In the workplace, gifted adults can be perceived as “intimidating” or “threatening” by their colleagues.  Gifted adults may report being under-stimulated at work, and unable to comprehend why their ideas that would lead to greater efficiencies or profits for their companies are not acted upon. They may also experience conflicts with co-workers that they do not understand.

Gifted adults possess many positive characteristics that when understood can lead to highly valuable contributions in the workplace. These include:

• a love of ideas and ardent discussion,
• the ability to connect seemingly unrelated ideas,
• being visionary,
• being empathic,
• thriving on challenge, and
• having strong moral convictions.

Employers may notice that gifted adults are:

• less motivated by rewards and praise, and
• prone to work themselves to exhaustion.

I recommend three books on the subject of giftedness in adults.

— Dr. Patricia Turner, Registered Psychologist, Calgary, Alberta