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Workplace (Monday?) woes!

Ethan

I'm going to keep this brief... but I really want to have a rant. But I also need some away time from the screen after work.

How on earth do NT's make it through the week? I've moved into a new role which requires a bit more of working with other people than I was previously but after today I actually feel exhausted. Already. Like not having a weekend. Within minutes of my logging off I was fast asleep. For 3 hours!

I've pinned it down to the endless circular discussions about stuff. Today was probably 80% waffling and 20% actually getting things done. Seriously - I just need a list of things to do and I'll get it done. But some folk just seem so.... ....disorganised. Why am I having a conversation about the same issue I had on Friday? Why are people only resolving an issue with 3 people when there are 5 involved (they're all doing different things) ?.  Why when writing "how to" guides is it just a steam of consciousness with no layout, bullet-points and logical steps - has anyone ever used instructions before (or read a dummies book for that matter?). Why put something on the "to-do" list, and then go off and then do it anyway - so it didn't need listing in the first place - now I've already planned it into my schedule of things to-do. Why introduce another piece of work - which isn't urgent - on top of the current piece of work - which is? Why ask why I've listed how I crunched some pretty messy data in an addendum along with the crunched data when its sole purpose is to avoid confusion on how the data was crunched and by its very existence it appears to have created the very confusion it was seeking to avoid (really!!)? And why (oh why) are people telling me why they're doing things (I don't need to know why they're doing those things - I don't even need to know they ARE doing those things). What am I supposed to do with that information -why do they think it's important that I know about it? Surely I'd be more productive if time wasn't spent giving me information that I don't actually need. And why when arranging to discuss a piece of work - end up discussing another piece of work !!!!!?!?!

I know it's the chaotic world we live in and people do things with the best of intentions. But every once in a while it becomes existential and while another conversation is on the merry-go-round I have that out-of-body experience where I'm wondering....

"There's got to be a better way to do this".

I'm taking steps - building in buffer time, get tasks agreed up-front where possible. Building time in to do them and being incommunicado. And making sure a stress ball and fiddle/distraction items are close to hand. 

I could go on, but I've felt overloaded today and needed to offload. Done.

Parents

  • I'm sorry to hear of your workplace woes. I also don't know how people get through the working day. I'm waiting for an assessment of autism / ADHD / both / something else and find working with other people really difficult.

  • in reply to whatnots2015

    I find it quite tricky (I do office based work)... mainly because I work to other people who arbitrarily set deadlines (they think they're being being efficient when in fact they're just forcing a rush-botch job) and are too prescriptive as to how they want things done (which isn't always the best way).

    Sadly if I get tired I get tunnel vision and tend to catastrophisize whilst trying to fix everything which leaves me a little bit too critical and confrontational. In the big scheme of things (looks at picture of Milky Way on wall!) it doesn't really matter. Takes a me a few days to get back on track if I don't take care of myself though. 

    Hope your assessment comes through soon. 

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  • in reply to whatnots2015

    I find it quite tricky (I do office based work)... mainly because I work to other people who arbitrarily set deadlines (they think they're being being efficient when in fact they're just forcing a rush-botch job) and are too prescriptive as to how they want things done (which isn't always the best way).

    Sadly if I get tired I get tunnel vision and tend to catastrophisize whilst trying to fix everything which leaves me a little bit too critical and confrontational. In the big scheme of things (looks at picture of Milky Way on wall!) it doesn't really matter. Takes a me a few days to get back on track if I don't take care of myself though. 

    Hope your assessment comes through soon. 

Children
  • in reply to Ethan

    I've just found your reply to my message! Whoops! I used to work in an office but since I gave up my job to relocate when I got married I haven't been able to find an office job. I remember working in one place where I wasn't even allowed to adjust the screen brightness though it was affecting my eyes. I left that job after less than a month, I was ill with anxiety though I didn't recognise it as anxiety at the time. It seemed a really big deal and a catastrophe.

    I tend to criticise myself though in recent meetings at work I've wondered if I've been defensive with my managers, always trying to find a justification for my shortcomings / neurodiverse superpowers. I don't do well sharing work with other people, I'd rather be told what to do then just get on with it rather than trying to work out who's done their fair share and who hasn't.

    I'm bracing myself for a two year wait for an assessment, that's if my referral makes it to that stage. In the two years before covid only 6 adults were diagnosed in my local authority area, I remember reading it somewhere.