The Bees Knees Exercise 3

This exercise is will help you to reduce some of the negative feelings that you may have towards your dyslexia. The exercise is made up of seven simple steps:

1. Make a list of all the things about your dyslexia that you feel negative about

2. Prioritise your list

3. Write each heading from your list on seperate pieces of paper

4. Explore the negative aspect of each issue

5. Write down how you would like things to be regarding each issue

6. Start working out how you would bring about changes to create how you would ‘ideally’ like things to be

7. Write an action plan and put it into action

The steps are outlined below.

Step one: Make a list of all the things about your dyslexia that you feel negative about (and/or wish to overcome)

Make a list of all the things that you are feeling negative about towards your dyslexia; a few words will do. Don’t worry too much at this stage where you start from as you will prioritise them in the next step of this process. For now list all the things that are making you feel negative about your dyslexia. Write down anything that comes into your head!

You don’t have to show this list to anyone so don’t worry about the things you list being silly or trivial. Keep adding to the list till you have run out of anything else to include. (You might prefer to make a list on audio tape or to draw a series of pictures). Your list may look something like this:

Being dyslexic

Writing letters

Memory problems

Filling in forms

Reading out loud

Going blank

Poor concentration (Back to top)

Step two: Prioritise your list

The next step is to put the things that you have listed into the order that you feel you would like to tackle them. The simplest way to do this is to number them, as shown in the example:

Being dyslexic (1)

Writing letters (4)

Memory problem (5)

Filling in forms (3)

Reading out loud (2)

Going blank (6)

Poor spellings (7) (Back to top)

Step three: Write each heading from your list on separate pieces of paper

The next thing to do is write the first four of five of your prioritised headings down on separate pieces of A4 paper. You will end up with something that looks like this but obviously with your headings on them:

Being dyslexic (1)

Reading out loud (2)

Filling in forms (3)

Writing letters (4) (Back to top)

Step four: Explore the negative aspect of each issue

The next thing to do is to start exploring each issue by looking at why you feel the way you do about it.

A good way of doing this is to write about the issue from the third person perspective, in other words as if someone you know really well was writing about you and the issue being focused on. The reason for doing this is that it will help you not get too bogged down with the negative emotions that may be attached to the issue. Here is an example of what Antonio would have written several years ago, to give you a better idea.

"Being dyslexic (1) step four

Antonio hates being dyslexic. He hates not being able to… "

Write down as much as you can in this fashion till you can’t find much more to write about. When you have finished this move on to the next one and do the same. Do this till you have completed each sheet. (Back to top)

Step five: Write down how you would like things to be regarding each issue

The next thing to do is to write down how you would like things to ideally be regarding the issue you are focusing on. Here’s an example:

Antonio would love not to be dyslexic. He would love to be

able to…" (Back to top)

Step six: Start working out how you would bring about changes to create how you would ‘ideally’ like things to be

Now here’s the tricky bit. Start writing down how you would bring about the changes needed to create things the way you outlined in step five of this exercise. Here is yet another example:

"Being dyslexic (1) step six

For Antonio not to be dyslexic anymore he would simple need

to get rid of all the negative things that he believes are caused

by his dyslexia. He would be able to do this by carefully

focusing on all the negative things and finding ways to over-

come them. He knows that this will take some time to do but

that it will be worth it in the end.

He needs to stopped thinking that dyslexia is something that

can’t be changed. He needs to develop a positive mind-set

and also develop his skills in reading, writing, remembering what

he wants to remember, structuring his ideas.

He will have to start working on the above things straight

away. He can begin this by working out a plan of action and then

carrying it out. He can also… " (Back to top)

Step seven: Write an action plan and put it into action

The final step is to write an action plan that you think will help you bring about the changes that you wrote about in step six. Once you have written your plan put it in to action and see if it gets you the results that you are after. If it doesn’t then review your plan and rewrite it if you think of a better way of bringing about the changes you want.

It’s important to try not to take things to seriously. If things don’t work out the way you want them too, stay positive and try again. A good tip is to try to imagine that you are a scientist and that your plan is a set of instructions for an experiment that you are going to conduct. If you get the results you are after then stick to the sort of action plans that you already coming up with. If, on the other hand, your action plan doesn’t bring you the results you want, then amend it just like a scientist would if they were carrying out an experiment. With this sort of approach you will hopefully not give in until you find the sort of action plan that brings you the best results. The following example show a rough outline of the sort of action plan Antonio might have followed:

"Being dyslexic (1) step seven

I recon that if I start reading for at least 30 minutes a day

that my reading will start to improve. I will know that it is if I

note down on the first day how many pages I was able to read

and then at the end of each month see if I can read more

pages.

I think I will also get a book on speed reading so that I can

learn a few techniques to help me increase my reading speed

and comprehension.

I think that I will find a book that I will really enjoy to read.

I shall go to the book shop on Saturday to have a look for both

these books. Also, I think that I will.." (Back to top)

Notice how the plan mentions how the progress being made will be measured, i.e. by seeing how many more pages can be read in half an hour each month. Also, note how the plan is very specific, it sets a date to go to the book shop. Be specific as it will commit you to a start date to carry out your plan. Try not to put things off for too long. Remember if your plan doesn’t work out the way you anticipated that it would, then amend it or write a new one. Stay light hearted and most of all try and have some fun with your experiments.

If you get stuck then email us and we will help you if we can. Or if you have time let us know how you got on with this exercise. We would love to know if you found it useful and also how you think it could be made to work better.

Good luck! (Back to top)