Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Taking a Break this week (But Also I Accidentally Became a Law Researcher)
This week I am taking a break. Which, if you know me, means I am still here on camera talking to you, because apparently this is what rest looks like for a late diagnosed AuDHD brain. No big structured video, no fifteen-point framework. Just me, a quieter week, and one thing I genuinely wanted to share.
A few months ago I submitted a research paper to the New Zealand Journal of Employment Relations, a peer-reviewed academic journal, complete with citations, footnotes, and everything. And it got published. I am mentioning this as casually as possible while internally doing a victory lap around my living room.
The topic is intellectual property clauses in employment contracts and the protection of mātauranga Māori. I know. Stay with me.
Here is the core issue. Standard employment contracts in New Zealand almost always contain a clause that says anything you create during your employment belongs to your employer. No exceptions. But mātauranga Māori, the body of knowledge, values, and practice developed by Māori over generations, is not individually owned. It belongs to communities. It flows through whakapapa. It cannot legally or ethically be transferred by one person signing a piece of paper.
For Māori employees, particularly those in advisory or cultural roles, this creates a real and under-examined risk. Their cultural knowledge, knowledge they did not create alone and do not have the right to assign, can be quietly captured by a standard employment contract. Not through malicious intent. Just through a legal framework that was never designed with Indigenous knowledge systems in mind.
This matters for the neurodivergent community too. So many of us are late diagnosed, which means we have spent years working in systems that were not built for us, signing documents we were not supported to fully understand, in power dynamics that were never equal. Sound familiar?
Practical tip: before signing any employment agreement, look specifically at the intellectual property clause. Ask what it covers. Check whether there are carve-outs for personal, pre-existing, or culturally derived knowledge. If something feels too broad, it probably is. You are allowed to ask questions. You are allowed to ask for changes.
If this sparked something for you, the full published paper is linked in the comments. It is 32 pages. I wrote every word with my own hands. May the odds be ever in your favour.
Subscribe for more research-backed videos on neurodivergence, AuDHD, late diagnosis, Māori employment rights, and the systems that shape our lives. And watch the full deep-dive video on mātauranga Māori and intellectual property for the complete breakdown.
ojs.aut.ac.nz/nzjer/forthcoming/view/index
0:00 Introduction: Taking a Break (AuDHD Style)
0:42 April Research a Day: What Is Coming Next
1:10 I Got Published in a Peer-Reviewed Law Journal
1:55 What Is Matauranga Maori? A Plain English Definition
2:30 The Example That Will Surprise You: Employment Contracts and Indigenous Knowledge
4:05 Why Nobody Had Bad Intentions (And Why That Is the Problem)
4:53 What This Research Is Really About
🔔 TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS for more videos from me!
___________________________________________________
🎁 FREE DOWNLOAD:
Need practical tools made with neurodivergent brains in mind? Check out my free resources — from burnout support to workplace guides — all designed to help you navigate life with ADHD, autism, or both. nicolaknobel.com/shop
🛍️ MERCH DROP
Get the soft, neurodivergent-coded t-shirts that understand your need for comfort and identity. nicolaknobel.com/shop
Check out the blog post!
___________________________________________________
JOIN ME OVER AT:
Instagram: instagram.com/nicola.knobel
Pinterest: pinterest.com/nikiknobel
Facebook: facebook.com/nicolaknobel.audhd
Threads: threads.com/@nicola.knobel
__________________________________________________
⚠️NOTE:
I’m not a medical professional. This video is based on lived experience, research, and educational insights. Please speak to a qualified healthcare provider for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
This description contains affiliate links that allow you to find the items mentioned in this video and support the channel at no cost to you. While this channel may earn minimal sums when the viewer uses the links, the viewer is in NO WAY obligated to use these links. Thank you for your support!
___________________________________________________
#nicolaknobel
___________________________________________________
Link: youtu.be/vgWMXge7W24
Taking a Break this week (But Also I Accidentally Became a Law Researcher)
This week I am taking a break. Which, if you know me, means I am still here on camera talking to you, because apparently this is what rest looks like for a late diagnosed AuDHD brain. No big structured video, no fifteen-point framework. Just me, a quieter week, and one thing I genuinely wanted to share.
A few months ago I submitted a research paper to the New Zealand Journal of Employment Relations, a peer-reviewed academic journal, complete with citations, footnotes, and everything. And it got published. I am mentioning this as casually as possible while internally doing a victory lap around my living room.
The topic is intellectual property clauses in employment contracts and the protection of mātauranga Māori. I know. Stay with me.
Here is the core issue. Standard employment contracts in New Zealand almost always contain a clause that says anything you create during your employment belongs to your employer. No exceptions. But mātauranga Māori, the body of knowledge, values, and practice developed by Māori over generations, is not individually owned. It belongs to communities. It flows through whakapapa. It cannot legally or ethically be transferred by one person signing a piece of paper.
For Māori employees, particularly those in advisory or cultural roles, this creates a real and under-examined risk. Their cultural knowledge, knowledge they did not create alone and do not have the right to assign, can be quietly captured by a standard employment contract. Not through malicious intent. Just through a legal framework that was never designed with Indigenous knowledge systems in mind.
This matters for the neurodivergent community too. So many of us are late diagnosed, which means we have spent years working in systems that were not built for us, signing documents we were not supported to fully understand, in power dynamics that were never equal. Sound familiar?
Practical tip: before signing any employment agreement, look specifically at the intellectual property clause. Ask what it covers. Check whether there are carve-outs for personal, pre-existing, or culturally derived knowledge. If something feels too broad, it probably is. You are allowed to ask questions. You are allowed to ask for changes.
If this sparked something for you, the full published paper is linked in the comments. It is 32 pages. I wrote every word with my own hands. May the odds be ever in your favour.
Subscribe for more research-backed videos on neurodivergence, AuDHD, late diagnosis, Māori employment rights, and the systems that shape our lives. And watch the full deep-dive video on mātauranga Māori and intellectual property for the complete breakdown.
ojs.aut.ac.nz/nzjer/forthcoming/view/index
0:00 Introduction: Taking a Break (AuDHD Style)
0:42 April Research a Day: What Is Coming Next
1:10 I Got Published in a Peer-Reviewed Law Journal
1:55 What Is Matauranga Maori? A Plain English Definition
2:30 The Example That Will Surprise You: Employment Contracts and Indigenous Knowledge
4:05 Why Nobody Had Bad Intentions (And Why That Is the Problem)
4:53 What This Research Is Really About
🔔 TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS for more videos from me!
___________________________________________________
🎁 FREE DOWNLOAD:
Need practical tools made with neurodivergent brains in mind? Check out my free resources — from burnout support to workplace guides — all designed to help you navigate life with ADHD, autism, or both. nicolaknobel.com/shop
🛍️ MERCH DROP
Get the soft, neurodivergent-coded t-shirts that understand your need for comfort and identity. nicolaknobel.com/shop
Check out the blog post!
___________________________________________________
JOIN ME OVER AT:
Instagram: instagram.com/nicola.knobel
Pinterest: pinterest.com/nikiknobel
Facebook: facebook.com/nicolaknobel.audhd
Threads: threads.com/@nicola.knobel
__________________________________________________
⚠️NOTE:
I’m not a medical professional. This video is based on lived experience, research, and educational insights. Please speak to a qualified healthcare provider for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
This description contains affiliate links that allow you to find the items mentioned in this video and support the channel at no cost to you. While this channel may earn minimal sums when the viewer uses the links, the viewer is in NO WAY obligated to use these links. Thank you for your support!
___________________________________________________
#nicolaknobel
___________________________________________________
Link: youtu.be/vgWMXge7W24
