52 Famous Dyslexic People

Recently I was visiting a teenage boy whome I'm very close to. Despite being intelligent, he suffers in school. He didn't want to talk about it. He didn't want to discuss dyslexia, and it was pretty obvious why:

He was ashamed of his dyslexia.

This crushed me. I have surrounded myself by people with dyslexia, and it's very clear to me that it's not something to be ashamed of. Yes you need to be aware of it, work at it, and yes it can be difficult, but it should never be shameful.

I'm not naive, and I realize that there are thousands of dyslexics out there who feel the same way as this teenage boy. I felt I needed to do something.

I made a collection:

52 famous dyslexic people: one for every week of the year. 

These are successful people who have felt very similar things to those struggling with dyslexia right now; who have trudged through the difficulties, and found a way to triumph despite, and perhaps because of their dyslexia.

For each person on the list, I created a poster and provided a Youtube video of them talking about their dyslexia. I did this with the idea of a sort of vision board that might be incorporated in homes and schools.

But I was picky.

I have seen many lists of famous dyslexics. Sometimes I get the impression that the only requirement to be on the list, is if the person is/was intelligent and yet still had trouble in school or dropped out of school. With these as the only qualifications, you get lists with Albert Einstein, Walt Disney, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, and more.

Some I'm quite convinced do not have a speck of dyslexia in them (just study Bill Gates a little, and I think you'll agree that he's not.)

However, in my gut I feel that many on these lists truly were/are dyslexics. Despite this, I feel that to truly connect with people, you need to be able to trust that they know what your are going through. Because of this, I tried to only include people who have said "I have dyslexia."

I have heard some say that it is foolish to give unrealistic expectations on those who are just trying to keep their head above water, but I say: give people examples of hope, so they will have the courage to keep on swimming.

Quick link to Youtube videos of Dyslexic Success Stories:

Click Here

Quick links to Dyslexic success story 8.5"x11" posters grouped by profession: (click on name to access poster for download)

Entertainment Industry:

Henry Winkler, James Rallison, Jay Leno, Jewel, Keira Knightly, Octavia Spencer, Orlando Bloom, Steve McQueen, Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, Tom Holland, Whoopi Goldberg

Business Industry:

Barbara Corcoran, Charles Schwab, Craig McCaw, David H. Murdock, Daymond John, Don Winkler,  Ingvar Kamprad, John Chambers, Kevin O'Leary, Nick Jones, Paul Orfalea, Ryan Guyer, Richard Branson, Tommy Hilfiger

Politicians/Activists:

Princess Beatrice of York, Carol Moseley Braun, Erin Brockovich, Nelson Rockefeller, Swedish Royal Family

Authors/Journalists:

Dav Pilkey, Haley Riordan, Jerry Pinkney, Lisa Nichols, Philip Schultz, Robyn Curnow, Sally Gardner, Terry Goodkind, Victor Villasenor

Scientific Community: 

Archer John Porter Martin, Carol Greider, Jack Horner, Jacques Dubochet, John B. Goodenough, Maggie Aderin-Pocock

Sports Industry:

Diamond Dallas Page, Duncan Goodhew, Nolan Ryan, Rex Ryan

Celebrity Chefs:

Jamie Oliver, Marco Pierre White



Entertainment Industry:

(doesn’t mention dyslexia in video, but does in autobiography)

Business Industry:

Politicians/Activists:

(doesn’t mention dyslexia in video)

(turn on closed Captioning)

Authors/Journalists:

Scientific Community:

(doesn’t mention Dyslexia in video)

Sports Industry:

Celebrity Chefs:

While making this list, I found many more dyslexic success stories that deserve to be shared. For whatever reason, I chose these people, and I encourage you to find more and keep on being inspired!

****Great Idea!****

Someone on Facebook had the great idea of taking my templates and creating "Dyslexic Success Story" posters for students!!! I LOVE this idea. Here's what it could look like using my son as an example:

If you have Photoshop, then here's the templates in their PSD form: (click on the template names)

PSDtemplate1, PSDtemplate2, PSDtemplate3, PSDtemplate4

If you want a clean JPG backdrop that you can add to, just click on the template name. I also included PNGs of the cute little dots.

Template1, Template2, Template3, Template4, Dot1, Dot2