I was a leader at Google and Microsoft. I thought my traumatic brain injury would hurt my career, but instead it made me stronger.

Naseem Rochette, a 54-year-old account director at Databricks based in New Jersey, experienced a life-altering event in 2018 when she was hit and run over by a car, resulting in a traumatic brain injury and neurodivergence. This incident caused her to lose her previous identity as a multitasking professional who thrived in chaos, fundamentally changing her approach to life and work.

With 25 years in the tech industry, including leadership roles at Google and Microsoft, Rochette found that her abilities shifted after the accident; she could no longer handle multiple tasks simultaneously and became more sensitive to daily triggers. Initially fearing this would hinder her career, she discovered that embracing vulnerability and sharing her journey allowed her to connect more deeply with others, ultimately making her a better leader and problem-solver.

Recovery was challenging, as she returned to work at Microsoft too soon due to an upcoming conference, but over a year or two, she learned to focus intensely on fewer tasks rather than many. This shift required her to accept her new reality and communicate these changes to colleagues, highlighting a lack of awareness around neurodivergent sensitivity that she hadn't considered before.

At Google, Rochette created user guides to explain her altered work style, noting key differences such as an aversion to phone calls, voicemails, multitasking, and large events like conferences or networking gatherings. She also adapted her meeting facilitation by providing multiple ways for participants to engage, such as through text or follow-up notes, making interactions more inclusive and manageable for her new needs.