Hi,
Just out of curiosity, which job sectors do people currently work in, or have worked in, in the past?
I work in adult social care, specifically learning disabilities /ASC, after exploring numerous other sectors that turned out to be ill suited to my motivation, social and preferred working styles (theatre / film /tv, admin. temping, call centres (yuck !), harvest work).
That's great -- in that case you should have no trouble finding what you're looking for.
I do freelance TESOL teaching from home mainly these days, working with both adults and children. I once did interview training skills trainings to doctors who wanted to emigrate. I also do proof readings, even translations of simple texts and documents.
Whilst still in the UK I did readings at psychic fairs, using tarot and astrology. I used to teach astrology at the local uni too, until the hard-line science brigade noticed and pulled the plug on undergraduates being able to use this as part of a module. The 90's recession hit that badly though, it hit most things badly. I disliked the way a lot of amateur astronomers try to get into your head though and the theosophical underpinnings of it all.
The most important thing on my life is my creative/artistic path and I hope to be able to attend more fairs in the future and to find better galleries to promote this, as well as to reach the kind of peoe who respond to what I do.
I run my own engineering consultancy and have come out as high functioning. I now use neuro-diversity in our strap lines
Oh, if working from home is something someone wants he will leave the company. Then they will need to spend time and resources to find a new person, to teach the new person.
In the UK already 4 200 000 people regularly work from home.
Employers may not necessarily care about this. One of the key tricks in negotiation is to find out why it would benefit the other person
Precisely.
California's employer probably now has him pegged as someone who is out for himself, rather than someone who is wholly committed to the company.
The harder he pushes now, the harder they'll push back. So to get what you want you have to play smarter and find another tack.
I am not trying to be nasty here, simply honest, having been on the company end of such discussions before.
Even if the employer wholly trusts California, they may be concerned about the risk of setting a precedent that would enable the less honest individuals in the department to demand "working" from home on the basis of equal treatment ("you let California do it, so why not us...?"). This is why the situation isn't black and white, and the employer typically needs the ability to pull the plug if world + dog start trying it on.
Although IT work can often be done anywhere, the most efficient means of communication is F2F. You can check your understanding in real-time and draw pictures on a real whiteboard beside your desks that will stay put for months if necessary. Many jobs now require cross-functional teams to work together, rather than each individual taking their own task to their cave to work on alone.
We have a Quiet Room at work, where you can go to get some peace. It's set out with comfy chairs and they're adding in a wall mural of a sunlit forest soon. People read in there, I've also seen a man curled up sleeping on the sofa in his lunch hour!
within the team I work, the main TW skills required are an ability to listen to others, to treat colleagues in a respectful way, to contribute & share ideas, to work cooperatively and share tasks.
You have just described my company's idea of "Teamwork", too, and is also how I define teamwork. It's getting the tasks done in the best way by the people most suited.
If this is something I want, I will be depressed and unhappy until I will get it.
Employers may not necessarily care about this. One of the key tricks in negotiation is to find out why it would benefit the other person - it's much easier to let them convince themselves it's the right thing to do, rather than you trying to convince them. Simply put, if you can trust your employees to do the work at home, then they probably will, and you end up with more work done for the same cost, and the quality of work will be higher for those that work best on their own.
Of course, I'm coming from the viewpoint of being autistic, so this may not apply to "normal" people who require the social aspect as a fundamental part of getting the job done. If you need that social aspect as the glue to keeping the work running, then working from home can be isolating and counter-productive.
People in I.T. are stereotypically seen as being more antisocial than other professions, so I'm probably also biased towards that. If you work in a job that is more prized with having more affinity with computers than people, then working from home - providing they can still do the same work as when in the office, which we can - is a no-brainer.
I've been at the same company for 17 years, so we didn't have the ability to work from home when I started, that's only happened in the last few years as technology made it much easier. Also, in I.T. it's really easy to work from home because all the work is on a computer. For my employer, it makes a lot of sense because people can work on the train, or at home, or in other offices, or in a hotel room, so all that time can be made productive.
If I were to go for a job at another company, I would definitely talk to them about the ability to work from home in my interview - because I've experienced the benefits and it really does make people more productive, so I can talk excitedly and with confidence about it. I was unsure when I first started doing it - I mean, logically if people are at home, you can't keep an eye on them and make sure they're not on the Xbox all day - but in reality, we all end up doing more work at home because there's no commute, and you sometimes work through lunch if it's a difficult problem you're trying to solve, and I usually stay on for longer when usually I'd be leaving to catch my bus home. Plus, since we use Skype to communicate you can always see who's on or who's idle. But, mainly, we're empowered and trusted to get on with the work that we know needs doing. Everyone sees the results when the problem is solved and the customer is singing your praises to your boss. Can't do that if you've been playing Call of Duty all day.
This makes no sense to me.
If this is something I want, I will be depressed and unhappy until I will get it.
And I will keep looking for that everywhere around until I will get it.
I am not surprised.
Working from home can cause lots of difficulties for employers. It tends to be a privilege, not an automatic right, and also needs to be something that a manager can withdraw at any time, without really needing to give a reason.
Have you framed the discussion in terms of monetary value to your employer, or have you focussed more on what you want to get out of it?
I work 5 days a week and realise that this number of days in my current role is energetically too draining if I also wish to pursue interests that have a social aspect to them.
My preferred balance would be 2 or 3 days in my current role in addition to a good enough second income from being a self-employed Etsy art /craft seller or specialist trainer. This is my longer-term plan.
I notice that not all social contact is draining for me, it's just the superficial chit-chat and social lubricant stuff which I find a lot of work. I do find that other types of shared interest-based conversations can re-energise me. I'm gradually recognising more and more of the ways in which I am drained or re-energised and writing a list so I can work smarter.
Some of the strategies I could implement to find more opportunities to re-energise at work could be going for a walk around to 'check the building is ok', going to a local quiet cafe for lunch or locking myself in an empty room at lunchtime. The toilets, unfortunately, tend to be busy and some of them unisex multi-cubicle rooms.
With regards to your particular circumstances, one approach could be to seek a relief 0 zero contract in social care and work one day a week to test how it affects you. This should minimise any impact on benefits and would allow you time to explore the role. You could then step up the number of days and look for a permanent contract when and if you find it do-able.
Do let us know how your search progresses and if you would like any tips about approaching your application/ or interview then I'm happy to chat.
I hope this reply gets through, I'm having keyboard issues. This is my 5th attempt.
Thanks for telling me about your job, because it really helps to hear from someone with autism in the sort of role I would like to have. It helps me to feel that I could do it too.
I also have problems with tiredness, and have to recharge when I can, but it can be hard to find the time and a place in which to be alone. But it doesn't need to be much, just a few minutes in the loo (reading a book, that is) can help to break up the day.
I have a family, and my husband is unemployed, and so I'm the breadwinner at the moment. I need to be pretty sure that whatever career choices I make will be sustainable.
I know that HR departments realise that the way job roles are advertised is an art in its own right and that subtle differences in phrasing influence who applies. A carefully worded job and person specification can increase the numbers of suitable applicants significantly.
The idealised social / teamwork skill set that you mention would perhaps be more likely to be seen in senior management/executive circles. I would say within the team I work, the main TW skills required are an ability to listen to others, to treat colleagues in a respectful way, to contribute & share ideas, to work cooperatively and share tasks. I guess it's more about a willingness to try and be motivated by good intention.
Your feeling of anxiety is real, so I think it's less about attitude and more a question of finding a good organisation that's supportive and does it best to encourage and develop staff. From what I've observed most people will experience a degree of nervousness and anxiety when they are first learning to express themselves in a team, though this may be more intense for people on the spectrum.
I really encourage you to apply for jobs in social care with people with learning disabilities / ASC if that's where you feel drawn. I suspect one or two of my co-workers may also be on the spectrum and think there may be quite a few of us working in social care out there!
I have a problem with tiredness too, which is why I couldn't continue the night shipts
I have a question to those who work from home.
Did you look for positions that offer working from home and got it immediately or later after started your jobs.
I am trying to get working from home from my employer and it is a battle. I would say a war.
They absolutely do not want to hear about that.
Are you prepared to move (or crash-pad commute) to find work?
Try somewhere like www.arm.com/.../experienced.html
I've been thinking about what you asked here, and it made me realise that I have a quite stereotyped idea of the "ideal employee", and basically it's someone very unlike me.
I assume that a person with strong social skills knows what to say in difficult situations and can motivate and encourage others. And that someone with good teamworking abilities (is that a word?) doesn't have to force themselves to join in or speak up in a group. Nor do they tremble inwardly after making a contribution or fret afterwards about what they said and how they said it.
I can see that I need to work on this one, and probably work on my attitude.
Yes, I find the behaviour of other staff members in general more challenging than that of the clients where I work.
