Asperger's on the Job: Must-Have Advice for People With Asperger's or High Functioning Autism, and Their Employers, Educators, and Advocates

Asperger's on the Job: Must-Have Advice for People With Asperger's or High Functioning Autism, and Their Employers, Educators, and Advocates Read Free Page B

Book: Asperger's on the Job: Must-Have Advice for People With Asperger's or High Functioning Autism, and Their Employers, Educators, and Advocates Read Free
Author: Rudy Simone
Tags: Asperger&rsquo
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apply acquired knowledge and skills. Think of us as strongly intuitive, intelligent in a sixth-sense kind of way, in some cases genius, but perhaps lacking in certain areas of common sense.
“The boss referred to me as ‘the corporation’s mad genius’ and then said he meant it ‘in a good way.’”
- LEWIS, BA HISTORY, 51, UNEMPLOYED
Visual, three-dimensional thinking. Some people with AS are very visual in their thought processes, which lends itself to countless useful and creative applications in the work environment. Temple Grandin, author of Thinking in Pictures (1995, 2006), is perhaps the most famous visual thinker on the spectrum. She is able to visualize large-scale projects, draw up blueprints, and then accurately test-run them in her mind before they are built.
Attention to detail, sometimes with painstaking perfection, again ensuring a job well done. One flipside of this can be wanting to spend more time on a task than an employer or coworkers might wish.
“I got far too involved with talking about and notating every detail of the conversation with my customer. I had very long calls but did the best job for that reason.”
- MIA, 40, UNEMPLOYED
Honesty . The value of being able to say “the emperor isn’t wearing any clothes” should not be underestimated, even if it’s not what people want to hear. This can make a person unpopular. Sometimes it manifests as brutal honesty, and lacking in tact or thought of consequences.
Logic over emotion . Although people with AS can be very sensitive, we spend so much time “computing” in our minds that we get quite good at it. We can be very logical in our approach to problem-solving. Of course there are times, even in business, that a more empathic, emotion-driven response is called for.
     

    What are your or your employee’s positive qualities?
    Are you currently using them to your advantage?

CHAPTER 2
The Importance of Belief
    T he general public has little idea what autism really is, and even less about Asperger’s. They don’t know how it presents, or what it looks like. People are shocked when they see an attractive or intelligent person who announces they are on the spectrum—as if we are always talking to ourselves or twirling in circles. While some with AS are more obviously affected, it is harder to spot in others. For brief periods of time, many with Asperger’s Syndrome can appear completely non-autistic and “normal.” But many (myself included) say that it exhausts them to do so and they can’t keep it up for long. If a person is “on” at a particular day or time, no one might ever guess that they were autistic. And even when we do act “different,” autism is not the label that springs to mind. Awkward, rude, nervous, shy, strange, slow, arrogant: these are the types of labels that often get pinned on us.
    While at times there may be some apparent anomalies in our manner, expression, or gait, the general rule is that you can’t tell by just looking whether or not someone has Asperger’s. Hence, it is often called the “invisible syndrome.” Idiosyncratic behavior is occasional, and it is usually triggered by social or environmental things.
    If you are an employer, you may have hired someone who impressed you with their skills, their resume, and their qualities, and then, as time passes, they cause you to wonder. They may seem to lack common sense or people skills. They might be the most efficient or hardworking person on your staff but also, perhaps, the most abrasive at times. They may withdraw from coworkers and acquire a “reputation” as a result. The more you try to talk to them about or question their behavior, the more withdrawn, even sullen, they might get. You then become suspicious or confused, and wonder if you were fooled or lied to at their interview. You may think that they don’t like the job. Often that is not the case; social and environmental factors will be the cause of this behavior and, as you read on, you

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