would be much worse!