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Ask HN: Do founders skew to ADHD, ASD, and/or anti-authoritarianism?

3 points by airhead969 ↗ HN
I'm curious what people think of whether founders tend to be rebel misfits, neuro-"atypical," differently-motivated, and/or hyperfocused on things few others delve into, and as such, either aren't content with a career or dead-end job, or simply can't hold a conventional job.

7 comments

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zepto
Very interesting question. My guess is that it has skewed away from that stereotype over time towards people who have the charisma and or social status to raise funds.

Not that neurodiverse people cannot be charismatic - I’m just guessing about the skew.

WJW
Surely neurodiversity also goes to the "right side" of the bell curve? Hypercharismatic people are just as atypical as non-charismatics. Probably the same goes for focus, intelligence and a bunch of other characteristics.
zepto
Likely true for ‘hypercharismatic’. It certainly seems true with say, charismatic sociopaths.

However we might make a distinction between hypercharisma, and high-normal charisma combined with social access.

WJW
It seems like one would lead to the other.
zepto
Which way round?
WJW
Hypercharisma leading to social access.
zepto
Agreed, but hypercharisma is likely rare and distinct from people in the high-normal range who just happen to have social access.