Workplace language has rules that are rarely written down.
Cuevera focuses on the gap between the literal sentence and everything a workplace may expect you to infer from it.
Why this exists
A workplace message can be grammatically simple and still be difficult to interpret. “Maybe revisit this” can be a real request. “No rush” can sit beside an unstated deadline. “Interesting” can be neutral, positive or dismissive depending on the context. Company jargon can turn ordinary actions into phrases that make little sense literally.
For some neurodivergent adults, this creates extra work that other people may never see. The difficulty is not necessarily reading the sentence. It can be working out the subtext, holding the surrounding details in mind, deciding which social cue matters, or predicting how a direct reply will be received.
What autism research and guidance describe
Autistic people vary enormously, but workplace guidance from the National Autistic Society identifies recurring problems that include unclear instructions, sarcasm and irony, difficulty picking up subtle signs of conflict, and direct or literal communication being misread by non-autistic colleagues as rude or blunt.
A systematic synthesis of autistic adults’ employment experiences similarly found repeated challenges around social cues, unwritten social norms and feedback that could be difficult to understand. The same review stresses that the workplace environment matters. The burden should not be framed as an individual failure to communicate.
What ADHD research and guidance describe
ADHD is not the same communication profile as autism. CHADD notes, however, that many adults with ADHD can have difficulty catching subtle nuances, reading between the lines or understanding subtext. Inattention and working-memory demands can also make it harder to hold onto details while simultaneously tracking what a person may be implying.
At work, impulsive speech or very direct wording can also be interpreted by other people in ways the speaker did not intend. Research on adult ADHD at work points more broadly to the interaction between attention, executive demands, social interaction and the work environment.
What Cuevera does
What They Mean gives a plain-language reading of likely subtext, tone, sarcasm, passive aggressive language, indirect requests, idioms, vague expectations and company jargon.
How I Sound looks in the other direction. It helps you check how your own draft may come across before you send it.
The result is a second reading you can use when a message feels unclear, using the selected text and limited nearby context.
Sources behind this page
- National Autistic Society: What can I do if I’m having trouble at work?
- National Autistic Society: What support can I get at work?
- The lived experience of autistic adults in employment: systematic search and synthesis
- CHADD: Relationships & Social Skills
- CHADD: Succeeding in the Workplace
- Systematic review of interventions to support adults with ADHD at work