Autistic-friendly careers advice

Have you thought of writing down to clear your head and help organise your thoughts? It might help you find what you really want to do.

I would suggest not rushing in to anything. Look at your skills and what you enjoy. Take it slowly though, don't rush. You will find the answers and it will be worth waiting for. 

I was in a similar situation a few years ago and I eventually ended up working in a museum related to my special interest. It’s calm, quiet and people enjoyed my info dumping lol.

It was the ideal career for me but I didn't realise it until I wrote down my interests and skills and then it was staring me right in the face. 

That's a good idea. I think I know my strengths and the things I like, but marrying that with a job role is more complicated because I need to know that such a job role actually exists (if that makes sense).

Certainly the next step is to speak to some kind of careers advisor (who might be neurodivergent themselves) to get more of an idea.

HMO said:

I need to know that such a job role actually exists

You have a chicken and egg scenario here - you won't prepare this sort of role research until you know the role exists but without it you won't know if there is a demand for your special skills.

Since this thinking is cyclical then I suggest you follow the thoughts of Charles Fort: "one measures a circle starting anywhere".

So the simplest option is to start with what is simplest - list your interests, tease out the skills that this had developed for you and work this into a CV to sell yourself.

Next start researching job adverts for this sort of role, what companies use this sort of role in your area (you probably need to consider a commutable range of up to an hours travel) and start to learn more about them so you can talk about them in the event you get an interview.

Any role is never a nice, clean, unicorns and rainbows perfect fit but you have to weight that against the tangible positives of an income and the less tangible positives of self esteem, career development and confidence building.

Where you find yourself doubting your abilities or see walls being built, bulldoze them down and get stuck into the drudge of the job hunt.

I used to have to put out 100+ applications per interview and I have a great CV (32 years of continuous IT experience in lots of great companies) so don't expect it to fall into place quickly. It takes persistence and it helps if you treat the hunt like a job itself - build a routine around it and put the hours in, learn related skills while you wait and keep a positive attitude.

The alternative is going self employed which brings different risks and challenges but can be more suitable for your autistic sensitivities.

HMO said:

I need to know that such a job role actually exists

You have a chicken and egg scenario here - you won't prepare this sort of role research until you know the role exists but without it you won't know if there is a demand for your special skills.

Since this thinking is cyclical then I suggest you follow the thoughts of Charles Fort: "one measures a circle starting anywhere".

So the simplest option is to start with what is simplest - list your interests, tease out the skills that this had developed for you and work this into a CV to sell yourself.

Next start researching job adverts for this sort of role, what companies use this sort of role in your area (you probably need to consider a commutable range of up to an hours travel) and start to learn more about them so you can talk about them in the event you get an interview.

Any role is never a nice, clean, unicorns and rainbows perfect fit but you have to weight that against the tangible positives of an income and the less tangible positives of self esteem, career development and confidence building.

Where you find yourself doubting your abilities or see walls being built, bulldoze them down and get stuck into the drudge of the job hunt.

I used to have to put out 100+ applications per interview and I have a great CV (32 years of continuous IT experience in lots of great companies) so don't expect it to fall into place quickly. It takes persistence and it helps if you treat the hunt like a job itself - build a routine around it and put the hours in, learn related skills while you wait and keep a positive attitude.

The alternative is going self employed which brings different risks and challenges but can be more suitable for your autistic sensitivities.

I'm a bit hit and miss with kicking doors down. Sometimes I feel fired up enough to send out emails left right and centre, and occasionally I'll get an email back which will scare me because I'm worried I won't be able to do it or I'll have 3 different offers to pick from (nice problem to have)...

I don't expect it to be the dream job but I expect it to be something I will not dread doing.