My Support Forums - View Single Post - Autism Spectrum Disorder and employment

The_little_didgee · Jul 08, 2018, 07:55 AM

Thank you all for the replies. I appreciate it. Usually people don't respond to my threads.

Quote:

Originally Posted by healingme4me

Would your college give you the chance to work with career counselors to aid you in seeking the right fit for employment?

The program has an 8 month co-op placement. There is a course that we must take in the first semester that is all about looking for work. I will have to ask about 'hidden' disabilities. I need assistance with this, because I don't really have any idea how to go about finding work without embarrassing myself.

I'm hoping there is a company that will hire a quiet lady.

Quote:

Originally Posted by healingme4me

I once had a job lined up for customer service then had the rug pulled out my starting day because of perceptions of being quiet, which I am. Oddly, I've since worked a variety of jobs where that's actually one of my finer points, loads of positive feedback through the years. I know how to listen. Customer service isn't sales, ya know?

I hate it when employers give tests. They really don't mean much. I literally occilate on the Introvert/Extrovert scale. :\

I don't know if that helps. I loathe being boxed in and categorized.

How has your quiet disposition helped besides being a good listener?

It seems like people only appreciate bubbly smiley people who ooze confidence. Grrrrrrr. I refuse to fake it, because it isn't me. Faking was one of the main reasons I got sick.

I won't ever apply to jobs that require medicals and psych tests ever. I refuse to expose my psych history. Applying to that grocery store chain was the one and only time I experienced that. It was an IBM retail test.

I'm good one on one and can provide decent customer service. I get referrals for clock repairs and have to interact with the customers. They seem to like me and don't mind my quarks.

Last year I tried working in a watch repair shop. It was just a trial. My job was to work on clocks, that is it. I told the owner that I was not suitable for serving customers, which he appeared okay with. My job was to fix clocks at one of the benches. He had me take apart plastic quartz movements to fix them. That was tolerable. What I didn't like were all the people coming and going. It made it impossible to work.

I showed up for a second day and was told that I needed to smile and be cheery. I'm not very expressive with strangers. I thought, I was just there to help with his backlog of clock repairs, not serving customers. My muted affect apparently was a big problem for him.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tortie

Well, I posed your question to my husband, who has ASD, is introverted and works in manufacturing.

He says that the work of a good tool and die maker will sell and speak for itself. Whether you are accepted for your traits or not largely depends on the shop, and the culture there. As long as you plan on staying in that part of the country where there is still demand for tool and die makers, you should stick with it.

I'm hoping my talent will help me out, that someone will see beyond my introverted nature.

I have visited a variety of shops. There was one that I really liked and was able to see myself working there. The people were nice and it was a small place. Another place I visited wasn't suitable. They mostly hired people off the street. One didn't need to have any machining skills at all. All that was required was a background in construction, which was a surprise to me. Most places want people with education and skills. E.g. read drawings and use precision measuring tools.

Quote:

Originally Posted by seesaw

I think you could work with a career counselor to learn how to sell yourself in the interview.

I hope to get some assistance from the college with this. Right now I feel like all my traits are not desired by anyone.

I'm with a company that is funded by the province. Since I am moving, I will be closing my file shortly. I have given up on the job search anyways. There is no point, now.

The agency has not been very helpful, mostly because I have no qualifications to apply for more suitable work. Ottawa is a government city. There isn't much manufacturing jobs here. Toolmaker and general machinist apprenticeships are very rare finds here. The only type of work I am qualified for is retail, which I am obviously not suited for. Even my psychiatrist agrees with me on this.